Proud to be an American

I was out doing some things this afternoon and had Sean Hannity on the radio while I drove back. Joshua Sparling called in, a wounded US soldier who has been on the Hannity show many times. To bring you up to speed, he suffered a very severe leg injury in Iraq and has been at the Walter Reed Medical Center since late last year. He received thousands of get-well cards, but one of them stood out above all the rest; at the end of the letter, it said, "P.S. Die."

Hannity has taken this kid under his wing and has helped him and his family out immensely. Because of the airtime the story has gotten on the show, Joshua has received thousands upon thousands of gifts, cards, and emails from people across the country. You can read more about it here: http://www.hannity.com/.

So anyway, Joshua called up Sean's show to give an update on his progress. He is doing better, but physical therapy has been tough. The doctors said his leg can be saved, so that is great news.

After Joshua hung up, another soldier called in. He had just returned from Iraq and wanted to point out a few things that the liberals were claiming about the war and how we are fighting it. Hannity listened to what he had to say and then thanked him for serving this country and doing his part for making this world a better place.

At this point, after hearing two Iraq war veterans on the radio talk about how proud they are and how thankful they are to the American people for reaching out to them, I was feeling a bit emotional. I felt so damn proud to be an American and I was so happy that people like these brave men and women are putting their lives on the line for you, me, and the Iraqi citizens.

And then a father of a soldier killed in Iraq called.

His name was David, and he barely got five words out before he started crying. I suddenly felt even more proud and started to get emotional. What is this watery substance I feel in the corner of my eyes? After gathering himself, David said that his son was killed on Easter Sunday 2004. It has been an incredibly tough road, he said, but the family has pulled together and is healing.

You know what? I am so thankful. No, WE are so thankful. The streets of Iraq might be the most dangerous ones in the world, but yet these people are over there doing their job to spread the word that Democracy is here to stay. I hear liberals every day saying that the soldiers fighting over there are bitter, hostile, and engaging in a war they know is wrong. That's funny though because I've heard A LOT of stories from Iraq veterans and their families and they ALL have said that the men and women on the streets of Baghdad, Fallujah, and Tikrit are doing their job without any remorse. They know we are doing the right thing and are confident that our great president is making the right decisions.

People like Cindy Sheehan have to go away. I respect their right to disagree and protest, but I have heard stories of soldiers arriving back in the US after a tour in Iraq being greeted by these idiots. I remember one person called up a show last year and he said that when the plane touched down at the Atlanta airport, protesters were outside with signs saying things like "murderers!" and "terrorists!" Can you believe that? And people with the same types of signs are always picketing outside of the Walter Reed Medical Center, a place where America's wounded come to heal. Imagine this: You are wounded by an IED in Iraq, shipped over to Walter Reed to recover, and things are going well. Then one day you go outside for the first time in months and you see a bunch of long-haired liberals calling you a terrorist and a killer. How would you feel?

We are fighting in Iraq so the people there will be able to disagree with the government and stage a protest. This is part of our First Amendment right and I fully support that. But please do one thing for me: SUPPORT OUR TROOPS.

-Jason