Last week proved the twisted reality families like mine live in

Rant coming. Have to get it out of my system before Christmas.

I always just assumed the American people supported the troops and valued veterans. After all, my Dad was a Korean vet and my uncles were WWII veterans. There was always a party at the DAV, VFW or American Legion, ceremonies for Memorial Day and parades. My Dad was 100% and the VA took good care of him and us. I never really thought about them being forsaken, ignored or no longer worth the price of us at least paying attention to them. It was not until I met my husband, a veteran of Vietnam, that I understood how little we really do matter. Our reception was at an American Legion Post.

I want to go back to the innocent days when I simply assumed the talk of supporting the troops and honoring veterans was real from the majority of the American public. Running Wounded Times and tracking reports across the country has left me living in two totally different worlds. Groups do show up to build homes for the wounded, help the homeless veterans, reach out to families of the fallen and line the streets as their bodies are laid to rest. The rest of the country moves on as if nothing else mattered but their own lives.

People wonder why I don't post on my personal Facebook page anymore. I put up about 60 videos since last year. The events were well attended but the rest of the people I know had no clue they were happening. What made it worse is, they didn't care. They didn't watch the videos and they don't read the reports on Wounded Times. It hurts. I wrote two books but few of my "friends" read them.

Last week proved the twisted reality families like mine live in.

Duck Dynasty rant by Phil Robertson has been consuming the time of reporters and shows no sign of ending. While I think what he said was hurtful, he has the right to say it. The right to use his free speech does not entitle him to silence anyone that does not agree with him. Robertson didn't try to but the media has taken sides and seem to believe that opposing views are trying to silence someone else.

Why? Why would they keep so much focus on this? Because it is causing anger on both sides and the press lives off turmoil. "If it bleeds it leads" so they make sure people get all hot under the collar.

On Facebook a friend shared this picture from No Lapdog Media and friends on both sides agree with this more that what the press wants us focused on.

I have straight friends who believe the same way Robertson does. I have friends who believe it is not up to us to judge anyone and they value how others treat someone else. Then I have friends dealing with being hated for being gay. Then I think of all the LGB members of the military putting their lives on the line everyday. The same people the press shove out of the way as soon as a celebrity opens their mouth.

It is never all or nothing in life. It should never be all or nothing in a news report unless they are just trying to make their own thoughts be known in a sneaky way.

On December 18, Wounded Times reported that for in Afghanistan. two years in a row, Army suicides topped all combat deaths In 2012 there were 310 KIA but 325 Army suicides. In 2013, up to December 18, there were 125 KIA but 251 Army suicides only up until October. The press has just been parroting that suicides this year are down instead of reporting the simple fact there are also less deployed and less serving than there were last year.

Gunnery Sgt. Brandon McGraw home on his 3rd tour was given a trip by Ellen Degeneres to Australia to go skydiving. He died on the trip in an accident.

There was a standoff with a veteran suffering from PTSD military being screwed by budget deal a Marine Dad pleading for help for his son with PTSD on trial six soldiers killed in a crash a Fort Bragg soldier was donating stem cells to save a child with Leukemia, Home Depot employees donated their times to rebuild a home for veterans and the list of others stories go on and on that the major news sources didn't have time for because they made sure Duck Dynasty story kept going.

That is the way it is so no matter what you think about what Robertson said last week, he is right about what he said regarding the attention it has gotten.