Lesa Jarding

I am writing in response to “Support our troops at home and abroad.” When I read the article for the first time, I started thinking about how our country supports our troops and the efforts being made here in the country and overseas. When I read the article for the second time, I felt the need to respond.

To begin, when referencing people over the age of 18, then can be referred to as young adults or simply adults, not kids. After all, they are fighting for our freedom and have made the decision to join the armed forces. This was not a decision that was made for them, there was not a draft and they actively decided to join the service on their own. Please give them the respect and credit that they deserve.

I think showing our support for our troops is not the issue, I think our troops are supported in more ways than we may know. The media has a tendency these days to only report on the bad and controversial stories. We rarely hear good news or news on improvements in various parts of the world.

There are so many organizations, families and friends that show their support in so many ways other than displaying a yellow ribbon, a poster or even hanging a flag outside on a flag pole. Families and friends show their support by sending care packages, letters and photos, anything that reminds the soldiers of home, on a regular basis.

When troops return home after being gone, more times than not, a big celebration is held, family and friends gather to make the soldier feel welcome.

I think, too often, we want to see the impact being made by our troops, we want to see the support and we want to know that people out there do care about what is going on. If you feel you need to show your support and brag about what you have done, then write a letter. Write a million letters to all of the troops and then to make yourself feel better, tell everyone you know.

After all, I don’t think the soldiers are looking for any credit, they are already receiving the support they need from the family and friends that continue to stay in touch with them while fighting for our freedom. We shouldn’t have to publicly display our support for the war. We can do things without public recognition. I think our focus needs to be directed to something much more important.