In case anyone else cares it is an internet company named discount-mats.com and it is out of West Allis, Wisconsin. The employee that sent the 'inflamatory' e-mail has been fired. The company is standing behind the fact they do not ship to APO's anywhere but did fire the employee for the disrespect to our military.

Good for them. I hope they are careful when they go out to their cars.

It's good to make sure you're looking at all sides of the story, but if they wanted to do the deal, I bet it would have taken only a couple of hours between the company and the soldier to figure out how to make it work without the license. Maybe they could ship to a military unit in the states, which in turn could send the stuff to the unit in Iraq without a license. Even if they needed the license - I bet the process can be expedited when you're shipping basic supplies to the soldiers in Iraq.

According to local news, pretty much all the company has in West Allis is a PO Box. The warehouse and most employees are in Ohio. The reason a company spokesman gave the reporter for not shipping to Iraq involved size limitations on packages.

I believe problem #2 arose when they found the owners to be of middle eastern descent. I am not sure if I said that right, but I think you know what I mean. It then got ugly with the threats and thousands of e-mails and calls not only to the company but also to the owners homes. That wasn't right either. Now it's an all out battle. They actually fear for their safety!

As someone who was there for Gulf War I (as we called it), the logistical complexity of what is going on there is beyond the wildest imagination. The situation for most of those folks is so "fluid" that the only real way to ensure that everyone has what he or she needs is to issue it to them immediately, and then make them carry everything around from place to place (not very practical considering how much you would have to carry). It really is a logistical nightmare, and it would make no difference who is President and which party is in political control. War is considered "he**" for oh so many reasons...

Thanks to Ravenskye for pointing out the fact that the military personnel stationed over there are someone's father/mother, brother/sister, and/or son/daughter. Of course you'll hear complaints about the situation there, because some are in absolutely horrific conditions. Except for those "conscientious objectors" (punks, if you ask me) who enlisted AFTER the war began because they thought joining the military was an easy way to get tuition money, I don't recall ever hearing anyone thinking they were expecting or entitled to "Club Med" conditions when they joined the military.

Now I will join with the choir about supporting our troops. These people joined for a wide variety of reasons (some thinking that if they joined, their kids won't have to fight, etc.), and, no matter how politically complex the situation may be over there, one of their primary duties is to be the first line of defense for bullets aimed at the citizens of the United States of America (and for protecting our right to say things we should not), and they deserve support and respect for that, if nothing else.

Now that I'm done preaching, put this in perspective as we bemoan gas prices...

Imagine paying $2.00 for a liter of water, $1.50 for a hamburger ("camel-burgers" as we called them), and $.50 for a soda. That's what prices were back in 1991 off base.