Happy Birthday America!!

I've been trying to write a blog entry about the 4th of July for a couple of days. Every time I get started I end up getting emotional and writing a lot of gibberish. I guess I'll just make a couple of points and call it good.

• I am a veteran and a patriot.


• I am very proud to be an American.


• I would like to think that all Americans share my view but sadly I don't think that's true.


• I support the war in Iraq.


• I support the troops fighting abroad.


• I don't understand why many people don't believe I could support both. It does not have to be a one or the other situation.

Those of you who have served in the military, whether in war or in peace, understand that, given the opportunity, our military could take on any foe, at any time, on any turf. Unfortunately, war is as much about politics as military strategy.

I have a few people I'd like to thank for my freedom and the freedom of my children and my country:

Thank you to the 4,445 Americans who died on the battlefield in the American Revolution

Thank you to the 214,938 Americans (both sides) who died on the battlefield in the Civil War

Thank you to the 53,402 Americans who died on the battlefield in WWI

Thank you to the 291,557 Americans who died on the battlefield in WWII (including 3,393 on D-Day alone)

Thank you to the 33,741 Americans who died on the battlefield in the Korean War

Thank you to the 47,424 Americans who died on the battlefield in the Vietnam War

Thank you to the 147 Americans who died on the battlefield in the Gulf War (Desert Storm)

Thank you to the 468 Americans who died on the battlefield in Afghanistan (Enduring Freedom)

Thank you to the 4,000 Americans who have died so far in the Iraqi War (as of 03/2008).

Thank you to all our nations service men and women for volunteering your service to preserve the principles our country stands for.

The tree of liberty must be refreshed from time to time with the blood of
patriots and tyrants. Thomas Jefferson

Spec4-J, Saudi Arabia, 08/91

Here are my sources. For some reason the VA site didn't have any numbers on the two current wars going on right now so I went with Wikipedia.

http://www1.va.gov/opa/fact/amwars.asp

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coalition_casualties_in_Afghanistan

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Casualties_of_the_Iraq_War#U.S._armed_forces