As a veteran and a father, I have learned to hate war and despise its end results. Whether there is such a thing as a "justifiable war" is debatable, and the fact that the Iraq War was horribly unjustified is without intelligent debate.

    As a progressive independent, I have become as obsessed with the primary and election news as anyone. Today, however, the reality of the cost of this war and the heroism of our troops was brought home to me by another news story. I watched with awe and no small amount of tears as the parents of another wonderfully brave, young soul were awarded what is our country's highest military honor.
   

This update to a diary posted yesterday by spiralstairs, regarding the distasteful cover on a local Atlanta area rag by the name of The Roswell Beacon.

http://www.dailykos.com/...

   The inevitable flood of McCain bashing jokes and double entendres is going to be lots of fun for all of us. However, I suggest that we all (well, the majority of us) agree, here and now, to not joke about Alzheimer's disease. Because, for any of us who have lost a loved one to this insidious disease, it just ain't funny.

    I was with the US Air Force in October of 1973, when Richard Nixon did the unthinkable. Supposedly in an attempt to deflect attention from his Watergate troubles, the entire US Military was put on high alert, including the Strategic Air Command.

This is my first diary EVER, so I would ask for just a touch of forbearance from the multitudes!