# What does "support our troops" mean, exactly? **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [October 7, 2004, 7:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-support-our-troops-mean-exactly/268080 "2004-10-07T19:40:31Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![glee](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/b5a626/32.png) [@glee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/glee)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2004, 10:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-support-our-troops-mean-exactly/268080/61 "2004-10-08T22:56:53Z")
> [@Evil One](#): > > This post will probably be a waste of time, considering the tone of the majority of the posters on this thread, but I’ll give it a shot. > > At the moment you read this, there is an aircraft carrier sitting just below the opening to the Persian Gulf. There has been one there every day for decades. The men and women aboard it have not seen their families in months and will not see them for about three months more. > > At this moment, there are sailors under the water on Ballistic Missle Submarines, making someone think twice before lobbing a missile at the United States. They, too, have been doing that for nearly fifty years. > > Those are just two examples. Many of you are rolling your eyes now because you think you know where I’m going with this…and you are correct. If you just can’t take a viewpoint that does not mirror your own any further, I invite you to stop reading. I would add a sarcastic aside at this point, but I want to respect the forum rules. > > The point is that there are thousands of young men and women out there at this very moment that are doing things that many of you are incapable or unwilling to do. You may disagree with the goals of the authority that commands them, but they are there just the same. They were there when President Clinton was in power and everything was sweetness and light, and they are there now while Satan rules from his Oval Office lair. > > Millions of people have a connection to the troops that are currently serving…be it familial, fraternal, emotional. Millions of people are unapologetically patriotic. And I’m willing to bet that those stickers are meant to say just what they do. “Support our Troops”. True, some people may display them to say “Shut up, you commies…”…but remember…diversity of thought is what makes this country great. It would be awful for everyone to be in idealogical lockstep, now wouldn’t it… You obviously didn’t read my earlier post. Here’s a key part of it again: ‘The father of a soldier killed in Iraq threatened to hang himself on the West Pier in Brighton yesterday, moments before Tony Blair’s speech at the Labour Party conference.’ > **[News](https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/)** > > Latest breaking news, including politics, crime and celebrity. Find stories, updates and expert opinion. This man **loved** his son. He was **proud** of him being a soldier. And he was driven to despair **because a scumbag politician sent his son to die for a lie**. And if you offered him a ‘support our troops’ sticker, he’d probably spit in your face. Because this grieving father of a soldier knows the difference **between serving your country patriotically and falling for political propaganda**. As for your ludicrous statement ‘The point is that there are thousands of young men and women out there at this very moment that are doing things that many of you are incapable or unwilling to do.’, you simply have no idea about anyone else’s view. My father fought in WW2. By the grace of God, he wasn’t one of the 450,000 UK casualties. **He fought because it was right to save Europe from an evil regime that was ready to commit genocide. He fought under honourable, honest leadership. Prime Minister Winston Churchill didn’t exploit the war for personal gain, or electoral success. We fought as a united country and we had allies all over the World. And we left the World a better place**. So when we see Bush invade a country which had no WMD’s; when we see companies like Halliburton and Bechtel (closely linked to the Cabinet) making massive war profits; when we see Bush desperately claiming a connection to 9/11; when we see Bush destroying the world-wide sympathy for the US after 9/11; when we see Bush making the World a more dangerous place: - **we weep for the brave US servicemen who have died in Iraq**. Because they died needlessly. And if you can’t understand that, I pity you. ---
