Chris xx Route 66's blog: "MY HERO'S"

For those of us that, have family serving and to the hero's that have served our country.

There's not a lot, we can do or, can say to give thanks for, keeping us free.

While many people will be enjoying the time away from their jobs today;

there's a soldier in a land far away.

Many people will be at a barbecue.

For us with a soldier, we'll be missing you.

For those that gave up a limb or, gave up a life.

There's an empty void for friends, families, husbands and wives.

Not everyone, is cut out to be a hero and serve our country.

But, thank God they did to protect us and keep us free.

So, if you value, your freedom and all you have, please don't forget.

It wasn't a president,  sports star or a writer, it was a vet.

 

God Bless you all for serving

 

Chris

 

Christmas in Heaven I drove by the post office today, saw the flag at half mast. A soldiers duty was fulfilled at last There's a soldier girl or boy Not coming back to Illinois As a parent with a son serving so far away. I know, the pain someone feels today. Someone died for you and me. Another hero lost fighting for his country. Some soldier's in heaven this Christmas, a new warrior at the pearly gate. We're all saddened at this soldier's early fate. Long ago, God sent his son to save us, a soldier duty is to protect us as well. We pray, that peace can be found but, only time will tell. Amazing grace, how sweet that sounds, a soldier died to save us. Another brave soldier will be in heaven this Christmas

US soldiers re-enlisting because of poor economy By JOHN MILBURN and STEPHEN MANNING, Associated Press Writers John Milburn And Stephen Manning, Associated Press Writers Tue Dec 2, 6:12 pm ET FORT RILEY, Kan. – Sgt. Ryan Nyhus spent 14 months patrolling the deadly streets of Baghdad, where five members of his platoon were shot and one died. As bad as that was, he would rather go back there than take his chances in this brutal job market. Nyhus re-enlisted last Wednesday, and in so doing joined the growing ranks of those choosing to stay in the U.S. military because of the bleak economy. "In the Army, you're always guaranteed a steady paycheck and a job," said the 21-year-old Nyhus. "Deploying's something that's going to happen. That's a fact of life in the Army — a fact of life in the infantry." In 2008, as the stock market cratered and the housing market collapsed, more young members of the Army, Air Force and Navy decided to re-up. While several factors might explain the rise in re-enlistments, including a decline in violence in Iraq, Pentagon officials acknowledge that bad news for the economy is usually good news for the military. In fact, the Pentagon just completed its strongest recruiting year in four years. "We do benefit when things look less positive in civil society," said David Chu, undersecretary of defense for personnel and readiness. "What difficult economic times give us, I think, is an opening to make our case to people who we might not otherwise have." The retention rate of early-career soldiers in the Army has risen steadily over the past four years and now stands 20 percentage points higher than it was in fiscal 2004. As for the Navy and the Air Force, early- and mid-career sailors and airmen re-enlisted at a higher rate in October than during the same period in 2007. The Marine Corps was not immediately able to provide comparative figures on re-enlistments. Alex Stewart joined the Army two years ago, when the factory where he worked as a welder started laying off. He was sent to Afghanistan with the 82nd Airborne Division, which suffered 87 deaths last year, the highest total suffered by the 20,000-member unit since the fighting in Iraq and Afghanistan began. When his hitch was up in earlier this year, the 32-year-old from Grand Rapids, Mich., didn't hesitate to re-up for five more years. "I want a stable life for my wife in a very shaky economy," Stewart said. "There were no other options." Stewart's new assignment will take him to Germany, where he will serve as a truck driver, though it is always possible he could be sent back into combat. "I figure if I do another five or 10 years in the Army," he said, "the economy will turn around and I can get a truck-driving job." Army Spc. Alicia Fauls, 20, of the Woodlands, Texas, had two years to go when she re-enlisted last week at Fort Riley, home of the Army's 1st Infantry Division, which has one brigade in Iraq, one headed home and another preparing to ship out. She has not been sent into the war zone yet but knows an assignment in Iraq or Afghanistan is probably in her future. "I did have only two years left, but I'm not sure what I would do," Fauls said. "It's harder to find jobs. If I do wait to get out, the economy should be in better shape." When Nyhus' tour in Iraq ended last April, he talked to his wife about getting out of the Army and working toward a college degree. But the father of a 2-year-old daughter opted for the job security, even though he is likely to be sent back to Iraq as a member of the 4th Infantry Division, which has shouldered a heavy burden of the fighting. Marine Staff Sgt. Angela Mink, who was injured in a helicopter accident in Iraq in 2004 and now works in public affairs at the Corps' New River air station in North Carolina, said the thought of taking a civilian job "without my fellow Marines just didn't appeal to me." Moreover, she had little hope of finding a private-sector job that pays as well as the Marines. "Equivalent pay is nonexistent, once you factor in insurance premiums, housing costs," said Mink, 37. "And we would definitely have had to relocate. I have a child with a disability and what civilian employer is going to take that into consideration when they think of moving you somewhere?" And so the married mother of five signed up recently for four more years. Roughly 208,000 men and women left the military in 2007. Some were rank-and-file warriors, while others worked in specialized fields such as satellite communications or computer networking. Only about 30 percent of enlisted soldiers hold a bachelor's degree. The job market is still fairly good for veterans with technical skills, especially those coveted by defense contractors, said Carl Savino, a retired Army major who runs a company outside Washington that offers employment services to new veterans. Sgt. Michael Rodriguez, 29, of San Antonio, decided to get out after he landed a job with a defense contractor working on communications systems. "I feel pretty secure with them," said Rodriguez, who will leave the military soon. But even defense-contractor jobs could dry up as the economic crisis deepens, Savino said. "Jobs are getting harder to come by for veterans," Savino said. "The farther they deviate from the defense contractors, who are still in reasonably strong shape, the more challenging it is."

