I Can't Imagine My World Without A Veteran

I have much to thank our Veterans for.  Our way of life in these great United States is the best in the world.  Even if we think our leaders making bad choices for our country, our poor live better than royalty in many of the world's countries.  We take for granted our freedoms people in other countries die for every day.  And our Veterans are the ones who have made it possible.

My grandfather fought in WWI; my father, father-in-law, and uncles fought in WWII; my brother is a Marine; my husband was in the Air Force and his brother was one of those Special Forces soldiers who take the most dangerous jobs.

Our family history tracks family heroes back to the Confederate Army and even back to the American Revolution.  In the South we still refer to the Civil War as the War for Southern Independence. 

True dat!

I just can't imagine living in a country without the freedoms we have today  - with religion controlling what women can do, not being able to vote for a candidate of our choosing and being afraid to openly state what we think of the country's leaders without fear of reprisal - or worse.

Oh, sure, there are idiots who might disagree with my views, but the worst they can do is yell at me, not kill me or jail and torture me.

I have long held the belief that we should conscript those who are on welfare and government assistance programs requiring them to serve 2 years in this country's army (or branch of their choice).  It would get troublemakers off the streets, teach usable skills for future employment, give them pride in our country and give us a standing military.  I am not even opposed to requiring high school graduates to serve in an armed forces before being given matching number of months in a college of some sort.  That would certainly raise the level of our workforce and add taxpayers to the rolls!

Yes, thank you to the veterans in my family and yours for giving us the gift of their service so we can breath air charged with freedom if not tolerance.