The problem with Mr. Walker’s opinion is that it is so entirely ill-informed, partisan and pompous as to be cartoonish; he writes with an air of intellectual superiority, but he declares himself a downright fool with his written statement.

I served as an Air Force physician in both Iraq and Afghanistan. My initial impulse after reading the piece was to laugh at the sheer ignorance on display, and then I thought about life “downrange” and became irritated. While it is true that I volunteered, and while every service member has his or her motives and secondary gain for volunteering, I can tell you it is no fun to be away from family and friends. It is no fun to miss your children’s birthdays. It is no fun to be away from family and friends over the holidays. It is no fun to be mortared and shelled every other night.

While it is an honor to do so, it is no fun to take care of U.S. service members (far braver than I ever could be) who are blown up, shot up and burned up. It is no fun to take care of local nationals who are shot up, blown up and burned up mostly at the hands of other local nationals. It is no fun to live every day like it is Ground Hog Day, because there is no such thing as a weekend, holiday or day off in Iraq or Afghanistan.

It is no fun to have the sand (the sand is a powder, really) invade everything you own. It is no fun to eat the same bad food every day. It is no fun to forgo the luxuries we enjoy daily here in the U.S. such as indoor plumbing. My “no fun list” could go on and on. As a physician, I had it good. You should know that 95 percent of all U.S. service members had it far worse than me.

What is fun and uplifting is knowing that good folks back home care about you. When I received an anonymous care package — from either a Democrat or a Republican — it was a huge morale boost. It was a big thank-you card that either tasted good or helped me stay a bit cleaner.

No one downrange cares about politics, because no one has either the time or the energy to invest in something as trivial as politics. When I was there, I was just trying to stay clean — which was impossible — and get through the day. Mr. Walker would know these basic facts had he ever served in the military in a war zone. While his inexperience with a topic such as the military and its service members is without question, it is illogical he could harbor such contempt for the U.S. service member.

At a very basic level, perhaps Mr. Walker could look around his office or lecture hall today and understand the gifts he enjoys as a citizen of his country. Perhaps he might consider those gifts are guaranteed by the U.S. service member who serves at the pleasure of our elected government officials. Perhaps Mr. Walker would try to understand that partisanship has nothing to do with care packages. Maybe he might find a little less anger in his day-to-day existence if he chose a course of altruism over abject ignorance.

Mr. Walker, go ahead and send a care package to a U.S. service member. It might brighten your sour disposition to know you made someone’s day. I bet you even get a thank-you card in return.