I went shopping yesterday, and as I walked through the parking lot of my neighborhood strip mall, I noticed bumper stickers on a car parked across from mine.
Proud mother of a marine.
My son is a marine.
My son is fighting for our freedom.
That last one stayed with me as I made my rounds in the store.
My son is fighting for our freedom.
I belong to a military family. Every generation has served- my father and step father in WWII, my brother and several cousins in Vietnam, my brother and nephew in the Gulf War, my son and nephews currently serving now.
When my son was deployed, first in Iraq and then in Afghanistan, I proudly hung the blue star in my window. Granted, I don't place bumper stickers on my car, but I always nod in agreement whenever I see someone proudly acknowledging the service of a family member.
But...and I say this with all my support for those brave men and women...they are not fighting for my freedom.
In no way is the Taliban or Al-Queda threatening my rights as a citizen of the United States of America. They really never had. What they did was commit murder- call it an act of terrorism- but it was murder still the same.
They did not battle with forces to take over the government. They did not invade our cities and threaten our way of life. They did not destroy our democracy.
After 9/11, I rallied around my president. Go get that SOB. And all of his co-horts. Yes! If you are a country that is harboring this criminal- then you are an enemy of the USA. So, while not really wanting war- I understood the reason.
And when Bin Laden escaped into Pakistan and Bush invaded Iraq instead of going after him, I shared the frustration many of the nation felt.
And as a military mother it really hit home.
If my son, and that mother's marine, and all the other men and women serving today are truly fighting for my freedom, they should be at the steps of the Capitol.
Because the way I see it, the greatest threat to this country today is the Republican Party, controlled by interests groups who will stop at nothing to take away our rights.
Want to protest this? Good luck.
Need to write about it? Speak up? Have fun.
Want to vote that person out of office? Easier said than done.
An informed electorate has been brainwashed by media doing the bidding of its sponsors. An uneducated population is slowly evolving due to budget cuts and vilifying our nation's teachers. Critical thinking is all but disappearing.
My freedom does need fighting for. But not by a marine in Afghanistan.
It's time to start this battle here at home.
Any idea how?