**Author:** ![Loopydude](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e56c9b/32.png) [@Loopydude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loopydude)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2004, 11:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-support-our-troops-mean-exactly/268080/62 "2004-10-08T23:56:48Z")
I hesitate to even bring this up, as merely asking the question might indicate to certain parties that I am in league with al Qaeda, but what the hell: Why do our troops deserve our unquestioning support? Soldiers are people; nothing more, nothing less. Some of them are perfectly fine individuals, and some of them are most certainly not. Some of them risk life-and-limb to pull wounded civilians from bombed out houses, some of them strip those civilians naked and make them simulate fallatio on each other. Many of them are neither saints nor villians, and got into the military because they wanted a job and thought the armed forces were a good way to go. I’m guessing a fair percentage of our volunteer military personnel had little appreciation for what might be expected of them when they signed their lives away, and now rue the decision bitterly. Others signed on the day after 9/11/01 because they wanted to serve their country in the War on Terror, knowing full well they may pay the ultimate price. Some of them may just want to kill people, and think this would be a fun way to try. Some of them are great humanitarians who want to bring freedom and democracy to oppressed people around the world, while protecting the country they love. Some of them didn’t have the grades to get into college, figured Uncle Sam would write their meal ticket in the Armed Forces, could give a rat’s tail about politics, and couldn’t tell Osama from Obama. Now all of these sorts of folks, and many more, are in a War in Iraq. Some of them are representing our country honorably. Some, as we have seen at Abu Ghraib, are not. I’d rather, especially after Abu Ghraib, grant my support on an individual basis. When I see a soldier, I don’t instantly think “Hero” or “Baby Killer”, or anything in between. I see somebody doing the job they signed on to do, and I guess at this point I rather expect them to do it well, since I’m helping to pay for it. I do feel bad for those who have been trapped by stop-loss measures, but as a child of a veteran, I can say with great confidence that you should _never_ trust the military brass to keep their word to you if they can find a way not to. That’s just how the system works. So, if “Support Our Troops” means I must automatically revere our Men and Women in Uniform simply because they are soldiers to be a good American and human being, I reject such a notion absolutely. ---
**Author:** ![ExTank](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/35a633/32.png) [@ExTank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ExTank)\ **Post date:** [October 9, 2004, 3:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-support-our-troops-mean-exactly/268080/63 "2004-10-09T15:24:41Z")
**Loopydude:** > [@](#): > > So, if “Support Our Troops” means I must automatically revere our Men and Women in Uniform simply because they are soldiers to be a good American and human being, I reject such a notion absolutely. And nobody said you had to do otherwise. Having been in a “War” (compared to whats going on now, I don’t think I have much right to call Desert Shield/Storm a war), I can empathize with the heartache of separation and uncertainty. Sure, I raised my hand and volunteered. Heck, unlike most, I even considered the possibility of going to war (two years in the 2nd Armored Cavalry burned away any foolish notions that all was “Well In The World”), and when Saddam invaded Kuwait, I turned to my soldiers and said, “Pack your bags boys; we’re going to the desert.” Didn’t make being shot at any more fun; didn’t make the long periods of uncertainty any more bearable. I won’t say that my family’s and friend’s support “got me through,” but it did help, as well as all of the outpouring of support from the people (American people) at home. So, until an individual servicemember proves themselves to be les than honorable through action or conduct, I will assume that they are at least doing a dirty job a very long way from home, surrounded by people who want to blow them up or kill them, on edge anticipating an attack from any quarter, uncertain as to when they might go home because the politiciians can’t pull their head out of their ass and get things straightened out, etc., etc. Heck, they might even be doing us proud over there; “Winning The Hearts And Minds,” as they say. And I will treat them with respect and make sure that they know that they are always welcome home. ---
**Author:** ![CrankyAsAnOldMan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crankyasanoldman/32/11670_2.png) [@CrankyAsAnOldMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CrankyAsAnOldMan)\ **Post date:** [October 9, 2004, 3:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-support-our-troops-mean-exactly/268080/64 "2004-10-09T15:31:18Z")
> [@ExTank](#): > > the men and women in uniform are our sons and daughters, brothers and sister, mothers and fathers. > > And will always be welcomed home regardless of the political and military outcome of this “war.” > > Sometimes a yellow ribbon is _just_ a yellow ribbon. And I think most of us wish this were exactly the case. This is, in fact, pretty much how I feel about yellow ribbons (and our troops). But I won’t put one on my car, because I think, to some people, it means precisely the sorts of things other people have listed, some of which I don’t agree with in the least. ---
