No, I didn't mean that at all, and am sorry you took it that way. I was simply struck by the fact that when the military was saying that we had 12 or so KIA's and three of them were fraternity members. It seems a disproportionate percentage given the relatively low numbers of GLO members as opposed to the general population.

I'm sorry you misunderstood my comment.

Eirene:

If anyone on this board is considerate, it's Delt Alum. I am sure he in no way meant any offense to anyone who has family in military.

And I thank God that your brother is safe after the grenade inccident, and I thank him, and all the military, for taking their duties so seriously. However, this is a greek board, so it does make sense that many people would notice if one of their fraternity brothers or sisters was injured or killed. Of course the other fatalities are equally sad and important. If you would like to keep a thread with a list of all fatalities, I know I would read it and say a prayer for those families as well. I'm sure others would do the same.

I wish your brother, and all our troops, a speedy and safe return.

If you would like to make a donation in Seifert's name I now have a mailing address for the Big Bro and Big Sisters of the Lehigh Valley

Big Brothers Big Sisters of the Lehigh Valley, 33 N. 15th St., Allentown, Pa 18102.

Apparently, from a follow up article I read in the paper today, Seifert 'went the extra mile' in all he did in life, including continuing to stay in contact with his 'little brother' after he graduated from college.

DeltaAlum is only stating what has been on threads many times before when a member of any Greek Organization is killed in some unneccessary accident or what ever may have happened.

We are not saying that that Greeks are more important fighting this war. We as Greeks mourn Our Greek Brother/Sisters and also mourn the lose of any member of our armed forces.

I feel when I lose a Greek Member, I am losing a part of my self. But I feel I am losing a part of my self when WE as Americans Lose any Memeber of OUR PEOPLE WHO ARE THERE FIGHTING FOR US: You, Me and everymember of the GC SITE mean no disrespect to non-Greeks what so ever.

Remeber, the people on this Site are a very caring Group of people who go beyond just their little circle of people, they have a world of people who they can call on to be there in a time of need!

I have met only a small % of the folks here, but I consider them part of a little family and I hope you do too!

May your Brother and all of our men/women come home soon! I too have freinds who are there and it will not be nice!:(

Tom and Kathy,

Thanks, but I'm not offended by Eirene. She is obviously concerned for her brother and his fellow service people.

I understand that entirely, and certainly don't blame her.

I'm sorry she misunderstood my reason for comment.

I wish she and her brother only the best of luck in this most distressing time.

Thanks for the kind words Tom and Kathy. I get Deltalum's point...but maybe it came out the wrong way. I don't think any of us want to see our family, friends, and fellow citizens die in this war.

One of our sisters from my chapter (Theta Zeta) is stationed in Kuwait and we haven't heard from her in a while. I hope that she and everyone else with her is safe and healthy.

JUST A COMMON SOLDIER

He was getting old and paunchy and his hair was falling fast,
And he sat around the Legion telling stories of his past
Of a war that he had fought in and the deeds that he had done,
In his exploits with his buddies~~they were heroes, every one.
And tho' sometimes to his neighbours, his tales became a joke,
All his Legion buddies listened, for they knew whereof he spoke
But we'll hear his tales no longer, for old Bill has passed away,
And the world's a little poorer, for the soldier died today.
He won't be mourned by many, just his children and his wife,
For he lived an ordinary, quick and uneventful life

Held a job and raised a family,
quietly going his own way
And the world won't note his passing, tho' a soldier died today.
When politicians leave this earth, their bodies lie in state
While thousands note their passing and proclaim that they were great,
Papers tell their life stories from the time that they were young,
But the passing of a soldier goes unnoticed and unsung.

In the greatest contribution to the welfare of our land
One guy breaks his promises and cons his fellow man
But the ordinary fellow, who in times of war and strife,
Goes off to serve his country and offers up his life.

A politician's stipend and the style in which he lives
Are sometimes disproportionate to the service that he gives
While the ordinary soldier who offered up his all
Is paid off with a medal and perhaps a pension small.

It's so easy to forget them, for it was so long ago
That the old Bills of our country went to battle, but we know
It was not the politicians, with their compromise and ploys
Who won for us the freedom that our country now enjoys.

Should you find yourself in danger with your enemies at hand
Would you want a politician with his ever~shifting stand?
Or would you prefer a soldier who has sworn to defend
His home, his kin and country and would fight right to the end?

He was just a common soldier and his ranks are growing thin
But his presence should remind us we may need his likes again.
For when countries are in conflict then we find the soldier's part
Is to clean up all the troubles that the politicians start.
If we cannot do him honour while he's here to hear the praise,
Then at least let's give him homage at the ending of his days
Perhaps just a simple headline in a paper that would say,
"OUR COUNTRY IS IN MOURNING, FOR A SOLDIER DIED TODAY !!"

Thank you for starting this thread, OULioness

I don't really like this thread. It's kind of like we are keeping a tally on greeks that get killed in the war and that doesn't fly....

To touch on what someone else stated in this thread, if they are greek or not, they are still soldiers serving our country. I dunno, it just seems kind of wrong.

"Today, so and so, a so and so fraternity member from this university was killed." <------not cool (imo)

My prayers are with the Seifert family as well as the Stone family (see below). A second soldier died of his wounds from the same attack:

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,82128,00.html

Although the thread seems incredibly morbid, I thank OULioness for starting it. It is a better way to keep track of those servicemen/women with greek ties.

damasa- i know it's morbid, but i started it because if i hadn't we would have had a new thread everytime a service man or woman in a greek organization died. this way we all check only if we want to, and thread titles won't let everyone know how many there are.

Lance Corpral David Fribley, Kappa Alpha Order, Indiana State University

I know that people are here debating whether or not we should be sharing our fellow Greeks who died and whether or not their lives are more important than those who aren't Greek. My opinion is that all lives are important. Perhaps the reason for sharing the deaths of the Greeks is that they are somewhat easier to find through the inter/national websites. If someone knows someone, whether they are Greek or not, who has died serving the country in this ongoing war, please let us know so that we can honor their lives as well. Perhaps we should start another thread of our loved ones who are deployed....