You showed me what it means to have an undying love and pride in our Country - You had so much love for your Fellow Marines... More >>

He is a (living) WWII veteran who had nightmares every night when he first came back from the war, and yet he never complains about anything. More >>

A lot of the most popular video games on the market are war games.  Are they good or bad for teenage boys? More >>

This Saturday is Armed Forces Day, and this month is Military Appreciation Month .' When I got this email, I knew this was the week to share it with all of you: Dr. Laura:My 15 year old son belongs to the Civil Air Patrol, which is an offshoot of the Air Force.' We had been talking recently about what it means for him to be in the military, the good, the bad, and the sometimes ugly that goes with it.' I just received this email from one of our deployed members that sums up what it means to be a warrior, and thought I would share it with you. From one warrior-raising mom to another,Judi And here's the email she got: A few of you have expressed your thanks and feelings regarding my deployment.' Of course, it's been a resounding "don't go!"' But I would like you to take the time and ask:' what would happen if I didn't go? The simple answer is that someone else would go in my place.' This isn't an acceptable alternative for me.' How could I expect someone else to go in harm's way in my place? Another answer, one I believe more important, is this:' who would protect my fellow brothers and sisters in arms while they do their jobs?' Six years ago, I put up my right hand and swore an oath to defend my country.' And that country includes every airman, sailor, soldier and Marine.' The job that Oscar [his bomb-sniffing dog] and I have is just that:' protecting my brothers and sisters so they might return safely. When I returned from my last deployment a year ago, I had the honor of flying with an Angel Flight.' For those of you who don't know, an Angel Flight is the designation for an aircraft carrying our fallen service members.' It was unfortunate for them to return in such a state.' And I knew, in the back of my mind, that if more people like me (and Oscar) were there, that just maybe, these service members would not have to return like this. The oath that I took is different from the oath you take as a CAP cadet, in that many others stake their lives in the trust that I will keep my promise.' Sticking to that promise is important to me.' But sticking to your promise is just as important.' It shows how you, as an individual, value your own promise to yourself, your community, state and nation. I know what my oath means:' that I am prepared to make the ultimate sacrifice if need be to protect my fellow service members and Americans.' I'd like you to take the time to reflect on YOUR promise.' What does your promise mean to YOU?' Can YOU count on your own promise?' Can OTHERS count on it? Thank you everyone for the gifts, support, and thanks you have given me.' Once I arrive in Iraq and get my mailing address, I'll forward it on.' Remember, the best gift is "Chocolate Monkey" or "Swiss" trail mix from Archer Farms, available at Target. Take care, and stay safe.' I'll see you at the end of my deployment.' I expect to see all of you promoted to Cadet 2nd Lieutenant by my return.' Martinez, give me five push-ups. Phillip K.SSgt, USAF More >>

I read the following email from Tina on the air the other day, but it's such a good story, particularly during this week following Thanksgiving , that I wanted to share it in this forum as well: Dr. Laura: I have to tell you about a recent shopping experience I had at the local Wal-Mart.' My family and I live in northern New York, just 15 minutes from Fort Drum.' This area is extremely "pro-military," and we like it, even though I can do away with the miserable winters. Driving to the store, I always pass through the base, and I saw all the "Welcome Home" banners hanging on the fence, meaning that a bunch of soldiers had just come home from Iraq.' When we got in the store, I couldn't help but notice soldiers who were shopping - the look on their faces was priceless!' These guys were happy to be shopping, happy to be alive, and happy to be home to family, friends, and community who are aware of their sacrifice and heroism. My six year old son was sort of oblivious to all of those dressed in fatigues until we reached the Lego aisle, and he saw a couple of soldiers in his favorite section.' He said, "Look, Mommy - some good guys!!"' "Yes, I see," I told him.' Then he asked the soldiers:' "Did you get the bad guys?"' "Yes, young man, we sure did," they assured him. My son was especially excited that the good guys liked Legos, too! Thanks. Tina More >>

