This is a complicated issue. Whether or not one supports the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, we should all support our troops regardless. And like Jacob H. said, the men and women in military service are subject to harsh conditions, and I'm all for letting these soldiers have air conditioning when it's a viable option. That being said, it's totally obscene that our elected officials continue to give tax breaks and exemptions to corporations, refuse to close corporate tax loopholes, and continue to pass legislation that only increases the gap between the extremely wealthy and the extremely impoverished. The top 0.1% of earners in the US take in more than 10% of the country's total personal income, according to a recent Washington Post article. Since the 1970's, the income of corporate executives has increased 400%, while for most of the people working for those corporations, wages have stalled. Yes, we should give more funding to NASA. Yes, we should continue to provide air conditioning and body armor and other equipment to our military as long as we are involved in conflicts overseas. Most importantly, though, we need to overhaul the system of corporate lobbying and corporate funding of elections, and then we need to elect people who will actually re-prioritize and attempt to balance the country's budget in a just and equitable manner. And we average Americans, as their constituents, need to hold our elected officials accountable for their (in)actions. But hey, that's just the opinion of this one US citizen. Go 'Merica.
