"Kids" In Uniform

"As we approach the 2,000 mark of coffins coming home that we're not allowed to see, it doesn't even look like a war. It looks like a lot of kids being blown to smithereens by an invisible enemy." --Maureen Dowd, speaking of young soldiers in the military

This really disgusts me. People in their twenties are young, perhaps naive, maybe even inexperienced--but kids? I don't think so. People in this age-group get married, have homes and children and jobs, and go off to fight and perhaps die for causes with which they relate. Ms. Dowd diminishes their sacrifices by labeling them as mere children. I think it takes quite a bit of courage, loyalty, and a sense of duty to ship out overseas, into an unknown situation and away from one's family and familiar surroundings.

I suppose what bothers me most about Ms. Dowd's comment is that I'm sure she would not see a twenty-year-old's decision in favor of an abortion as an alternative chosen by a "kid." Oh no. Standing up for one's right to slaughter the unborn takes a real man or a real woman.

If these good folks are "kids," then I have no idea what the word "adult" means. Apparently, neither does Maureen Dowd.