2 + 2 = ?

so somebody volunteered the starbucks where my middle dtr works to participate in this project whereby folks meet 'n' greet the planeloads of g.i.'s coming thru d/fw on their way home on midtour leave from iraq. this had some resonance for me, 'cos back in '95-'96, when my reserve unit was doing rotations in italy watching bosnia, we usedta clear customs in bangor, maine, where there was an old couple who'd greeted and thanked the debarking passengers from every military charter that landed there since '90. she's kinda bummed that she's the only one of the baristas in her store who's stepped up to the plate to do the duty so far, which prolly has more to do with the fact that the plane lands at 8am than anybody's politics (notwithstanding the fraudulent bad press her employer has received re: "not supporting the troops"). as it happens, besides being born in the hospital at carswell and having spent the first eight years of her life on or around air force bases, she has friends from high school who have served in iraq or are serving there now, and so, not surprisingly, wanted to do her bit to show them support, even though she's not so red white 'n' blue on the foreign policy that brought them there. (in that regard, she 'n' i are in agreement with bob seger, who sang in his draft-era ditty "2 + 2 = ?" that "it's the rules and not the soldiers / who are my real enemy.") she called me up the other night seeking advice on what to write in a note that she was gonna give the g.i.'s. i told her i'd say something like "thank you for your courage and sacrifice. you are always in our thoughts." she seemed to like that.