Have It Your Way - Sir!

Commanders of the U.S. forces in Afghanistan would like their soldiers to remember that "they are not at an amusement park." That is why they will soon be shutting down the fast food franchises that have been serving "meals" to the troops in the field: Burger King, Pizza Hut and T.G.I.Friday's. They also warn that chains such as Orange Julius and Dairy Queen could be next. They've got Dairy Queen? We don't even have one of those here in Oakland.
The powers that be seem to be of two minds on this issue, both of which want to close these little outposts of the American Dream. Besides the practical concern of the resources that making Whoppers and non-alcoholic margaritas take, generals and majors don't seem very comfortable with the image of their enlisted men sitting down to a plate of chicken tenders in the middle of a war zone. If it's true that an army travels on its stomach, I guess the commanders don't want them moving on guts full of onion rings and baby back ribs.
A cynical view might wonder why an operation called "Enduring Freedom" doesn't feel the need to extend that notion to menu choices, but perhaps this isn't the part of the American Dream we want to export first. All those soda cups and burger wrappers may not be sending the right message. Then again, if you're about to lay down your life to ensure the enduring freedom of a country to which you may have only recently introduced, maybe you'd like to have a chocolate shake before you pile into your Humvee. Hearts, minds and stomachs.
Or maybe they could solve the whole thing by shipping all those grumbling troops back to America, where the Burger is King and the Dairy is Queen.