Gathering of Eagles - We Each Did What We Could...

I am so very proud of the people who attended the Gathering of Eagles event in Washington, DC and the many local events around the country. Thank you!!!

Mike has a list of those who went to events and who are blogging about them. Please visit http://mikesamerica.blogspot.com and go to these sites to see photos and read the stories.

My day wasn't nearly as exciting as theirs, but I did make the paper!!! I was interviewed by the big state newspaper, The Oregonian, as a person who is a 'war supporter' - they did a fair job of portraying a small part of what I said, though it is edited and changed quite a bit, it does capture the essence of what I said. Mostly I am humbled to be in the same story with Gold Star Mother Elfriede Pulmondore. She will make you laugh - what a wonderful lady!

"And they (the supporters) say simultaneous efforts by protesters to "honor the troops" ring hollow.

"I don't believe you can support the troops if you do not support their mission," says the author of a Central Oregon-based pro-war blog, GazingAtTheFlag.blogspot.com. She says she doesn't want to give her name because she fears being harassed for her views. "Freedom of speech only goes so far," she says.

Her blog focuses on people who are fighting in Iraq, including biographical tributes to some who died there.

"I realized no one was talking about the men," she says. "I wanted to focus on who these people are, these people who go to war for us, who die for us."

You can read the entire piece here.

Of course, I received my very own hate mail because of the interview. It says I should be stoned, that I am working for the devil if I believe the war is moral and that he is smarter than the average Joe. And, they thought I was over-reacting by not wanting to give my name and contact information...

What I said about the troops and their mission was that you continually hear people say "We support the troops, but not the war." I always ask how they support the troops - usually I get a blank stare, sometimes I hear "we want to bring them home" - then, I say, but they want to stay and finish their mission. I told the reporter to be on the look-out for the tent where the protesters are gathering donations for care packages or school supplies, clothing or shoes for the Iraqi and Afghan children, or collecting money for the Wounded Warrior Project, the Intrepid Fund, Valour-IT, or helping a widow and her children. Don't think he'll find it.

I am turning on comment verification for a while, since I had to delete some ugly stuff... so, don't be shocked if your comment doesn't post right away.