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Graduating from high school is a pivotal moment in life, and what you do next will set your life on course. Unfortunately, many graduates fall into the trap set up by the armed forces. With high hopes of serving their country and a better life after the military, our youth sign up. What they are not told is that when top secret plans made at the White House, Pentagon and CIA go wrong, like Abu Ghraib, it will be the low ranking solider who will be held accountable. It is then they will have to come to grips with the fact that the Support Our Troops and Yellow Ribbon crowd will suffer a metamorphosis and emerge as invertebrates.

Are you going to be the next victim? Don't break your mother's heart by joining the military where you could end up losing your life for somebody else's agenda. The anti-war movement is not welcome because it does not provide jobs; it only provides young Americans with their life. Kid, don't die for a lie.

The Real Costs of Joining the Military ' What the Anti-War Movement Will Tell You

The military is an institution with very clear objectives and a defined purpose. That would be okay, but more often than not the objectives and defined purpose have nothing to do with the reasons stated.

Vietnam War veterans aren't the only ones who will say that going to war changed their life; unfortunately, few Vietnam War soldiers had a choice. Why would you risk your life when you have a choice to save your life? The anti-war movement shed some light on other opportunities available, and it's a good idea to take a close look at the real costs of joining the armed forces such as:

' Going to war for a Commander-in-Chief who some say is AWOL, a claim that hasn't been disproved. What we now know for sure is that when George W. Bush said, "Mission accomplished" he was talking about his mission, not ours.

' Doing as ordered and then being put on trial for your life for doing so.

' Missing a chance to build up real-world experience and transferable skills.

Lest we forget, George W. Bush was president when the World Trade Center was destroyed and Osama bin Laden, the mastermind of this sixteen-man invasion, was a friend of the George H.W. Bush family. And it was the Bush family who made sure the bin Laden family was quickly flown out of harms way after the fact. Here, I will let Bush explain his family's concern about bringing this terrorist to justice: "I don't know where bin Laden is. I have no idea and really don't care. It's not that important. It's not our priority." -G.W. Bush, 3/13/02

After these words left Bush's mouth, had Congress been anything but self- serving hypocrites, Bush would have been impeached immediately. Had they done so, a million or more people, 4,000 of them young Americans, would still be alive. The Secret Service can lock me up and keep me locked up if it pleases them, but not in a thousand years could Al-Qaeda devalue our flag and dollar like Bush and his accomplices have.

If you want to risk your life for a lie, all must agree that it is yours to risk. Good luck.