**Author:** ![MaceMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/4bbf92/32.png) [@MaceMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MaceMan)\ **Post date:** [October 9, 2004, 6:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-support-our-troops-mean-exactly/268080/65 "2004-10-09T18:21:40Z")
My question is why do people feel they need to advertise this sentiment? It appears to me that the clear message for most ribbon displayers is “look at me, I’m patriotic, I support my country and the war in Iraq.” And also implies that people should not question our involvement in this war. If you don’t display the ribbon on your car, does that mean you don’t “support our troops” like all your friends? I think that’s what the brilliant people who designed these ribbons While I recognize admit that some people might be doing it because of family members or friends serving overseas, I’d argue that this is only a small percentage of people who have literally covered their cars with these magnets. The magnetic-ribbon meme has spread very quickly. I really think many people do it just to be cool, like all their neighbors. It’s just the latest fad, with no real, substantial support implied. People do this to label themselves as part of a group, and simultaneously express their disdain for their fellow Americans who would disagree. ---
**Author:** ![MaceMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/4bbf92/32.png) [@MaceMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MaceMan)\ **Post date:** [October 9, 2004, 6:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-support-our-troops-mean-exactly/268080/66 "2004-10-09T18:25:23Z")
I meant to say, I think that’s what the brilliant people who designed these ribbons were hoping to achieve. No one wants to look unpatriotic. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2004, 12:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-support-our-troops-mean-exactly/268080/67 "2004-10-10T00:56:54Z")
> [@Evil One](#): > > The point is that there are thousands of young men and women out there at this very moment that are doing things that many of you are incapable or unwilling to do. I’d just like to point out that this is not uniquely true of members of the military. We each do things that others are incapable or unwilling to do. That, more or less, is the definition of a society. ---
**Author:** ![Evil\_One](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/45deac/32.png) [@Evil\_One](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Evil_One)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2004, 7:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-support-our-troops-mean-exactly/268080/68 "2004-10-10T19:36:47Z")
> [@MaceMan](#): > > My question is why do people feel they need to advertise this sentiment? > > People do this to label themselves as part of a group, and simultaneously express their disdain for their fellow Americans who would disagree. I feel the same way when I see a fabulously naive and simplistic bumper sticker like “Bush lied, Soldiers died.” But I don’t get personally insulted by it. If the opinion of someone you disagree with affects you (and others who have taken me to task in this thread) in such a viceral and emotional way, there must be a reason. What is it? ---
**Author:** ![Evil\_One](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/45deac/32.png) [@Evil\_One](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Evil_One)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2004, 7:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-support-our-troops-mean-exactly/268080/69 "2004-10-10T19:40:36Z")
> [@Dewey Finn](#): > > I’d just like to point out that this is not uniquely true of members of the military. We each do things that others are incapable or unwilling to do. That, more or less, is the definition of a society. True. But for many, military members hold a unique emotional place in our society. It’s sort of the same bond people feel with and for police officers and firefighers. These are people who have voluntarily put themselves in a position to be harmed to do a job that is necessary. And some people choose to publically display their feelings. ---
**Author:** ![Evil\_One](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/45deac/32.png) [@Evil\_One](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Evil_One)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2004, 7:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-support-our-troops-mean-exactly/268080/70 "2004-10-10T19:43:19Z")
> [@acsenray](#): > > The point is that “support our troops” and other expressions that on their face are simply literal statements of empathy or love of country or whatever have taken on what in trademark law might be known as **secondary meaning**. There’s a hidden message there, beyond the literal statement, and after decades of being intellectually bullied by that message, we can’t pretend it’s not there. We’re not stupid. If you choose to be politically engaged and form an opinion, you have to be emotionally and intellectually ready to accept the concept that there are people who are going to disagree with you. ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2004, 7:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-support-our-troops-mean-exactly/268080/71 "2004-10-10T19:55:03Z")