THERE'S A VOID IN A SOLDIER'S FAMILIES HEART THAT, SPANS THE DISTANCE WHILE, THEY'RE APART. THERE'S TIMES WHEN, YOU HOLD YOUR BREATHE WHEN, YOU HEAR THE NEWS ABOUT A SOLDIER'S DEATH THEN, YOU'LL BREATH A SIGH OF RELIEF WHILE, SOME OTHER FAMILY WILL MOURN AND HAVE GRIEF. BUT, A SOLDIER'S FAMILY WILL ALSO FEEL THE PAIN OF ANY SOLDIER NOT COMING BACK HOME AGAIN. WHILE MANY PEOPLE GO ABOUT THEIR DAILY LIVES. IT'S NOT THE SAME FOR THE SOLDIER'S FAMILY, HUSBAND AND WIVES. YOU COUNT THE HOURS OF THE DAY UNTIL YOUR SOLDIER'S TOUR ENDS YOU SIT ON PINS AND NEEDLES UNTIL, YOUR SOLDIER IS HOME AGAIN CHRIS

MY HERO’S HAVE ALWAYS BEEN SOLDIERS PERHAPS, YOU MIGHT HAVE SEEN THEM GO BY IN THEIR MILITARY DRESS BUT, HAVE YOU EVER STOPPED FOR A MOMENT TO TAKE A GUESS? THE SOLDIER YOU’RE SEEING, MIGHT BE COMING BACK FROM A DISTANT SHORE. THE BATTLE HARDENED SOLDIER COMING BACK FROM AN UNWANTED WAR. MANY OF US WILL NEVER EVEN REALIZE. THE HORROR A SOLIDER HAS SEEN WITH HIS EYES. WE’LL NEVER KNOW, THE LONELINESS NOR, CAN WE UNDERSTAND. WHAT, IT’S LIKE TO BE IN A WAR TORN LAND. WHAT MAKES A SOLIDER GO FIGHT FOR THEIR COUNTRY? TO EAT LOUSY FOOD AND FOR LOW PAY. IF, YOU ASK A SOLDIER, HERE’S WHAT HE’LL SAY. SERVING OUR COUNTRY IS ABOUT HONOR DUTY AND PRIDE. A SOLDIER SHOWS VALOR AND A COWARD GOES OFF TO HIDE CHRIS