Quote:
Originally Posted by Gravdigr
Respect the people who made it possible for you to have free speech.
Or GTFO.
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In the 24+ years that I spent on active duty in the Army, including the first Gulf War and especially after 2003, I can't think of a thing that the military has done to guarantee any of the great freedoms we enjoy here in the United States. I've been to Iraq twice, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Jordan, Egypt, Kuwait and Qutar. Nothing that we have done has had any impact one way or the other on your ability to exercise free speech here in the United States. The last time that I can think of that the military was called upon to guarantee rights secured by the 13th, 14th, and 15th amendments to our constitution was during the enforcement of desegregation of schools in the south. I am a fan though of the sentiment put forth in the book "Stormship Troopers". When one is willing to lay their life on the line for the body politic, that deserves our respect.
I will make this distinction though: the safety and security of the United States and her interests is vastly different than securing your freedoms here within our borders. Vastly different because there is no existential threat to the United States. None. Getting hit and being put down are two vastly different things as well. But, that is probably another conversation for another thread.