How many DUer's have family in the USMC, Army, Navy, Airforce, or

[JohnnyBoots]

Coast Guard? How many of us have a personal stake through friends or loved ones in the way the war goes? I would wager the majority of us do.

[Judi Lynn]

1. Whoops. I misread your post.

On edit: Sorry.

I'll bet you'll discover there are quite a few DU'ers involved right now.

[Just Me]

2. My brother, a wonderful human being,...

,...former USMC, active National Guard, off to Iraq in a few weeks. :cry:

[JohnnyBoots]

9. He'll be in my prayers with my Navy LT. wife, it really makes my blood

boil that all our fighting men and women are there to make a few fat cats rich.

[Just Me]

13. They all need our prayers,...

,...and our commitment to reveal the truth about the American tyranny which is exploiting all of us.

We have to be their warriors at home; warriors for truth, justice and democracy.

[JohnnyBoots]

15. She's why I got into politics and discovered DU

[TahitiNut]

3. First cousin in the Navy ... Persian Gulf.

And a second cousin who's a mercenary (sniper) ... in and out of Iraq, Afghanistan, and Columbia depending on his "assignment".

[evilqueen]

4. I do. Son in USMC n/t

[LeftyMom]

5. LeftyDad's sister

is in the Navy and is likely going to the Gulf this fall.

[Retired AF Dem]

6. My oldest son with the 101 ABN Div

My youngest son, Navy stationed on the USS Boxer.

[NewInNewJ.]

7. I have

2 nephews.

[DanCa]

8. I want to thank you all for each and everyones service.

This is the only generation that my family hasn't had a member in the military. So I can empathize with what your going thru politicaly and emotionaly. For everyone whos ever served I want to say thanks.

[TexasLady]

10. My two nephews, bothof them brothers

Army Natl Guard. Served one year over in Iraq. Dont want to see them go back. Period.

[charlie]

11. Me

My wife is active duty USN. She's scheduled to deploy to the Gulf next spring for 6 months.

[JohnnyBoots]

34. I hear you brother, best of luck for you and her if

you ever need a sounding board...or vice versa....

[charlie]

42. Thank you

We're alright. She'll be okay, especially since we've agreed, unlike other tours, she won't get off the damn boat. Our only worry is Pinhead's hardon for Iran...

[JohnnyBoots]

45. We're both inthe same boat so to speak.

[FreedomAngel82]

12. My grandfather was a navy veteran

He never saw war or anything like that but he was active. He only didn't go to war because his two half-brother's (who were a little older) went to WW2. Before he died he got to vote last year and he and my grandmother both voted for Kerry. My grandfather thought Bush was a moron and didn't like him very much. I have an uncle who was in the navy too but I don't know who he voted for if he did. :shrug: There were other family members who were in the navy but they're all either old or dead. Two of my great-aunt's were nurses for the military during WW2 and two of my great-half-uncles's were in WW2 and lost at sea.

[mandyky]

14. My brother and I are former Army

My son is Army in Korea and my nephew is in the Marines (not oversees last I heard).

[w8liftinglady]

16. my oldest-Army PFC

in baghdad (for the second time).He did one tour in Afghanistan.

[leetrisck]

17. Long line of military in our families

all branches of service.

[VRine]

18. Cousin's Son

My first cousin's son is in Iraq. He's in the National Guard.

Another cousin's son (Air Force) is scheduled to deploy in September.

My only son is stationed at Fort Polk.

I'm seriuously considering leaving for Crawford tomorrow night. I'm about 6-8 hours away.

[nadinbrzezinski]

19. My hubby retired but did his stint over there

now we have two kids of a friend of ours, one going over to Iraq and one in Afghanistan

[greatauntoftriplets]

20. My nephew missed going to Iraq by a couple of months....

when his active service infantry unit went. He also missed going to Afghanistan with his National Guard unit. He is very lucky, and got out of the Guard about a year ago. Missed out on a well-deserved promotion to sergeant and some money for college. But he is happy with his decision.

[nadinbrzezinski]

21. Not to hijack this thread

but this is a wondeful opportunity for us to fist off suport each other and secondly, getting lists of kids who need care packages... even if they are not kids... care packages still do wonders

[JohnnyBoots]

23. The thread is all yours, that is an awesome idea. If we could

set up some kind of data base like that of where to send stuff it would be incredible. Great idea!!! Let me know if I can help at all.

[nadinbrzezinski]

24. Well I have no idea how to do it,

but I know of a kid I have now persmision to share FPO

What we could do is aproach Skinner and maybe do something like the Media Blaster, problem is, we cannot just put the adresses in the open... I fear for retributions

[JohnnyBoots]

26. We could start a whole Non-Profit organization to do this

[JohnnyBoots]

29. The activist forum could be good too

[nadinbrzezinski]

37. Ok lets cross post at the Activist Forum and see if we get any

to byte (as it did happen over a year ago) And that time we must take our hat off to Solly Mack

[JohnnyBoots]

61. What?

[Just Me]

25. Actually, I was hoping to solicit supportive words,...

,...to deliver to my brother in about a week and suggest that we do the same for those DUers who have loved ones going to or in Iraq or Afghanistan.

