Hi, I'm the author of this post. There are a few things I would like to clarify. First, I am from the south, and it is considered respectful to ask the father for his daughter's hand in marriage. This is usually just a formality, but it shows the parents a lot of respect. This is usually done in person. This has nothing to do with viewing someone as property. This was just a gesture of goodwill to her parents. Nothing more. Second, the reason I didn't ask them in person is because I am stationed in Korea for the next year and I won't be able to see them until sometime next year. I WAS planning on asking my ex when I took leave in November so I thought asking over the phone would be ok. But as you can imagine, that isn't going to happen. Third, the idea of us getting married was her idea. I have been in the military 6 years now and I know what deployments do to relationships. I cared a lot about her and to be honest I still do. This actually happened about 3 weeks ago and it is still shocking since we were together for over 2 years. But, after reading a few of the post on here, I understand it could have been a lot worst. She could have totaled my car or killed my dog. So thanks for all of the well wishes, I appreciate it. For those who laughed at this and said that sucks, you know, your right. It does suck. And yes my life sucks (for now)