Filling the Empty Seats

[B-well]

Someone was thinking about filling the seats today for the Eastern Kentucky game - expecting that students might still away for the Thanksgiving weekend.

Seats were made available to Army troops from various units at Fort Bragg - not only a great way to fill the seats - also a great way to recognize them. The crowd gave them an extended standing ovation.

We actually could have used a couple of hundred more troops.

[captmojo]

A fine sentiment and may God bless the one who thought of it.

[JBDuke]

Please take any further discussions on these matters over to the Public Policy Board. That's what it is there for.

The troops at Fort Bragg, NC are putting their lives on the line everyday?

According to the announcers, these particular service people are scheduled to be shipped out to war zones, so, I have no problem with someone saying these troops are putting their lives on the line.

Regardless of where troops are stationed, whether it's stateside or overseas, they are willing to put their lives on the line and defend our country and our freedom. Unless you're ready to do the same, Edouble, don't even ask that question!

Not only did I choke up at the game when everyone stood up and clapped - I didn't even hear the rest of what the announcer had to say everyone was clapping so loud, not a criticism, simply an observation - I choked up telling my dad, who was career military. I love that Duke had that whole section reserved for our troops.

You originally wrote that these people "put their lives on the line" in your post, now you have changed it to they "are willing" to put their lives on the line. A pretty big difference in semantics. Aside from a possible serious training accident, I don't see how a soldier stationed at Fort Bragg is putting their life on the line everyday. My original point was simply that they are not.

What you have now written though, scares me.

The great thing about the "freedom" that we enjoy is that everyone is entitled to their opinion. Asking questions is protected by the first ammendment, and there are no caveats that one must be in the military to enjoy these rights... liberty is, in fact, unalienable! We don't live in a police state where we must blindly support the decisions made by our government and the agencies that enforce them.

I would certainly put my life on the line in defense of these freedoms. However if I were to sign up for a military tour, it's not clear that's what I would be doing--especially if I were raping and killing Iraqis halfway around the world. A good number of my family and friends have served in the military, but that doesn't mean that I have more of a right to voice my opinions on the use of U.S. force on foreign soils than a person with no ties to the military.

How about reserving a special section in Cameron for public school teachers that put their lives on the line everyday (not a joke) for the betterment of the youth in our country?