A serious look!

I received this letter from family in Cali and found it very moving! I believe it is a true document and that this one man's view is one we all need to take a look at. I come from military and have felt these affects from the Vietnam war. I hope we all take a look at how "we are not supporting our men in uniform" and how we are causing more trouble by the politicking of the war. My goodness!

M; Hervey, James D DCCM CNL LS Coronado, Training; Johnston, Doug W CDR
CNL LS CORONADO CA, OIC; Kelley, John M CIV CNL LS Corry; Ln DiegN628; Prenger, Kurt J ATC CNL,
N
Charles W GSCM CNL LS Corry Station; Smith, Alvin B AFCM; Song, Jonathan received from a friend that I thought you might want
to share with your teams to put things in perspective.

/wr
Jack


SGT. Edmund John Jeffer's last few words were some of the most touching,
inspiring and most truthful words spoken since the tragedy of 9/11 - and
since our nation went to war. SGT. Jeffers was a strong soldier and
talented writer. He died in Iraq on September 19, 2007. He was a loving
husband, brother and son. His service was more than this country could
ever grasp - a man who sacrificed his life for you ... listen to what
he had to say.

Hope Rides Alone

By Eddie Jeffers


I stare out into the darkness from my post, and I watch the city burn to
the ground. I smell the familiar smells, I walk through the familiar
rubble, and I look at the frightened faces that watch me pass down the
streets of their neighborhoods. My nerves hardly rest; my hands are
steady on a device that has been given to me from my government for the
purpose of taking the lives of others. I sweat, and I am tired. My back
aches from the loads I carry. Young American boys look to me to direct
them in a manner that will someday allow them to see their families
again...and yet, I too, am just a boy....my age not but a few years more
than that of the ones I lead. I am stressed, I am scared, and I am
paranoid...because death is everywhere. It waits for me, it calls to me
from around street corners and windows, and it is always there. There
are the demons that follow me, and tempt me into thoughts and actions
that are not my own...but that are necessary for survival. I've made
compromises with my humanity. And I am not alone in this. Miles from me
are my brethren in this world, who walk in the same streets, who feel
the same things, whether they admit to it or not. And to think, I
volunteered for this...and I am ignorant to the rest of the world...or
so I thought.

But even thousands of miles away, in Ramadi, Iraq, the cries and screams
and complaints of the ungrateful reach me. In a year, I will be thrust
back into society from a life and mentality that doesn't fit your
average man. And then, I will be alone. And then, I will walk down the
streets of America, and see the yellow ribbon stickers on the cars of
the same people who compare our President to Hitler. I will watch the
television and watch the Cindy Sheehans, and the Al Frankens, and the
rest of the ignorant sheep of America spout off their mouths about a
subject they know nothing about. It is their right, however, and it is
a right that is defended by hundreds of thousands of boys and girls
scattered across the world, far from home. I use the word boys and
girls, because that's what they are. In the Army, the average age of the
infantryman is nineteen years old. The average rank of soldiers killed
in action is Private First Class. People like Cindy Sheehan are
ignorant. Not just to this war, but to the results of their idiotic
ramblings, or at least I hope they are. They don't realize its effects
on this war. In this war, there are no Geneva Conventions, no cease
fires. Medics and Chaplains are not spared from the enemy's brutality
because it's against the rules. I can only imagine the horrors a
military Chaplain would experience at the hands of the enemy.

The enemy slinks in the shadows and fights a coward's war against us. It
is effective though, as many men and women have died since the start of
this war. And the memory of their service to America is tainted by the
inconsiderate remarks on our nation's news outlets. And every day, the
enemy changes...only now, the enemy is becoming something new. The enemy
is transitioning from the Muslim extremists to Americans. The enemy is
becoming the very people whom we defend with our lives. And they do not
realize it. But in denouncing our actions, denouncing our leaders,
denouncing the war we live and fight, they are isolating the military
from society...and they are becoming our enemy. Democrats and peace
activists like to toss the word "quagmire" around and compare this war
to Vietnam. In a way they are right, this war is becoming like Vietnam.
Not the actual war, but in the isolation of country and military.
America is not a nation at war; they are a nation with its military at
war. Like it or not, we are here, some of us for our second, or third
times; some even for their fourth and so on. Americans are so concerned
now with politics, that it is interfering with our war. Terrorists cut
the heads off of American citizens on the Internet...and there is no
outrage. But an American soldier kills an Iraqi in the midst of battle,
and there are investigations, and sometimes soldiers are even
jailed...for doing their job. It is absolutely sickening to me to
think our country has come to this. Why are we so obsessed with the bad
news? Why will people stop at nothing to be against this war, no matter
how much evidence of the good we've done is thrown in their face? When
is the last time CNN or MSNBC or CBS reported the opening of schools and
hospitals in Iraq? Or the leaders of terror cells being detained or
killed? It's all happening, but people will not let up their hatred of
President Bush. They will ignore the good news, because it just might
show people that the President was right.

America has lost its will to fight. It has lost its will to defend what
is right and just in the world. The crazy thing of it all is that the
American people have not even been asked to sacrifice a single thing.
It's not like World War Two, where people rationed food, and turned in
cars to be made into metal for tanks. The American people have not been
asked to sacrifice anything. Unless you are in the military or the
family member of a service member, it's life as usual...the war doesn't
affect you. But it affects us. And when it is over, and the troops
come home, and they try to piece together what's left of them after
their service...where will the detractors be then? Where will the Cindy
Sheehans be to comfort and talk to soldiers and help them sort out the
last couple years of their lives, most of which have been spent dodging
death and wading through the deaths of their friends? They will be
where they always are, somewhere far away, where the horrors of the
world can't touch them. Somewhere where they can complain about things
they will never experience in their lifetime; things that the young men
and women of America have willingly taken upon their shoulders.

We are the hope of the Iraqi people. They want what everyone else wants
in life: safety, security, somewhere to call home. They want a country
that is safe to raise their children in. Not a place where their
children will be abducted, raped, and murdered if they do not comply
with the terrorists demands. They want to live on, rebuild, and
prosper. And America has given them the opportunity, but only if we stay
true to the cause, and see it to its end. But the country must unite in
this endeavor...we cannot place the burden on our military alone. We
must all stand up and fight, whether in uniform or not. And supporting
us is more than sticking yellow ribbon stickers on your cars. It's
supporting our President, our troops, and our cause. Right now, the
burden is all on the American soldiers. Right now, hope rides alone.
But it can change, it must change. Because there is only failure and
darkness ahead for us as a country, as a people, if it doesn't. Stop
all the political nonsense, let's stop all the bickering, let's stop all
the bad news, and let's stand and fight!


Eddie's father, David Jeffers, writes:

I'm not sure how many letters or articles you've ever read from the
genre of "News from the Front," but this is one of the best I've ever
read, including all of America's wars. As I was reading this, I forgot
that it was my son who had written it. My emotions range from great
pride to great sorrow, knowing that my little boy (22 years old) has
become this man.

He is my hero