I got an e-mail recently which just about made me throw up. I don't throw up easily. I like to keep what's inside of me there , unless it's supposed to leave, but this pretty much almost put me over the edge, because my baby's over there.This is from Kathleen. She says: I hope you inform your listeners about the anti-war protestors in Portland who burned in effigy a United States soldier. I can't even find the words that would be printable to describe how I feel. Well, I have the words, but let me finish her letter: A car was allowed to pass through a checkpoint in Iraq, because the car had two children in the back seat. The adults got by the checkpoint, left the car, and blew it up, with the children in it. Now, I realize in my position, I need to behave appropriately as a role model, but I am so enraged that most of America is so damned "wussy-weak" that you people actually allowed protestors in Portland to burn in effigy a US soldier, with not a greater counter-demonstration. How could you do that??Let me just explain what kind of bugs, what kind of animals, what kind of creeps would burn in effigy a US soldier? Why aren't they burning in effigy a Muslim terrorist? How about burning in effigy a Muslim terrorist who hides behind civilians, so that when American or international forces have to deal with them, they allow civilians to be killed, and then say, "See? America's bad!" How about burning in effigy a Muslim terrorist who uses children to get through a checkpoint, because they know Americans won't stop or fire on a car with kids, and then they blow the children up as part of a car bomb?Instead, we have bugs in this country like Jane Fonda, Rosie O'Donnell, Martin Sheen, Bill Maher, Sean Penn, Susan Sarandon....the list goes on and on and on in Congress and all over the United States. You've got people blowing up their own people praying, shopping, going to school? These Muslim terrorists are murdering people by the scores every day, and we have people in the United States burning in effigy a US soldier? What in the hell has happened to this country, that we quietly stand by and just go "eh."And another thing....I'm a little tired of CAIR - the Council on American-Islamic Relations. They spend their time, it would appear to me, trying to silence radio, television and print who make any comments about Islam, Muslims, Mohammed - anything - so that everybody will be intimidated into silence. Why? Well I don't think they understand that in this country, we're entitled to opinions. I know in totalitarian theocracies, they're not entitled to opinions except those approved by the state - they're beheaded. I would like to see CAIR mobilize every Muslim in the world to close in on the Middle East and squash the bugs who blow up innocent people praying, shopping, going to school, sleeping in their beds. That's what I want CAIR to spend its time and money on. I hear rumors that CAIR's money goes to terrorism things - I don't have any facts on that - I just hear the rumors. But still, the best way to have good relationships with America is to have all the Muslims in the world stop the terrorists. I am told that the terrorism faction of Islam is very small, so I think that this would be an easy thing for them to do. 98% are pro-peace, pro-love, pro-freedom - go for it! Stop the bugs, so that we don't have to. Stop the people who blow up children for power. Stop the people who blow up the police, the people who clean in the street, and mothers holding their babies. That's what I want to see CAIR do, instead of intimidating talk show hosts all over America. I'm bored with that. I don't know if anybody else is, but I'm bored with that. Scaring people out of speech?So, it's not that I think the protestors in Portland who burned in effigy a US soldier shouldn't have speech rights, but this is so ignorant, so stupid, so off the mark that it should be intolerable to some extent. I know we allow Nazis to parade in the streets, because we're supposed to have free speech - I understand that. But what I don't get is that there wasn't an equal and opposite protest. It's the bad guys who have the giblets, the energy and the will, and if the good guys don't get into gear and stop the bad guys - if the good Muslims don't stop the bad Muslims, if the good Americans don't stop the bad Americans - we're going to lose the world and lose our country, and lose freedom in the world, because we're pretty much the center of it.Burning in effigy a US soldier. Mind you, our young men and women volunteer to