2:08 p.m. - Sunday, Apr. 06, 2003
Thanks to You
To the men and women of all ages and stations who serve our country in uniform:

Thank you for protecting me from the many people who would like to hurt me just because I am a citizen of the United States of America.

You have, for reasons of your own, dedicated your present and forever altered your future on my behalf.

You may be endlessly wearing pencils to stubs in a long windowless building whose very walls reek of khaki and new gun oil, or you may be in a strange land, trying moment by moment to decide who will live and who will not. There is less difference between you and your peers than you might think. You all raised your hand some days ago and took the same pledge of obedience and defense. You placed everything, including your life, if need be, at the disposal of your country. Your sacrifices are visible today in many cases, but the sacrifices you�ve made ahead of this latest conflict are not always so apparent. Your dedication to your training, your responsibility in your duties, and your vigilance, day by day, for this very eventuality can only be inferred by those who don�t know.

I couldn�t be more grateful.

An old and long dead general once called you �magnificent bastards�

He was only half right.

To those who love their men and women in uniform

Fear for them, miss them, and pray for their safe return, but above all, be proud of them. They bring honor upon you for the role you have played in teaching them the meaning of commitment, duty and what it means to keep a promise. They will never be forgotten; Our nation has made that clear.

Neither will you. At least not by me. That�s my personal promise to you.

To those United States citizens who pay taxes

Thank you for paying the bills. I know� you pay for everything. Because of you, I have the luxury of trying to discover myself. You give me, grudgingly sometimes, a little slice of the gain you work so hard to earn each day and I use it to pay my rent, and my food, and the often nonsensical things I think I need to find my own contentment.

I never feel like I deserve what I obtain at your expense. I probably don�t. But I do acknowledge it and I do truly appreciate the sacrifices you make every day on my behalf.

My fondest wish for each you is that you will one day posses such material wealth that you will have to hire a tax accountant to deal with your tax problems, and that you will find one of such integrity that you will still be able to sleep at night.

To my Uncle Sam:

Sometimes, you piss me off.

Your justice is imperfect, your laws incomprehensible, and you move towards meaningful change only with a slow deliberation that can be agonizing.

Yet, you protect me from people who hate me for existing. At time, you even protect me from yourself. You allow me to believe (or not) as I choose. You allow me to express my thoughts and opinions day by day without fear, and you provide for my relief when I am suffering and have nowhere to turn.

I think you�re going to get better. I think you�re pretty special right now.

Thank you for having me.

To friends of the USA and her citizens everywhere:

I know. We�re irritating, arrogant, spoiled, and sometimes so very self-centered. Maybe it�s because we are so young. At heart though, we know who our friends are and we stand ready to go to any lengths to support those friends with our heads, our hearts, and with the lives of our young men and women. In return, we ask only that you respect human life, tolerate opposing points of view, and that you join us in a love of freedom.

We can be troublesome, but you can rest assured, you will never find a better friend than the USA.

To those who hate the U.S.A. and its values

The world changed on 9/11/2001. I know you must have heard this before, but it bears repeating. From that date hence, you would be well advised to redefine some terms.

�Slow to Anger� does not mean �afraid�.

�Tolerant� does not mean �weak.�

�Debate� does not mean �disunity�.

�Deliberation� does not mean �indecision.�

We do not ask you to love us. We encourage you to respect human life, but we respect, as far as possible, your cultural and territorial rights and your freedom to govern yourselves and your people as you see fit. We will help you if we can, in proportion to the humanness with which you treat each other.

We have the potential to be a great friend, yet at the same time, you can never choose a more formidable, adaptable, devoted and terrible enemy.

Beware.

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