Hi all,
Thank you for the warm welcome. I will hopefully start contributing more to the forum soon.
I did however want to contribute my thoughts on the eve of the day we Americans celebrate our Independence Day.
I wish everyone a happy and joyful 4th of July.
Tomorrow we celebrate the fruits of our Founding Fathers and those that gave the ultimate sacrifice to the founding of our nation. We also pay homage to those that have done so since.
The Constitution of the United States and The Bill of Rights are a crowning glory to those that cherish freedom. I gave 20yrs of my life to the principles of those freedoms. Yet I do and will always feel humbled by those that gave even more. You see I am part of a significantly small brotherhood. Anyone that has spent two decades in the Army will have lost brothers in the service to freedom. Usually it can be counted in single digits. There are a few that can count the number of close brothers lost in double digits. I and a few must keep the memory alive for triple digits of brothers lost. I say lost, yet I mean the gift of the ultimate sacrifice.
So tomorrow I remember the members of the first company I served in that died in Gander Newfoundland. Tim Uderitz that burned in on a Jump in Panama. The few I was so very honored to know that were lost in the War on Terror. The member of the original Test Platoon for Airborne Operations that pinned my Jump Wings on my chest.
Lastly I remember my Mother. The woman that was so very imperfect. The woman that protested against the Vietnam War. The woman that became a proud mother of a Soldier. The woman that watch CNN coverage of the First Gulf War and cheered the troops on like they were her favorite Football Team.
Tomorrow I am humbled. Tomorrow I will think of those that will fight for the freedoms that the United States was founded to provide. I know that there are those that will stand by my side to NEVER allow the compromise of freedom.
Tomorrow WE will forget the petty bullshit of partisan arguments. Tomorrow WE will look at our flag and BE a people. There will always be challenges to the principles of freedom. Yet no matter what it takes WE as a people will prevail.
Thank you
Rob
{Edit:
Moved to this topic by JMc as it deserved it's own topic 
}
