Like others have said, a LOT of us here have served our respective countries. In fact, I'd be willing to bet that the majority here have.
As for what to do while deployed in the middle east - leave that shit alone.
If any of your peers catches you, your career is hosed. If the civilians catch you, they react VERY harshly to this sort of thing there. And by harsh, I'm talking about large rocks impacting your skull at high velocity.
Leave that shit alone while you are over there . . . .
