I received an email yesterday that made me angry. It was sent by a friend whom I had responded once before with a type of sarcastic remark, but I did not seem to get through to her about what I felt. Well, I have now. Steve said I should have let it go. Probably…but I could not stand to receive any more garbage and she seems to be the major source of it. I will copy it and my reply and let you be the judge.

Her forwarded email…she has problems with writing her own, all I usually get from her is forwarded.

If I were president my Inaugural speech would be as follows:

WOULDN’T IT BE GREAT TO TURN ON THE TV AND HEAR GEORGE W. BUSH GIVE THE FOLLOWING SPEECH’

My Fellow Americans:

As you all know, the defeat of the Iraq regime has been completed. Since congress does not want to spend any more money on this war, our mission in Iraq is complete.

This morning I gave the order for a complete removal of all American forces from Iraq. This action will be complete within 30 days. It is now time to begin the reckoning.

Before me, I have two lists. One list contains the names of countries which have stood by our side during the Iraq conflict. This list is short. The United Kingdom, Spain, Bulgaria, Australia, and Poland are some of the countries listed there.

The other list contains everyone not on the first list. Most of the worlds nations are on that list. My press secretary will be distributing copies of both lists later this evening.

Let me start by saying that effective immediately, foreign aid to those nations on List 2 ceases immediately and indefinitely. The money saved during the first year alone will pretty much pay for the costs of the Iraqi war.

The American people are no longer going to pour money into third world countries and watch those government leaders grow fat on corruption.

Need help with a famine’ Wrestling with an epidemic’ Call France.

In the future, together with Congress, I will work to redirect this money toward solving the vexing social problems we still have at home.

On that note, a word to terrorist organizations: Screw with us and we will hunt you down and eliminate you and all your friends from the face of the earth. Thirsting for a gutsy country to terrorize’ Try France, or maybe China.

To Israel and the Palestinian Authority: Yo, boys. Work out a peace deal NOW. Just note that Camp David is closed. Maybe all of you can go to Russia for negotiations. They have some great palaces there. Big tables, too. I am ordering the immediate severing of diplomatic relations with France, Germany, and Russia. Thanks for all your help, comrades. We are retiring from NATO as well. Bon chance, mes amis.

I have instructed the Mayor of New York City to begin towing the many UN diplomatic vehicles located in Manhattan with more than two unpaid parking tickets to sites where those vehicles will be stripped, shredded and crushed. I don’t care about whatever treaty pertains to this. You creeps have tens of thousands of unpaid tickets. Pay those tickets tomorrow or watch your precious Benzes, Beamers, and limos be turned over to some of the finest chop shops in the world. I love New York.

A special note to our neighbors: Canada is on List 2. Since we are likely to be seeing a lot more of each other, you folks might want to try not pissing us off for a change. Mexico is also on List 2. President Fox and his entire corrupt government really need an attitude adjustment. I will have a couple extra tank and infantry divisions sitting around. Guess where I am going to put em’ Yep, border security. So start doing something with your oil. Oh, by the way, the United States is abrogating the NAFTA treaty — starting now.

We are tired of the one-way highway.

It is time for America to focus on its own welfare and its own citizens. Some will accuse us of isolationism. I answer them be saying, “darn tootin.”

Nearly a century of trying to help folks live a decent life around the world has only earned us the undying enmity of just about everyone on the planet. It is time to eliminate hunger in America. It is time to eliminate homelessness in America. It is time to eliminate World Cup Soccer from America.

To the nations on List 1, a final thought. Thanks guys. We owe you and we won’t forget. To the nations on List 2, a final
thought. Drop dead.

God bless America.

Thank you and good night.

If you can read this, thank a teacher. If you are reading it in English, thank a soldier.

