Our Soldiers

[Keep in mind that I can only speak of the United States because I do not know about the military procedures and laws in other countries]
I read an article this morning on Politics Daily. Basically it was about the fact that more women have died in this war (Iraq/Afghanistan) than any of the wars in the 5 previous decades. In my opinion it would stand to reason that more women have died in this war. For one there are more women in the Armed Forces now then there have been. Women feel more comfortable joining the military and they are able to do so now. Two this war is not a "front-line" war, it is more of a guerrilla war. That in itself will up casualties no matter the sex. The article in itself was well written and informative. There did not seem to be any bias in it what so ever.
That is until I got to the comments section. I saw many people using their freedom of speech (which I have no problem with) to spout utter nonsense. It seems that there are people out there who actually think that it is the soldier's choice to go to war or not. Yes, it is there choice to sign up for the military which is a major life change and I would suggest anyone considering it to be well informed before they join (and don't just take the recruiters word, because while they cannot out right lie to you their job is still to get you to join). Once a soldier joins the military, however, they have to do as they are told (there are extenuating circumstances such as CO status, medical reasons, and psychological reasons). They essentially have lost many of the rights that are granted to other citizens of the United States. The UCMJ (basically for civvies out there who do not know what that is it is simply the code of military justice or laws that a soldier has to abide by) has laws that while they do not apply to civilians do apply to soldiers. For instance last time I checked adultery was not illegal just frowned upon (because if it were illegal our prison population would be outrageous!). For the soldier, it is illegal. A soldier can not speak against the President (because that is his/her boss and in my opinion should have to follow the UCMJ as well but that is a rant for another day). Basically a soldier is property of the government (and as a funny side note if a person were to say break a soldier's nose in a bar fight did you know he could be charged with destruction of government property?).
Soldiers are held to a higher standard than the civilian world. Many civilians do not understand what a soldier goes through in their lifetime. These men and women not only protect us but they also protect people of other countries when it is needed. They help with clean ups of natural disasters around the world. We are sending men and women to fight and potentially die in conflicts all over the world (because if you think we only have troops in Iraq and Afghanistan you are sadly mistaken because last I checked we still have troops in Bosnia and Korea as well as others), but many of them can not even sit down and have a beer with you or me because they are not "old enough". Many of these soldiers come back from conflicts changed. They are not the same people they were when they left. When they do come home do they get support? It seems to me from the general public they don't get as much as they should. I mean there are people that protest at the funerals of soldiers. They get told that it is their fault because they chose this. Many don't think that these soldiers give up their lives for our freedoms and the freedoms of others. Many soldiers do not fight for themselves. They fight for you, me, their families, and those who can not fight for themselves. Whether or not you believe we should be in this war to begin with is a moot point. It is not the soldier's fault. If it were not for the soldier, you would not be able to spout your nonsense. If not for the soldier, you would have nothing.
I stand by our soldiers 100%. Whether or not I agree with a particular conflict a soldier garners my respect because of the fact that he/she lays his life on the line for my freedoms and will continue to do so in the future. Before you decide to down a soldier, remember what they give up. Remember while you don't think you need them now that there may come a day when you do. It is not the soldier's fault.
So thank a soldier and his family today for what they give up! Trust me they will appreciate it!