Mr. Katrin, it’s quite sad to think that you take no pride in a military force that provides you a comfortable veil of protection and freedom (March 30). You contradict yourself by saying you like and respect some military members, but your uneducated and offensive use of “hired guns” shows your true feelings. Those big guns and the men and women who serve selflessly allow you the ability to voice your written “spit in the face.”

Your lack of knowledge about the military is quite evident. We don’t do it for the pay. Feel free to review the base pay and increases over the past 10 or 20 years. You’ll find out that oftentimes our raises, when we received them, were less than the rate of inflation.

Further, I encourage you to review the facts about our country’s budget. The Department of Defense is a small percentage of the overall budget compared to the many social programs. Last year, the military budget hit 3.8 percent of GDP and accounted for 20 percent of all federal spending, up from 3.0 percent of GDP and 16 percent of federal spending in 1999. It’s obvious what the increase came from: four hijacked planes bent on destroying your protection and freedom.

I do not wish you banished from our country. I wish you the opportunity to walk one day in a soldier’s boots. The American flag on their right shoulder waves with each step they take to provide you an environment that is safe from the world’s aggressors.

Again, you should educate yourself about the manner in which your freedom has been obtained by our nation’s armed services. You sleep under the freedom and protection those big guns and the forces supporting them provide. I don’t believe we bartered those for you.

Wesley Ford