> [@Evil One](#): > > I feel the same way when I see a fabulously naive and simplistic bumper sticker like “Bush lied, Soldiers died.” There is nothing “naive” or “simplistic” about that, **Evil** – at least, not by the standards of phrases short enough to fit on a bumper sticker. Bush lied and, **as a result,** soldiers (U.S. and Iraqi) died. It really happened. ---
**Author:** ![MaceMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/4bbf92/32.png) [@MaceMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MaceMan)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2004, 8:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-support-our-troops-mean-exactly/268080/72 "2004-10-10T20:34:57Z")
[QUOTE=Evil One] I feel the same way when I see a fabulously naive and simplistic bumper sticker like “Bush lied, Soldiers died.” But I don’t get personally insulted by it. If the opinion of someone you disagree with affects you (and others who have taken me to task in this thread) in such a viceral and emotional way, there must be a reason. QUOTE] I disagree that I feel personally insulted by political sloganeering. What I find bothersome is that patriotic propaganda is often used to manipulate people and stifle debate and rational thinking. One can support and love our country while also objecting to its actions in the war. One could also argue, **Evil One** , that having someone put up a bumper sticker on their car indicates that they’ve been affected in a “visceral and emotional way.” To clarify, I get the same feeling when seeing a Jesus fish or a Darwin fish on people’s cars–I guess I just don’t understand it. ---
**Author:** ![Evil\_One](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/45deac/32.png) [@Evil\_One](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Evil_One)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2004, 9:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-support-our-troops-mean-exactly/268080/73 "2004-10-10T21:09:19Z")
> [@BrainGlutton](#): > > There is nothing “naive” or “simplistic” about that, **Evil** – at least, not by the standards of phrases short enough to fit on a bumper sticker. Bush lied and, **as a result,** soldiers (U.S. and Iraqi) died. It really happened. Bush took action based on the intelligence available and an analysis of Saddam’s behavior and history. The 9/11 investigation and other information bear this out. The idea that he knew better and “lied” is an idea created, nurtured and sustained by the left. ---
**Author:** ![Evil\_One](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/45deac/32.png) [@Evil\_One](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Evil_One)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2004, 9:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-support-our-troops-mean-exactly/268080/74 "2004-10-10T21:13:47Z")
QUOTE] What I find bothersome is that patriotic propaganda is often used to manipulate people and stifle debate and rational thinking. [/QUOTE] One could also make the case that the herd mentality and thinking of the far left could be interpreted as intellectual propaganda. By that, I mean viewing the facts through an idealogical prism. What fits is taken at face value, what doesn’t is discounted through any intellectual contortions necessary. Both sides do it. And the closer you are to either fringe the more guilty of it you are…because the further you get away from the middle, the harder the facts are to mold to fit your idealogical comfort level. ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2004, 11:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-support-our-troops-mean-exactly/268080/75 "2004-10-10T23:55:54Z")
> [@Evil One](#): > > Bush took action based on the intelligence available and an analysis of Saddam’s behavior and history. The 9/11 investigation and other information bear this out. The idea that he knew better and “lied” is an idea created, nurtured and sustained by the left. From the Wikipedia – [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraqi\_production\_and\_use\_of\_weapons\_of\_mass\_destruction:](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraqi_production_and_use_of_weapons_of_mass_destruction:) > [@](#): > > In the 1991 Gulf War ceasefire terms Iraq was forbidden from developing, possessing or using chemical, biological and nuclear weapons of mass destruction. Other items proscribed by the treaty included missiles with a range of more than 150 kilometres. > > The UN established a commission, UNSCOM, to verify Iraq’s adherence to the treaty. At the time adherence was established economic sanctions against Iraq were to be lifted. Iraq’s adherence to the treaty was, however, never established to the satisfaction of the United Nations Security Council and the sanctions were