I agree, Thomas, many of these military personnel may have been very cheered to see him there, and I guess it's better then his not gong at all, but to have it be all about a big publicity stunt grates on me, especially since the 'secrecy" and timing make it look like he was merely trying to upstage Hilary Clinton...

If you were asking how would I personally deal with being sent to Iraq,itis hard for me to imagine this since there is no draft anymore, and there is no way I would go in a military capacity because I would register as a conscientious objector. But, let's say civilians were forced to go and serve in non-combat functions. I would probably want to work in communications or in a journalistic capacity, or maybe as a radio announcer, something to help boost morale,or in some therapeutic capacity (yoga instructor?), or in away that helped rebuild thecities being destroyed.
But I find the majority of "career" military people I have met in recent years are not people I tend to have a lot in common with, even less so those who signed up in droves after 9-11. Talk about a jingoistic over-reaction. Now a lot of these pie-eyed idealistic young people are stuck in Iraq risking their lives so our administration can keep an eye on their oil investments. This does not strike me as noble or even patriotic, but naive and pathetic. So it would be a challenge for me to find a way to fit in. I do not believe people have a responsibility, in peace time, to die for their country in some arbitrary war with a region that does not threaten them directly.

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