Support Our Troops--By Doing More Than Buying a Ribbon Magnet!

This morning on the news, I heard a news story that made me sad. It was about the financial troubles being experiences by the soldiers and family members of the national guard and reserve.

Currently, 40% of the troops deployed in Iraq are from the National Guard or Reserve. These are men and women many of whom are making less than half of what they earned in their civilian jobs. And, with the current economy tight, few employers are willing and/or able to make up the salary differences for their called-up employees.

The bottom line is that this war is affecting everybody, and is doing the most harm to the people who can least afford it. Geez, that theme has been played so many times it's starting to sound like a broken record.

I think about this every time I see a big, gas-hogging SUV with one of those ridiculous "support our troops" magnetized yellow ribbons on the back. Or every time I see one of said ribbons, period. I'm thinking that these people probably think they're being patriotic because they spent ten bucks at Wal-Mart to buy a ridiculous piece of plastic that shows how much they love their country. They wouldn't know what patriotism was if it smacked them across the face.

(Which, coincidentally, is what I sometimes feel like doing when I see one of these pseudo-patriots.)

I can't help but wonder how many of these suburban SUV warriors have sent their kids to the army recruiting office to sign them up for service. Or how many of them are veterans themselves.

I freely admit I am not a veteran. Nor, at my current age and physical condition, am I likely to become one. But I appreciate the sacrifice our soldiers, sailors, and marines are making for their country, and the tremendous burden it is placing on them and their families

An aside: If it ever gets to the point where the army need me to join up, you'd better start learning to speak Chinese!

So I have done my small part to help. Today I made a donation to the U.S.O. And I encourage anyone reading this to do likewise (www.uso.org). It takes all of 30 seconds to complete the online donation form. Or you can also donate to U.S.A. Cares (www.usacares.us). Or any number of other worthy organizations that help provide aid and comfort to our servicemen and their families.

That is a much better way of showing your support for our troops than simply slapping a tacky magnetic ribbon on the back of your car.

I also repeat that it is my intention to donate any money I receive from clicks on my Google Adsense ads to my local church, which has its own outreach program for families of members in the military deployed overseas.

Support our troops--by actually supporting them!