America's Military..10 years at War

Great crew this morning for the weekly Saturday Pain Clinic. We broke out some new tricks and subjected everyone to 4 X 6 minute partner suffering stations of:

Sandbag Getups 2 X weak and strong side
Partner 2 completed kettlebell waiter walks

Burpee Broad Jumps X 8
Partner 2 completed traveling slamball

Swings X 15
Partner 2 dead hang

Goblet Squats X 10
Parnter 2 completed plank knees to elbows

And to think Primetime almost didn't make it this morning

Mac, executing text book form at the top of slamball

A perfect example of the new warrior class in America..

Since it's the weekend and we have a little time to think; I came across this great article (click HERE) that discusses America at War in the 10th year. It's very similar to the 5710 post....(click HERE). Please take a little time to read the full article, I will copy and paste pieces I found interesting below...

This is an Army that, under the pressure of combat, has turned inward, leaving civilian America behind, reduced to the role of a well-wishing but impatient spectator. A decade of fighting has hardened soldiers in ways that civilians can't share. America respects its warriors, but from a distance.

The consequences of this unique milestone in American history are many -- the rise of a new warrior class, the declining number of Americans in public life with the sobering experience of war, the fading ideal of public service as a civic responsibility.

But above all, I think, is a perilous shrinking of common ground, the shared values and knowledge and beliefs that have shaped the way Americans think about war. Without it, how will soldiers and civilians ever see this war and its outcome in the same way? Are those faded "Support the Troops'' magnets enough to guide us through what is likely to be the murky and unsatisfactory conclusions and aftermaths of this era's conflicts?

Take a look and read the rest of the article...it will be well worth your time. The good news is that once these soldiers are finished with their military careers, they will return to the civilian world and provide the kind of leadership and experience that towns and cities across America are in dire need of right now.

 These men and women are amazing on their 3rd, 4th, 5th deployments and reenlisting for more. Why? Ask them why....before you form your opinion of the war(s) through listening to politicians or the media....seek these men and women out and ask them. The ones who have and do live it...