Although my family definitely has a plan in place for care packages, if there are those who could use some help in getting them out, I'd be all for setting up a system for that. However, I'm pretty sure there will be many who prefer autonomy for safety purposes.

[nadinbrzezinski]

55. I realize that

and tell yuor brother, we have his back

[JohnnyBoots]

22. It really pisses me off when the freepers say we don't

support the troops.
the troops are all of us, the one's we love, know, or even don't know. It is stories like these of courage and duty that make love America, but make me hate our administration for putting them in harm's way for no credible reason.

[Imalittleteapot]

27. Nephew in Army. n/t

[H2O Man]

28. I do. n/t

[SammyWinstonJack]

30. My oldest son spent 7 years in the U.S. Army with the 101st

Airborne stationed out of Ft Campbell, after spending 2 years with the California National Guard. My daughter in law's brother is now being deployed to Baghdad, he is 21.

[JohnnyBoots]

33. Jesus, I'm only 26, but the age of kids they send there

blows my mind. I used to teach at a high school in red,rural WV a nd the recruiters were there every day and that was last year.

[SammyWinstonJack]

38. They are babies really!

Not even old enough to drink, but they can die for their Country! My oldest was 17 when he joined the National Guard and it was during the riots in Calif after the Rodney King verdict in 92. He was patrolling the streets of L.A. with an M16. Scared me senseless.

[JohnnyBoots]

31. What is the percentage of GOP vs. Dem service folks over there?

[mourningdove92]

32. My son. USAF.

[spartan61]

35. My nephew has just started his THIRD TOUR in Iraq.

He is a helicopter pilot in the USMC!

[w8liftinglady]

47. They play with the numbers so it doesn't look so bad.

Technically,my son has only one deployment in a war zone.he spent 7 months in Afghanistan,then 3 months in Germany,then 6 months in Iraq,then 3 months in Germany,and now he's in Iraq for 12 months.The Army only counts the 12 month deployment

[walldude]

36. Nobody current but I have 3 of these:

There are 2 more in my family, both my grandfathers. One died paratrooping into Normandy

[Cattledog]

39. Brother

Pilot Lt.USMC "Mustang" (A Mustang is someone who enlisted and worked his way up to Officer.) He just got word he's next in line to Afghanistan.

CD

[nadinbrzezinski]

40. posted at the activist board

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=106x21390

[Sgent]

41. Although much

of my family has served, with ranks from Private to General, in both wartime and peace, I only have one family member in the services now.

My brother is an active career USAF (Major). He is stationed at a military hospital where he is in charge of PTSD treatment (he's a psychologist). He has also made 2-3 trips to Bagdad that I know of. They were only for a couple of weeks, and the mission was classified.

[ribrepin]

43. Three nephews

One in the Marines--still stateside/probable deployment to Iraq
One in the Army--been to Afghanistan/training on strikers for Iraq
One joining the Air Force

I want them all to come back whole.

[ismnotwasm]

44. Daughter, active duty U.S. Army

Did her time (year deployment) in Afghanistan. She reenlisted despite the fact she hated every second of it. Broke my heart but I understood.
On edit: No, I DIDN'T understand, but I supported her decision as her mother. I love her and I'm proud of her.

[w8liftinglady]

46. they have them by the short hairs

either re-enlist and get the bonus,or go on inactive reserves,and get called to active duty(no bonus).Either way,you're stuck.

[GreenPartyVoter]

48. I have a cousin who still serves on Submarines. One distant

cousin was one of the first to die in this war.

[phylny]

49. My cousin's son.

In our immediate family, there is no one in the armed forces. However, my husband DID serve in the U.S. Army for four years.

[cmf]

50. Navy wife here

Soon to be ex-Navy wife. Not getting rid of the husband, but the husband is getting rid of the Navy. He still has some time in the individual ready reserve and at the rate they are going through reservists, I fully expect him to get called up.

[prairierose]

51. 4 of my cousins...

are in the military. They are all in the Army. In the first year of the current conflict all 4 of them were in Iraq at the same time. One of the younger cousins had just returned from a year in Afganistan when he was redeployed to Iraq. It was a trying time for many in my family. They have since all returned safely for which we are all thankful.

[blm]

52. Here. Navy pilot.....and I have several nephews of draft age who may join

him UNvoluntarily

[Horse with no Name]

53. I do I do!

My brother is a marine. His wife is in the navy.
I have 3 cousins in the army.
All are active duty.

Let me rant for a minute on how shitty the US Navy is.
My brother is a SGT and has been in for 4 years. His wife graduated from college last year and joined the navy (none of us can figure out that one,lol). Anyway--during his second tour in Iraq, he reupped under the agreement (in writing) that he wouldn't deploy again to Iraq. So they told him he could go to North Carolina and be a drill instructor. Which is where he is now. When his wife joined, they told her that she would be stationed in Virginia--just a short ways away. However, when all was said and done, they stationed her in San Diego. They were told the only way the navy would guarantee her assignment was if they were married. So since they have been dating for several years, they got married. Still wouldn't do anything about it.
I can't think of what her title is right offhand (but she is in where the captain is and reads maps), which I understand is a pretty plum assignment.
So the deal the navy has offered them is that my brother can come back to San Diego--however, he will be immediately deployed for his 3rd tour to Iraq...or...they will move her to Virginia and give her a shitty grunt assignment. Right now, they are staying status quo.
So much for family values eh?