live under disgusting conditions, and be paid almost nothing - they have to buy their own freaking uniforms to go into training and into battle -- they come back maimed or dead, changed forever, to free people to create a democracy. And there are people in this country who dare to sneer at that? I'm a proud mother of an American soldier. My boy Is over there risking his life with a bunch of other people's boys and daughters to stop people from blowing up children, blowing up worshippers in a mosque, blowing up people in their villages and in their markets - that's what our children are doing. And for all you morons and creeps and bugs who burned in effigy a US soldier - what are your children doing that's of any value whatsoever?So I'm making a challenge. I want all you decent people who have a grip on reality to get out of your comfortable homes and stand up against this. Come out with your banners, come out with your music, come out with your flags. I want to see Patriot Guard, Hell's Angels, everybody out there on their bikes...whoever. I mean, Rosie O'Donnell on "The View" makes a comment that Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, who said he was responsible for beheading Mr. Pearl, who was responsible for 9/11 and all this stuff, she had the nerve to go on her show, using her vast understanding of counterterrorism operations and in-depth knowledge, to cast doubts on his confession, when there is information confirming everything he said from a number of sources. Why is her knee-jerk thing that we're hurting somebody? Does she realize that this guy killed thousands and she's protecting him? Does she not realize that, as a lesbian, she'd be one of the first ones eliminated by these people? They're not very pro-gay rights! Even that doesn't stop her! And I understand somebody else is giving her yet another TV show. Soon, there's going to be nothing on television, in the newspapers, because what is it? What is the percentage of people in this country who can't and don't read?I'm done. I'm done. I don't really care to take time on my radio show to talk "politics." I don't see this as politics. I call this "survival of America." This is way past politics. I don't really give a damn if it's a Democrat or a Republican who gets into office as long as they will protect the United States....with force, if necessary. Gosh darn, we had these kind of morons out there, even in World War II, but they crossed the line, and you have to let them know they crossed the line. Bringing death to our American soldiers who volunteer to protect this country and everybody in it for the right to even be a moron - there has to be a line. I am the proud mother of a deployed American paratrooper. Hoo-ah! And I spit on people who use kids as shields, and I spit on people who burn US soldiers in effigy. I spit on you both. More >>

The following is an excerpt from my radio program from last week: Dr. Laura: Jay, welcome to the program.Jay: Doctor, thank you very much for taking my call, ma'am.Dr. Laura: My pleasure.Jay: I am an ex-military soldier with a loss of limb, and I'm having a difficult time reconciling between being revered as (quote) "a war hero" and reviled as an oppressor. Friends, family...Dr. Laura: Who reviles you as an oppressor?Jay: ' Believe it or not, my family.Dr. Laura: You mean your mother and father?Jay: And my sister as well.Dr. Laura: Who do they think you oppressed? I mean, how stupid is your family? Jay: My family is....ah, they're not "with" the current times. My sister is currently in India, in her second marriage. She married a Pakistani of all things.Dr. Laura: Oh. And she doesn't understand the problems between Pakistan and India?Jay: No.Dr. Laura: But she's living there...Jay: Well, she chooses not to...Dr. Laura: Has she been on a train that's been blown up yet?Jay: No, and I certainly hope she's not.Dr. Laura: I mean, this is just stupid. I always want to tell these people, gee, why don't you go march in front of, let's do some history, I don't know....let's march in front of Imperial Japan, Nazi Germany, Fascist Italy, militant Islam right now, you go march in front of the Taliban, Hamas, Hezbollah, the Brotherhood, Al Qaeda....you go march over there and talk about oppression! To tell an American soldier that he oppressed somebody is somewhere between stupid, ignorant and evil.And you know what, Jay?Jay: I did my job.Dr. Laura: Jay....Jay: I did my job.Dr. Laura: You can't just say you did your job. They said that in Nuremburg. That's not the truth. You stood between the innocent and evil. And more evil cropped up. So now we have a worse time dealing