Soon to be Gone

I think today's post is such a lovely tribute to our veterans. I can say that because I didn't write it. :-)

Men and women from WWII are dying at a rapid rate. Korean and Vietnam vets are passing too. Those brave men and women who fought or assisted our troops, such as medical personnel, are seldom recognized as heroes, but they are. Without their sacrifices, we would not be the nation we have been. Yet, many of them are like my father was, silent on the subject of personal war experiences. There are many great stories that are lost daily. They need to be recorded before they are lost forever. Have you taken the time to sit down with a relative, neighbor or someone in a nursing home to listen to the personal experiences of that individual? Or to tell your own story for posterity? It's a great gift for your family.

This story is appropriately called "Soon to be Gone." It is written by by CPT. Stephen R. Ellison, M.D.

"I am a doctor specializing in the Emergency Departments of the only two military Level One-Trauma Centers, both in San Antonio, TX and they care for civilian Emergencies as well as military personnel. San Antonio has the largest military retiree population in the world living here. As a military doctor, I work long hours and the pay is less than glamorous. One tends to become jaded by the long hours, lack of sleep, food, family contact and the endless parade of human suffering passing before you. The arrival of another ambulance does not mean more pay, only more work. Most often, it is a victim from a motor vehicle crash.

"Often it is a person of dubious character who has been shot or stabbed. With our large military retiree population, it is often a nursing home patient. Even with my enlisted service and minimal combat experience in Panama, I have caught myself groaning when the ambulance brought in yet another sick, elderly person from one of the local retirement centers that cater to military retirees. I had not stopped to think of what citizens of this age group represented.

"I saw 'Saving Private Ryan.' I was touched deeply. Not so much by the carnage, but by the sacrifices of so many. I was touched most by the scene of the elderly survivor at the graveside, asking his wife if he'd been a good man. I realized that I had seen these same men and women coming through my Emergency Dept. and had not realized what magnificent sacrifices they had made. The things they did for me and everyone else that has lived on this planet since the end of that conflict are priceless.

"Situation permitting, I now try to ask my patients about their experiences. They would never bring up the subject without the inquiry. I have been privileged to an amazing array of experiences, recounted in the brief minutes allowed in an Emergency Dept. encounter. These experiences have revealed the incredible individuals I have had the honor of serving in a medical capacity, many on their last admission to the hospital."

To read the rest of the story and view the photos, click here. It's a good story.

Memorial Day Song

Never forget!

Already in His Heart

Cruelty is a subject that arises way too often. Recently I did several posts on Jan's Funny Farm regarding the U.S. Marine who was videotaped throwing a puppy off a cliff and laughing about it. There are other videos online of U.S. military abusing animals and laughing.

This is a quote from my post, Hodgepodge, March 16:

"On our behalf, Jan wrote this in an email to the Public Affairs Office of Marine Corps Base Hawaii (email address in the post URMC Responds to Video) regarding the puppy throwing video:

"This incident concerns me greatly, as does any act of violence against a human or an animal. It is a well-documented fact that animal abuse and human abuse are closely entwined. What I believe is that anyone who would commit such a horrible act as was demonstrated in the video and to laugh at it is not a newcomer to violence. And I'm not referring to what he learned while at war."

For the most part, our troops are young when they enlist, but a person with a propensity for abuse going in is very likely going to come out even more abusive. The correlation between animal abuse and human abuse is well-documented. I have a great respect for our military but the service is comprised of humans, with all their flaws and mentalities.

Some of our troops overseas rescue stray cats or dogs, and now laws are being changed to allow some of these animals to be shipped home to the US to be waiting on the returning serviceman or woman. The answer to why one soldier tortures and another rescues animals can not be explained away by temporary circumstances. Each reacts to what is already in his heart.

And the same for anyone in the military who rapes a fellow officer. I believe the disposition for violence was already present before basic training and deployment. Yet, since the military brass are male and little or nothing is done to punish the perpetrator, one cannot help but wonder if the men in command are egging on those with abusive tendencies by dehumanizing women in their training of recruits. They certainly do not stand for the victim.

It saddened me to read the latest story on rapes committed by fellow soldiers. These are just two articles: "Rapists in the Ranks" and "Sexualized Violence Against Female Soldiers Going Largely Unpunished."

Here's a recent story involving the upcoming generation. "Cops: 3rd-graders aimed to hurt teacher." And the number of animal torture and killings by young children is rising. Children are our future military recruits. They are also our future leaders.

I have serious doubts any animal abuse/torture case will garner any more of a punishment than does rape within the military. For one thing, the "boys will be boys" (even though they are old enough they should act like men) attitude is still prevalent. And for another, I believe the Bible - violence will not only continue but grow worse until Christ returns.