My response: This is a typical republican response.
My response to her is as follows:

Sherrell,
I love you very much, but the election of Bush in my eyes is an affront to
christianity. Jesus taught us to love thy neighbor as ourselves. He never
once preached war. Granted he did die for our sins, but his death seems to have been for naught when educated people continue to think that the first way to keep you safe is to bomb and kill people in other countries. It
distresses me to think because a woman chooses to have an abortion it is
more dangerous than to send the children we raised and protected all their lives to a country to be killed, degraded and possibly tortured. Please do not send me any more letters in reference to him.
It is hard for me to understand how the people in my generation can approve of the war in Iraq. But who am I to judge those that do. But my feelings have been formed by my religious beliefs. War should be the last resort. People should be allowed to choose how they live as long as they do not threaten our life. But we take those individuals to task, not an entire group of individuals just because they have the same religion.
I have friends that are homosexual. It is not my place to change them.
I have friends that were killed in Vietnam, or came back ill and died from
something received over there, or even worse came back unable to lead a
productive life. Did we truly solve the problem. No. Is Korea solved’ No.
Are we solving the problem in Iraq’ NO All I pray for now is that, God will
intervene and help us out of the turmoil.
I thank the soldiers that make a committment and stand by it. It takes
integrity to do so, even when you do not believe in the cause. (And I knew
quite a few of them in Vietnam and some in this war.) As a mother, I pray
every night that they will all come back safely and soon.
No, I am not happy that Bush was elected. I am in fact extremely depressed.
I dread the things that he will do in the next four years. Hopefully, he
will not have the power that I feel he has now to do any more damage than what he has done already.
I want to hear from you, but if you can not accept my beliefs, then I am
deeply sorry. I love you and respect your right to believe differently, but
I know I can not change you and will not try.
Love, Claudia

I also had a letter from one of my classmates that I had saw at the reunion. This is a very good letter to let people know from the source what it is like….

Nam was a meat grinder. I quit Pharmacy School at UT after my 4th year (of 6) to be a Marine grunt. Altho I was against the war, I felt obligated as an American to earn my right to protest. Besides, I felt bulletproof. I had the confidence to survive. Better me than someone who couldn’t handle himself. If I saved even one kid’s life, that justifys it for me.
To go from a war protester to a marine SGT running 3-man assassination teams was not exactly what I had in mind when I volunteered. But I gave it my best shot, literally. I did that for 11 months and 27 days. Six days after leaving Nam, I was discharged into a lion’s den. No shrink, no
decompression. Just pot and alcohol to get me through. Looking back, I think surviving Nam was the worst part of the war. I was diagnosed with PTSD seven yrs ago and am now in therapy. The sad part is that I killed better people than the folks I live among. I’ve lost all respect for the average American, and there’s no therapy for that. I came to despise the pampered flag wavers who contributed no more to this country than a vote to send poor kids to war. And it’s happening again.

I returned to protest the war, but from first-hand experience. Of the 3.5
million who served in the SE Asia theater, only about 15% of us saw combat on a regular basis. I earned my right to bitch.

When I returned, I wanted to talk about my experiences, but no one cared to listen. My girlfriend at the time was like you. She preferred to know nothing. So for 15 yrs, I never spoke of my experiences except with those who knew.

My Scout Sniper Platoon was a secretive bastard unit that was pretty much treated like a crazy aunt in the basement. We were misfits who did stuff few people wanted to do. If you get the chance, see the movie SNIPER with Tom Beringer. It’s about Scout Snipers, but after VN and with a lot of hollywood. Still, you’ll see what I’m talking about. Even other Marines shied away from us. But now, we’re infamous. Because we did so well in VN, America now maintains a permanent sniper force. Prior to Nam, all American sniper units were disbanned between wars. Because snipers aim at what they kill, they were viewed as premeditated murderers. Duh!

I now give talks to school kids from Jr High to college. I’m also Austin
Chapter President of the Tx Assn of Vietnam Veterans, as well as State
President. Pictures of me appear in several sniper books, and I operate a
veteran related business so that I won’t have to deal with regular people.
Life ain’t great, but I’m working with it.

Unfortunately for those who hung onto my friendship, my anger will never go away. I’ve learned to manage it for the most part, but I’ll never be BEST ALL AROUND again. I lost a lot of time and some wonderful ladies who never understood. There is no healing for combat stress, Claudia, only a bandaide to cover a sucking chest wound.

And for the rush and the power to deal life and death…..I’d do it all over
again. How’s that for a sick puppy’

Don

This is what I heard from many soldiers, but most did not say they would go back. He is more than likely not the only one that feels that way. They just do not fit back into our society. I hope for his sake that he will find peace. But I am afraid this will not happen.