Lets say thanks to our service people

Great site, AU... and great cards too.

I sent mine.

I did it, despite the majorly horrendous religious overtones. What a great guy I am.

I would like to say "thanks" to our service people. But I can't say the same for the people that sent them there.

religious?

I didn't see that many that mentioned God at all...

I didn't send one, but I'd like to get from feedback...

If you were a soldier in Iraq right now, how much would you appreciate a card the you know involved someone sitting on their butt and clicking once or twice? How much thought went into that?

Or am I just cold hearted?

Chai--

I've asked a couple veterans about this and they assure me that cards from strangers are better than no mail at all.

Thanks for the 411 noddy....

I guess it would just make me sad to get mail from strangers...like they were feeling sorry form me.

Back in the early '80's I had a 17-year-old son with inner resources in the army and an 18-year-old, unfinished, stepson in the navy.

My son found the cards pleasant. My stepson, away from home for the holidays (he was stationed in Scotland) found a lifeline in the comfort of strangers.

Remember, a lot of these kids are based in scary places with people shooting at them. They aren't old enough yet to buy legal liquor.

If they are in Iraq they aren't allowed to drink there regardless of their age.

Well, if you had sent one, you would have come to a page where you have to choose a pre-written blurb...there are about 7 evangelical options and 3 very uncomfortably enthusiastic options.

If you want to do more than send cards, you can join Books For Soilders and send books and magazines to individuals:

Books For Soldiers

Back a long time ago, 1969 perhaps, I was in Vietnam with the 101st Airborne. The editor of my hometown newspaper asked folks to send in the names and addresses of service men and women and they were printed along with an invitation for people to send us cards around Christmas.
I can't rightly remember how many cards I got, maybe 12 or 15. More mail than I would receive in six months from a small family.
A couple of them asked how many kids I had killed today. Hateful letters, but the rest were very kind and very sincere in their wish that I was and would remain safe.

Many years later I met the newspaper guy who had made the decision to
print our names and addresses. He said it was the worst journalistic blunder he made in his career. I think he was wrong to feel that way.

What made him think that? Do you think your feedback changed his mind at all?

thanks...I havent' looked here yet, but will later.

me, I think that's more thoughtful than a card, but to each his own. some soldiers might want cards, some might want a book.

it's good to have options.

We got a nice surprise from doing the book thing, although we sent our box through a host source that no longer exists. At least two years ago, I put together a bunch of paperbacks (mostly mystery, novels, sci-fic, biography) to send to Iraq, at the last minute my husband threw in a stack of Homesteading/Mother Earth/Back to the Land/ type magazines. We thought that was the end of it.
About 3 months ago (over 2 years later), we got a little note and a photo in the mail. It was from the soilder who had gotten our book box, my husband forgot to remove his name and address from one of the magazines. This solider lives in Kentucky and sent us a picture of a house he is building for his family based on a plan he saw in Mother Earth. He read all the magazines and gave them away, except he ripped out this one article and carried it with him everywhere. He said when he got really sad and homesick he would imagine living in the house with his family. He said he would spend hours dreaming of the day he would be back home and be able to start building. He wrote that he just wanted to thank my husband for taking the time to send something to a stranger. Now I hate this war and think it's just a big old waste of blood and money, but at least I can say one good thing came out it that touched me personally.

oh wow....that was really moving greenwitch...now you've made my day.

During the first Gulf War, I sent a note as part of the Dear Abby "Adopt a Serviceman" project.

I exchanged several letters with a petty officer on a mine sweeper.

We talked mostly about camping and bears.

I'm in afghanistan right now and I can tell you that it is always nice to get mail overseas regardless if it is from strangers or not.

Though I guess if I got mail only from strangers, that would be a little depressing.

Funny thing about mail from strangers, myself and three of my buddies who are here in afghanistan signed up on one of those sites where you can be pen pals with women in prison.

the letters have come rolling in and most are very interesting.

I tend to shy away from the ladies who are in there for stabbing people and such (esp. when she says how much they had it coming.)

it's nice to write to them in particular though since we kinda' feel like we are serving time over here too with all the dumb rules and such.

the big difference in our sentence I guess is that we are getting paid.