with evil. People who have killed their own just for the sake of some power in their town. These are oppressors. You don't see anybody in Minneapolis taking out a whole segment of Minneapolis, because they're of the same religion, but they believe a little differently.Jay: You don't think that's a little extreme, in comparison?Dr. Laura: No. Why would that be extreme in comparison? That's exactly....that is a fair, complete, absolute parallel. They go to schools and mosques, and kill each other, for no other reason than power. That's oppression. You don't see one city in the United States of America or Britain where that happens.Jay: Well, that's true.Dr. Laura: Right. Amoral, uncivilized people, versus moral, civilized people. We worry all the time if we're doing the right thing. The militant Islamists don't worry for a moment whether they're doing the right thing - the right thing for them is killing as many people as possible to have power. So, it is two different world views.Jay: Which would be....Dr. Laura: But Jay....you can choose...Jay: I love my country, and I love...Dr. Laura: No. Jay, JAY, Jay...I would expect more of you. You are a warrior. If people in your family are this stupid and this cruel, you cannot wear it as a blanket.Jay: I'm not trying to.Dr. Laura: Well, you said you're torn apart between them. I don't see being torn apart by ignorance.Jay: Minor...Dr. Laura: There are people who love me and love my show and love what I say. There are people who hate me, hate my show, and hate what I say.Jay: Excuse me...Dr. Laura: No, I'm not done. Now, If I woke up every morning worrying about the haters, I couldn't do my job, which I think is to un oppress people from bad ways of being, thinking, and doing.Jay: Can I ask you a question?Dr. Laura: Sure.Jay: By ignorance, do you refer to my own?Dr. Laura: I refer to your family.Jay: My family.Dr. Laura: Your family. Your own? I don't know if you're ignorant or not. Your family is. Oh, you mean you agree with them? You think you gave your leg for nothing?Jay: Not in the least.Dr. Laura: Good. Okay, well, then you're not ignorant. They are.Jay: I'd have done it again. And again. And again.Dr. Laura: Because you're a real man and a real warrior. And if your family can't appreciate that, I feel sorry for them, because my son is over there, protecting the right of your family to be ignorant. And that's what you did, and I admire you. I'm Dr. Laura Schlessinger.Anybody who doesn't show absolute respect for what we're trying to do, who's using Iraq and Afghanistan and all the rest of this simply for political power, are becoming more and more like Al Qaeda and Taliban in their thinking. And that's what I watch when I see Republicans, sub-Republicans, Democrats, sub-Democrats, all of this fighting - it's only for elections and power. It isn't for what is good for the world or for America. I don't believe that for a minute! I see people saying the most God-awful things strictly for power.No intelligent, rational, reasonable, decent person is for war. No intelligent, rational, decent person is for war. But if my father and your fathers didn't go off to fight World War II, I would have been incinerated in a German concentration camp oven. So I'm very grateful to the guys who didn't believe in war, but fought it to protect the free world from vile evil. And that is exactly what's going on now. Militant Islam is vile evil. Every day, they're blowing up their own people for power. It's inhuman. And you really believe we shouldn't stop that?Should we go to Africa when one tribe tries to eliminate another? It's funny....some of the same Hollywood types who say we should go to Africa and stop one tribe from eliminating another don't seem to understand what's going on in the Middle East. But this gentleman who called, my son, your sons and daughters, your fathers, your brothers, your children, are fighting the good fight. Am I for war? Are you nuts? Who in their right mind would be? But the rest of the world doesn't necessarily show evidence of being in its right mind.When I hear pain in a soldier who then says he would go back ...do you realize this is a volunteer army, and we have guys re-enlisting to go back three, four times? Because they're over there and they see the danger, and they know that they're just watching CNN spin or the New York Times spin-they know what's going down. They're watching body parts fly all over the place as one Islamic group kills another Islamic group - men, women, and children.This is a fight for a world view. [sigh]. That's my gift to all the soldiers - my ranting and raving for five minutes. More >>