[tamtam]

54. My husband is in the Navy

I tried to get him to retire early but he wouldn't.

[liberalnurse]

56. Here is my guy Eddie.....Air Force.

He just got back from Iraq in May....

[Qanisqineq]

57. my husband is in the army

served in Iraq 2003-2004

[MidnightWind]

58. My cousin is a Marine, and two weeks ago, he shipped out for Iraq

He's 18. :scared:

[preciousdove]

59. Brother-in-law headed for Iraq Aug 30th n/t

[free_spirit82]

60. Every branch!

My hubby and uncle are in the Air Force. Hubby was in Turkey for the beginning of the war. Uncle has been twice to Iraq.

I have two cousins in the Army. One just came back from his 1st year in Iraq. The other is now serving his 3rd year in Iraq.

My best friend that I grew up with is in the Navy. She hasn'tbeen sent yet, thank God.

I have a cousin in the Marines who is currently serving his third tour.

[Swamp Rat]

62. Me.

:mad: :cry: :scared: :grr:

[JohnnyBoots]

63. What branch?

[Swamp Rat]

69. All branches

NAVY, ARMY, MARINES, SAC. All retired, though very few living. Most saw combat, except one cousin (NAVY), and my father (SAC) who worked under General Curtis LeMay as a navigator in a Douglas C-124C Globemaster II, transporting classified ordinance. Another cousin (ARMY transferred to USAF) has a second tour in Iraq to look forward to very soon. :(

[JohnnyBoots]

70. I have a a couple of Dr. buddies in the USAF, they're all out

Colordao now I think.

[antigone382]

64. I have a friend in the Navy, and my brother *was* an Army Ranger.

My brother served in Afghanistan and Iraq, but he got out due to complications from a leg injury he got before the war(s), and now he's in school.

My friend is still in Basic Training.

[Pepperbelly]

65. my son is a sub sailor ... Groten CT ... nt

[JohnnyBoots]

66. So was my uncle in WWII

[Solly Mack]

67. husband and nephew

[insane_cratic_gal]

68. Husband

Combat Camera guy in the US Navy.

[JohnnyBoots]

71. Still over there?

[insane_cratic_gal]

77. Nope hasn't been since 2002(pre-war)

In 2001 I begged him to take a desk job in Western PA, Pittsburgh actually. He has gotten two requests asking him to go over. Once as a camera guy, and the other as a Public Affair they haven't been able to convince his CO to release him.
The good thing is, he's a one man department. So, in order to take him Iraq they have to go through the hassle of finding someone, then training them to take his spot.
We think his chances are for deployment slim, but there is always that deep seated "what if" that lingers.

[arwalden]

72. 2nd Cousin... Ranger... THREE Tours In Afghanistan.

[tblue37]

73. I do--

including my sister's son, who spent a year in Mosul.

I also had a close friend in Tikrit until recently, and another close friend in Baghdad until last Decemeber.

The one who was in Baghdad is seeing three different shrinks right now because of his "classic" case of PTSD (the shrinks' description of his case).

His wife has thrown him out of the house and he gets to see his 10-year-old son only once a week now. He is trying to break an addiction to Xanax, and for safety's sake, he has given away all of his guns. He is a mess, and it is all from his time in Iraq. I was on the phone with him for two hours late last night. He can't sleep, and when he does manage to doze off, the nightmares wake him almost immediately.

We are going to have some really bad cases of PTSD in this country, worse even that Vietnam. What a mess.

[leftchick]

74. I have 2...

A 20 year old nephew in the Marines and a 39 yr old cousin soon to be on his second tour as an Army Reservist. In civilian life he is a Sheriff's Deputy married with 2 children.

[WLKjr]

75. Had LOTS of family in Airforce, Army, Navy, one or two in Airborne

Many WWII, Korea, Vietnam and Gulfwar vets in family.

[graphixtech]

76. Close to home

My beloved son in law, in out of state training to go over there next month. Now my daughter and their two month old baby have moved back home. His departure has been difficult for all of us and a motivating factor in my own increased activism.

Several friends have gone to Crawford (I would have gone down in a minute except also dealing with a termanilly ill parent). I pray that Cindy and all of our raised collective voices will somehow halt this uncontrolled insanity and further aggression. Where the hell is Congress?

Here is a very motivating three minute video of Nafeez Ahmed's July 22 speech at Lafayeete Park, at the D.C. Emergency Truth Rally. Nafeez boldly speaks to the DSM, the absolute urgency and the stakes involved for the world.

http://truthemergency.us/movies/Nafeez2.mov

Ray McGovern
(audio, more photos and information)
http://truthemergency.us/


Gael Murphy
(audio, more photos and information)
http://truthemergency.us/