September 23, 2011 by David K. Sutton
Thank You For Your Service Stephen Hill
I thank and support Stephen Hill. I also thank and support – all United States military members who risk their lives for our country – without conditions. Unfortunately for some conservatives, support for our troops comes with conditions. In the most recent Republican debate on September 22, 2011, Stephen Hill – a soldier serving in Iraq – asked if the progress for gays in the military would be circumvented by a Republican administration.
Several loud boos could be heard. This is not the first time we’ve had inappropriate outbursts from the crowd at GOP debates. First, we heard cheers for executions in Texas. Second, we heard at least two crowd members saying “yes”, we should let someone die since he didn’t have health insurance. Now we turn from cheers to boos but the result is the same in all cases, we see the ugly side of human beings.
At best these outbursts could be described as mean-spirited but I think hate and ignorance are much more apt descriptors. It is the conservatives in this country who beat the loudest drum when it comes to supporting the troops. It is the conservatives who are always quick to criticize others as not being strong on defense and not caring about the troops. But as this video demonstrates, support of troops by at least some of these conservatives comes with conditions. The root of these conditions is found in the ideology of the modern conservative movement. It’s an ideology formed by a narrow world view where conservatives expect everyone else to adhere to what they believe is moral, no exceptions.
I support all troops regardless of their sexual orientation, sex, political leanings or anything else that conservatives would use to divide the country.
