A great little story today in Tom Rick’s Inbox, from the Washington Post’s military correspondent:
As most Americans prepare to celebrate the holidays, others are marching off to war. One of the unusual aspects of the Iraq conflict is that the same people keep going back, which means that they often take with them the no-nonsense attitude of the combat veteran. Here, Lt. Col. Mark Yanaway, an Army reservist returning for his second tour, reports on his first steps on the road back to Baghdad, from the New York area to Fort Bragg, N.C.:
The next morning we were up early and off to Newark Airport. We breezed through the check in despite having large numbers of large boxes and duffle bags. (I managed to keep mine down to a small footlocker and partially filled duffle bag).
Our flight was uneventful. On the way to Charlotte a lady sitting next to me got to talking and eventually inquired as to what she could to do to help out the troops. I responded, “Stop using so much oil.”
Sadly, that is one way of supporting the troops that just never seemed to catch on with the American public….