not lifted until after the 2003 war. > > UNSCOM encountered various difficulties and lack of cooperation by the Iraqi government. In 1998, UNSCOM was withdrawn at the request of the United States before Operation Desert Fox. Despite this, UNSCOM’s own estimate was that 90-95% of Iraqi WMD’s had been successfully destroyed before its 1998 withdrawal. After that Iraq remained without any outside weapons inspectors for five years. During this time speculations arose that Iraq had actively resumed its WMD programmes. In particular various figures in the second George W. Bush administration went so far as to express concern about nuclear weapons: > > “We don’t want the smoking gun to be a mushroom cloud.” —Condoleezza Rice, US National Security Advisor, CNN Late Edition, 9/8/2002 > > “We believe he has, in fact, reconstituted nuclear weapons.” —Dick Cheney, Vice President, Meet The Press, 3/16/2003 > > At the beginning of 2003, the United States and the United Kingdom administrations both claimed that there was absolutely no doubt that Iraq had weapons of mass destruction and was developing more. The intelligence services of some other countries also assessed that Iraq still had covert WMD programs. > > Some people claim that Iraq broke the terms of the ceasefire between 1991 and 1998. In addition to being forbidden to possess or develop WMD, Iraq was also bound to cooperate with the inspectors from the UN sent to verify destruction of the WMD programs. These people claim that the UNSCOM commission did not have the full cooperation of the Iraqi government. There is dispute about whether Iraq still had WMD programs after 1998 and whether its cooperation with the United Nations Monitoring, Verification and Inspection Commission (UNMOVIC) was complete. UN Chief Weapons Inspector said in January 2003 that Iraq has, “…not genuinely accepted U.N. resolutions demanding that it disarm.” On March 7th, in an address to the Security Council, Hans Blix, the head of UNMOVIC, appeared to take a more positive view describing current Iraqi level of cooperation as “active or even proactive”. Attributing increased Iraqi initiative to “outside pressure” he stated his estimate that it would take several months for all outstanding WMD issues to be resolved. > > United States officials treated Blix’s report dismissively. > > Even in lieu of actual WMD programs, legal justification for the campaign was claimed due to the alleged lack of cooperation with UN inspectors by Iraq. The stated intention of the U.S. plan to invade Iraq was to eliminate Iraq’s ability to threaten its neighbors or its own people with weapons of mass destruction. Strangely, Bush repeated several times after the war that the war was launched because Saddam Hussein would not allow the inspectors into the country. > > Since the 2003 war only a handful of mustard gas shells have been found and it is thought likely that no sizable quantities of WMD remain hidden in Iraq. U.S. arms inspector Charles Duelfer is expected to tell the Senate Armed Services Committee that there is “new evidence that Saddam Hussein had plans to break UN-imposed sanctions and renew the production of banned weapons” [1] ([http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle\_east/3718150.stm](http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/3718150.stm)) but that, while “Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein believed in the deterrent power conferred by weapons of mass destruction” he “ordered them destroyed in an effort to end sanctions imposed on his country after the Persian Gulf War in 1991.” [2] ([http://www.usatoday.com/news/world/iraq/2004-10-06-wmd\_x.htm](http://www.usatoday.com/news/world/iraq/2004-10-06-wmd_x.htm)). In view of what Blix found, or failed to find, in Iraq – and based on what we now know Bush knew about the Nigerian yellowcake, etc., etc. – Bush had no good reason to believe Saddam had WMDs. In the highly unlikely event that he reallywas stupid and/or stubborn enough to believe that, he certainly could not have sincerely believed that what weapons Hussein had were a threat to anyone but his own people. And he **certainly** could not have believed Hussein bore any responsibility for the 9/11 attacks or was a supporter of al-Qaeda. Those were **lies** Bush told Congress and the American people to get us to support his war. Now repeat after me, **Evil:** “Bush lied, soldiers died.” Say it three times. Oh – and support our troops! Give them what they need most – a **real** Commander-in-Chief! ---
