my last goodbye...

[meathead333]

i know i havent been around lately...but i just wanted to say my final goodbye to you all. i leave for iraq in the morning. its been fun, hopefully when i get back in a year there will be a bunch of cool DIY mods i can mess around with on here. say a prayer for me. untill we meet again......meathead...aka SGT BENEDICT

[AKLGT]

good luck, meat! i'll keep you in my prayers. please be careful and come home safe and sound!

[ArcsVibe]

Good luck bro and Godspeed!Take care out there and come home quick!

[scherry2]

Good luck and be safe

[shibaman]

Be safe and come back to us.

[NSimkins]

Good luck and stay safe - we'll be thinking of you!

[rasermon]

Take care bro and be safe.

[JustinVGT]

Good luck and stay safe. My older brother is being deployed in March for Baghdad.

[SARGE]

Been there done that. Keep hour head up and your (removed) down. time will pass quicker than ya think. Take care and God speed to you.SARGE

[wicked1981]

Have a bunch of friends just got back from there ( I just got out ARMY) Be careful!! See you when you get back.. Good Luck!!

[joatmon]

It is a serious commitment, that's for sure. It's not for everyone though. They do provide incentives to make it worth signing up, but you better be sure that you can accept what might come before you do it. That's why it's important to support those that do make that commitment to their country, it's no walk in the park.Probably too late for him to see it by now, but ...Best of luck Meat! Come back to us safe and sound,

[wicked1981]

Sounds like a long time but it goes by quick. I finished my 4 years last september now im going to school for free!! There is good and bad things about it going to Iraq is surely a bad one. As long as he is carefull he will be fine..

[Merzbow]

Viel gluck.

[cibomatto]

SGT Benedict, stay strong and stay sharp. Good luck.from SGT Sam aka Cibomatto

[Stang2Vibe]

Quote, originally posted by joatmon »It is a serious commitment, that's for sure. It's not for everyone though. They do provide incentives to make it worth signing up, but you better be sure that you can accept what might come before you do it. That's why it's important to support those that do make that commitment to their country, it's no walk in the park. Amen to that, joat! They get very little reward for their sacrifice and risk. Most career military personnel are living at the poverty level and many have to collect food stamps just to survive when they are not deployed. I have said it several times on here before and I'll say it again and again---I thank all of you who serve/have served in our armed forces from the bottom of my heart for contributing to making me, my family, and my loved ones free. My mind cannot conceive of a way to thank you enough to do you justice.My prayers and best wishes for your safe return, meathead!

[AKLGT]

god bless america! i support my troops and their families and loved ones! hope for the best for you, meat and all those who are over serving their country!

[Stang2Vibe]

Quote, originally posted by Salsa! »If I was in Meat's position, I would resign from the army.... why take any chances of getting killed or injured...stay at home, have a family, find a job.... be safer!BTW Salsa, the current operations going on in the Middle East are the safest wartime operations in U.S. history. Even though it gets lots of bad press (due to the biased fools running the majority of the media outlets in this country), there have been only 500 deaths of U.S. personnel so far in Operation Iraqi Freedom (just reached 500 today with another terrorist attack on our soldiers in Iraq). That number probably includes deaths as a result of accidents (like the helicopters that crashed) that were not the result of enemy fire. Combat operations only lasted about 2 months. While every death during acts of war is a tragedy, compare this war with other recent U.S. wars. In the Vietnam war, over 58,000 members of the armed forces were killed or are still listed as missing in action. That is A LOT more than any recent conflict, especially the current operations. Also, I heard a discussion on the radio today were a military officer was speaking about the great job that our military does at treated those wounded in action. He stated that in the Vietnam War, about 35% of the wounded could be expected to survive their wounds, in Desert Storm in 1991, that number rose to about 85%, and in the current operations in Iraq, statistics show that about 99% of the wounded can be expected to survive. That is an incredible rate of improvement. Our military does everthing possible to minimize the risk of deaths to our military members AND civilians in enemy territory and they are very effective at it.

[AKLGT]

here, here, stang! that's right. when you join, you do it for your country. these men and women make incredible sacrifices for us and our freedom. if it were easy, then everyone would do it. i honestly don't know if i would join, unless it was a dire need. then i would do my duty and serve my country. i am proud to be an american and i am proud of our troops serving their country and their families for making such sacrifices. whether you agree or disagree on this war, you should support our service men and women regardless. they are doing what they were called to do and risking their lives. just like police officers, firefighters, and other public service workers risk their lives everyday for us, our troops risk theirs. why should our military personnel deserve less respect than those police officers and firefighters who died trying to save others in 9-11? they take the same risks yet have fewer benefits and pay. to all those serving their country! including canada!

[Stang2Vibe]

Exactly. I've said it before on here that it was a total disgrace what some idiots did to protest the Vietnam War. Those people were shipped overseas, largely against their own will, to fight for this country. Some a-holes decided that is was necessary to disgrace us all so much by spitting on our troops as they returned home from fighing in Vietnam. I can hardly think of a more disgraceful act that has been committed against our fighting forces in recent history. Protest the war if you want, it is your right to do so, but do so legally (i.e. peacefully as the Constitution allows), and at least protest in a sensible manner. Blame the President, congress, military strategists, whatever---but DO NOT EVER disgrace this country's armed forces! That is deplorable on such a level that it is undescribable.We had idiots here in Pittsburgh that decided to protest the war by lighting fires downtown, throwing bricks through the Marine's office, and by blocking traffic by standing in the streets during rush hour. Then they couldn't understand why they were being arrested and went crying to the newspapers and local news stations about it. Ridiculous. Good thing I wasn't driving in town that day, I would have just pushed them with my car and kept on going.Also, I was almost a Marine, myself. I almost joined after high school, but when I took their entrance test and the officer giving the test came back and told me that I scored off his chart and couldn't actually tell me how well I did, I decided that college was probably a better route for me. Besides, if I did go into the service, it would have taken up 4 years of my life, then when I got out, I would have to spend another 4 years in college. They were only paying a max of $50,000 for education after serving at the time, which wouldn't even cover a full 2 years of my current college tuition. But if called, I would go and not run away, either. I don't know if they would accept me now due to some medical issues anyway. I'm over 25 now, so I would be moved to a later round of the draft, if I remember the rules correctly. I'm the oldest and only male in my immediate family, plus my father has already passed away, so they might not call me anyway.

[cool vibes]

God bless you and your family i know what ever you"re going to do that it is the right thing in your mind look out"

[drunkenmaxx]

i believe that i am inelligible for the draft due to the metal in my femur. (18 screws and 2 metal plates)

[wicked1981]

Yeah I think you are right I doubt they would draft someone with lose screws. J/K

[drunkenmaxx]

yeah, i'd have to agree, they wouldn't want to recruit someone w/loose screws in more than one place!

[Meathead's Wife]

Hey, Its meatheads other half here, He won't be able to see this sight for now but next time he calls me I will be sure and tell him how much all of you are thinking of him. My husband is a very brave man, I am so very proud of him and so is his family my family and many many friends. If all of you don't allready have yellow ribbons go out and get them because that is the best way to show our soldiers that you care. The incentives for joining the military are nice, but the pay isn't that much for working 12-13 hours a day depending on your job!

[wicked1981]

Hey tell me about it. Try going for weeks without seeing your better half! SUCKS! I hated it the long hours and pay. So Fnished my term now im out. Well sort of still in the National Guard (shool money).