To Our Afghanistan Veterans
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I’m aware that our veterans, especially those who served in Afghanistan, are having a tough time reconciling their experiences and the headlines right now.
My friend, a veteran, received this from the VA today and asked for people to share it.
God love our vets. Your service matters, it matters to all of us, it matters to our freedoms.
To those who served in Afghanistan particularly: the headlines are about the execs, the unaccountable decision makers — it was because of you that my son, sixth-months-old on 9/11 — now my sons — and so many other children were able to grow up these past 20 years and have wonderful childhoods without terror levels and terror threats. Because of your sacrifices bad people who wanted to exact further horrors on the United States weren’t able to make it here to do so. You kept them confined there. You kept the monsters at bay.
Thank you. Thank you for purchasing that normalcy for our children, for all of us, and for millions of others.
You have a nation’s grateful heart.
Let’s all check in on our friends and family who are veterans. That this was sent out, coupled with the discussions I’ve seen online, shows me they really need it — and for those serving there and those preparing to go there, we are praying for your protection and your mental peace. Thank you.
Spent time @ Bagram, J’bad, and Kandahar. Tough pill to swallow. Spent 28 yrs in AF and I always told my subordinates: presidents come and go; the soldier stays true. Squawk 2 and press on.
I finally broke down and cried about this today. I’m usually able to take any bad news in stride with stoicism as a default after my time in the military. I originally joined to not only fight for my country, but because I learned about the Taliban before 9/11 and the horrors they were inflicting on women. I wanted to go eliminate that kind of evil and bring hope to the women who were committing mass suicides because they no longer wanted to live like that. So I joined and picked a combat job. Circumstances finally aligned militarily and I deployed to Afghanistan for my second and third deployments. The last one was the most meaningful for me because I got to actually do my job as a USAF TACP and call in airstrikes and end a lot of Taliban fighters “JIHAD” prematurely. (For the record, the men I look up to in the military have done vastly more in their time. They were they examples for those of us that followed after)
So I got to do my job and my goal to remove evil and I felt that sense of accomplishment. Perhaps one of those I baptized in fire and shrapnel would have gone on to terrorize a young girl or boy which was common, steal their innocence and further lead them to a hopeless life of slavery.
The biggest feeling initially is that we went and fought for nothing now because of what has taken place. That is not true, we all served for a REASON! The coward in office now cannot take that reason you raised your hand away from you, nobody can, ever! I didn’t serve for nothing now, I still served for a reason! That service has simply now been made a wasted effort is all I feel and why I feel the tears come so unexpectedly.
I still pray everyday for you Dana!