**Author:** ![Acsenray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/acsenray/32/4519_2.png) [@Acsenray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acsenray)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2004, 1:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-support-our-troops-mean-exactly/268080/76 "2004-10-12T13:24:34Z")
> [@ExTank](#): > > None of that changes the fact that I will never denigrate or verbally abuse any soldier, sailor, airman or Marine (they get capitalized so I don’t get my ass kicked); that regardless of poltics, those who serve with honor will always be my countrymen (and women!), will always be welcome home, and neve rmade by me to feel less than my equal as a citizen for their honorable service. Again, there is nothing here to disagree with. It’s a sign of the state of political discourse that we liberals often have to sit for lessons like this. [quote[To me, that’s what “Support Our Troops” means, and regardless of whatever moneymaking scheme someone else came up with, it’s what I signify by displaying a yellow ribbon.[/QUOTE] Fine, that’s what it means to you. But that’s not what it means to everyone. When you put something on the back of your car, you mean other people to see it. So what it means to you is only a small piece of the picture. ---
**Author:** ![mailman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/8491ac/32.png) [@mailman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mailman)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2004, 6:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-support-our-troops-mean-exactly/268080/77 "2004-10-12T18:07:46Z")
> [@](#): > > Originally Posted by ExTank > > None of that changes the fact that I will never denigrate or verbally abuse any soldier, sailor, airman or Marine (they get capitalized so I don’t get my ass kicked); that regardless of poltics, those who serve with honor will always be my countrymen (and women!), will always be welcome home, and neve rmade by me to feel less than my equal as a citizen for their honorable service. You are doing a “Life of Brian” thing here right? ---
**Author:** ![ExTank](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/35a633/32.png) [@ExTank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ExTank)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2004, 9:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-support-our-troops-mean-exactly/268080/78 "2004-10-12T21:49:58Z")
I have seen nothing about [this](http://www.supportourarmedforces.us/) to suggest that it supports G.W. Bush or the war in Iraq. I suspect that the people who _do_ see it as such might see Nazi Swastikas in a five-year old’s Pollack-esque fingerpaintings. People are going to see what they want to see; beacaue there are Police Chaplains and National Guardsmen involved with Support Our Armed Forces, I suppose the loonies here on The Straight Dope will undoubtedly see a “Vast Right-Wing Conspiracy ™.” I am not responsible for the dementia of others who are wound a little too tightly. **mailman:** NO! :mad: I am not! :mad: ---
**Author:** ![Jurph](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/50afbb/32.png) [@Jurph](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jurph)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2004, 12:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-support-our-troops-mean-exactly/268080/79 "2004-10-13T00:24:35Z")
I _am_ one of our troops. I’ve got a desk job, a pretty cushy salary, and a non-trivial feeling of responsibility for anything that happens to our enlisted troops out there. I also feel pretty bad whenever I have to wear the uniform the day something like Abu Ghraib hits the papers – those scum bug me, to put it mildly. I know a guy who signed up for the Marines after Sept. 11th, and is now finally home from serving in western Iraq, out near Fallujah. I know a few other enlisted guys serving all over: Korea, Japan, Saudi, other places. How do I support our troops? I write letters to the ones I know – and to their officers who are near my rank. The kids, I ask how they’re doing, what I can send to keep their spirits up, whether they need me to run any paperwork to the Pentagon for them, do they have their absentee ballots, and so on. The officers, I ask if they’ve got what they need to take care of their troops, what I can send to make their job easier, who I can talk to on their behalf, and so on. When I pass anyone wearing the uniform in an airport, I stop for a moment (even if I don’t really have a moment) and thank them. Maybe my haircut gives away the fact that I’m one of them, but I’m in civilian clothes, and a warm handshake and a smile probably goes a long way to keeping their spirits up. Last but not least, if there’s a one- or two-striper getting dinner in desert fatigues in or near an airport, he doesn’t pay a cent for the meal. If he’s with his family, I won’t embarrass him by usurping the ‘provider’ role – that’s a big deal in a lot of military families – but if he’s alone or with buddies in uniform, it’s a nice way to thank them for their hard work. ---
**Author:** ![ExTank](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/35a633/32.png) [@ExTank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ExTank)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2004, 1:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-support-our-troops-mean-exactly/268080/80 "2004-10-13T01:53:26Z")
Thanks, **Jurph.** [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-support-our-troops-mean-exactly/268080.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-support-our-troops-mean-exactly/268080.md?page=5)