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Politics : Foreign Affairs Discussion Group -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: neolib who wrote (191494)	7/12/2006 5:51:26 PM
From: Brumar89	Respond to of 281500

"morons" who "can't get or hold a minimum wage job". That's your opinion of the people who defend you and your country. I find your derogatory opinions disgusting. ..not a uniform cross section .. The most significant skewing is rural vs urban. That and a serious under-representation of elite liberal snobs.

To: neolib who wrote (191494)	7/15/2006 1:58:24 PM
From: Brumar89	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 281500

Cindra Smith: One Amazing Woman If you're looking for inspiration, look no further than Cindra Smith, one of the most remarkable women I've read about in a very long time. Her story begins when her daughter was gravely injured in Iraq. REDSTONE ARSENAL, Ala. (Army News Service, July 10, 2006) – Having volunteered with the Red Cross, Cindra Smith knew there was something wrong when she arrived home from work late one night and had a Red Cross message on her machine. “When I called them back I was told to wait by the phone and expect a call,” she said. “When I got the phone call they said my daughter had been shot in the back during an IED attack in Iraq.” Pvt. Tracy Branton, Smith’s oldest daughter, was a heavy wheel mechanic on a convoy in Iraq when it was hit by IEDs. When Branton and her fellow Soldiers got out of the vehicles to inspect the area, she was shot in the back. Now 21, Branton is 70 percent disabled and has a slight paralysis because of the injuries caused by the shooting. “I remember being angry,” Smith said. “As parents, we always try and look for someone to blame. But knowing that she was doing something she believed in and wanted to do helped me get over that.” At that point, Smith's son decided he wanted to serve his country. After Branton was injured, Smith’s 20-year-old son, James Pritchard, decided to join the Army to become an infantryman. He attended basic and advanced individual training at Fort Benning, Ga., and is serving in Iraq with the 1st Infantry Division. What happens next is truly unbelievable. When the Army raised its acceptance age from 35 to 40 and then to 42, Smith made a life-changing move. Two weeks away from her 40th birthday, she is now known as Pfc. Cindra Smith, a Soldier in C Company, 832nd Ordnance Battalion, 59th Ordnance Brigade, where she is attending AIT to become an explosive ordnance disposal specialist. “If I can save another parent from getting the same phone call I did, then I would have done everything I came in to do,” Smith said. Smith said joining the Army has given her a better understanding of what her children have been through. Her journey through initial entry training, however, was harder than it is for most. While attempting to rappel off Victory Tower, a 65-foot obstacle, Smith fell and fractured her hip in five places. “I only missed one training event after I fell,” she said. “I completed all the road marches and ran with my company for PT. I might not have been the first one in, but I finished all the company runs.” Basic training can't be a picnic for a 40 year-old woman, and to complicate matters, Smith's mother passed away while she was in training. But the biggest obstacle Smith faced was an emotional one – after fighting cancer for more than two years, Smith’s mother died. “I had been taking care of my mother for more than two years before I came into the Army,” Smith said. “When the time came for me to join, my mother and I had a long conversation and she supported my decision. We made the agreement that I would not be called if she passed away while I was in basic so my training would not be interrupted.” Smith learned about her mother’s death during a call home a week and a half afterward. “You aren’t guaranteed anything in life,” she said. “So if you have the opportunity to do something you like and believe in it, then go for it.” Smith's drill sergeant offered words of praise. “I am as proud of her as I have been of any of my other Soldiers over the course of two years,” Staff Sgt. Lee M. Hallman, Smith’s drill sergeant, said. “She had firsthand knowledge of what she was getting into and she chose to come in anyhow. She is a highly motivated Soldier and she sets a great example for all of our Soldiers.” Smith shrugs off the notion that her story is anything out of the ordinary. As far as Smith is concerned, her story isn’t a big deal and the prospect of deploying only further motivates her to succeed. “I’m looking forward to (deploying),” Smith said. “I believe it will give me a better understanding of what my children have experienced. Also, there are so many new IEDs being found out there everyday. I commend those Soldiers who have been putting their lives on the line each day for our country. It would be an honor for me to dismantle IEDs with them. I could be saving the life of someone’s father, daughter or mother.” I'm in awe of Cindra Smith. Read the full story here. Posted by Andi C on July 11, 2006 at 09:52 PM in Serving Our Nation andisworld.typepad.com

To: neolib who wrote (191494)	7/15/2006 2:07:51 PM
From: Brumar89	Respond to of 281500

Most Trusted Institution in America? The U.S. Military The Army News Service reported yesterday that the military "commands the highest public confidence of any institution in the United States. WASHINGTON (Army News Service, June 27, 2006) - The 2006 Gallup poll results on public confidence are in and the military is again at the top of the list. Seventy-three percent of Americans polled from June 1-4, 2006, said they have a “great deal” or “quite a lot” of confidence in the military, according to Gallup poll writer Lydia Saad. After the terrorist attacks Sept. 11, 2001, military confidence soared 13 percent above the previous year. In that 2002 poll, 79 percent of respondents said they had a “great deal” or “quite a lot” of confidence in the military. The following year saw an increase to 82 percent of Americans having high confidence in the nation’s military. In 2004, the percentage dropped to 75 percent and last year’s confidence measurement fell one percent, but remained at the top of the polls as the institution in which Americans place their highest confidence. The military surpassed the police and organized religion, the next highest ranking organizations, by 15 percent. The police and organized religion are the only other institutions rated in the poll that earned a high confidence rating from Americans, according to Saad. Fifty-eight percent of respondents placed high confidence in the police, compared to the 67 percent who said they had high confidence last year. Fifty-two percent of respondents said church organizations have earned a high degree of confidence, falling only one percent from last year. And bringing up the rear: The Gallup poll results indicated that HMOs, big business and Congress earned the least amount of confidence with the American public this year. Congress earned a confidence rating of 19 percent, while big business earned a confidence rating of 18 percent. In the 2005 poll, Congress and big business were tied at 22 percent. The institutions with the lowest level of public confidence according to this years Gallup poll were Health Management Organizations. Fifteen percent of Americans polled said they had confidence in our nations HMOs, a drop of two percent from last year’s poll. I would like to know where the media ranked, but am not a paid subscriber to the Gallup site. If any of you know, please send the results my way. I just subscribed to the 30-day free trial. Television News - 31% Newspapers - 30% Only one-third of the respondents have "a great deal" or "quite a lot" of confidence in television news and newspapers? Sounds low, but given the shameless antics of these groups, I would have expected the ratings to be lower. Not to worry, there are sure to be more shameless antics between now and next year, there's plenty of time for the numbers to plummet even further. Though the ANS release is dated yesterday, this appears to be an old story that I missed. The Gallup headline is dated June 7, only a few days after my husband returned from Afghanistan. I was taking a brief haitus from the blogosphere then, which explains why I missed it. Update: You can see view the rankings here (no subscription required). Posted by Andi C on June 28, 2006 at 06:34 PM in Military Matters andisworld.typepad.com