Nothing But Love :: golf blogger

Hey George, There's Still Your War

During the Viet Nam War, the numbers of dead and wounded were about equal. Now, in Iraq, because of improved medical treatment, the ratio of wounded to dead is about 8 to 1. Let's see ... I'm betting that if there were about 7,000 U.S. soldiers killed in Iraq at this point, the American people would be pretty upset about Bush's Crusade. Instead, there are almost 12,500 wounded soldiers, many of them men and women missing arms and legs or paraplegic, of whom we hear very little, you know, so as to "maintain their privacy." The cost in terms of dollars for treatment of these honorable vets has been and, over the rest of their lives, will be enormous, money not counted in the 80 billion dollars just granted to Bush to continue the Iraq War, money not counted in the running total at the bottom of this page; the cost in terms of lost opportunities and diminution in the quality of life is incalculable.

As Abu Ghraib again grabs the headlines, 15,000 dead and wounded Americans and the members of their families, who suffer quietly, have been pushed out of the public's minds and hearts.

May 4 and May 14 will be the 35th anniversary of the killing of four students (nine others were wounded) on the campus of Kent State University by Ohio National Guardsmen and the killing of two students (nine were also wounded) in a dormitory at Jackson State University by police and highway patrolmen.

What will it take for the American people to rip the blinders off? Another Kent State? Another Jackson State?

Read these names and then remember the other list of those maimed for life, for whom barriers for the disabled will not be just an abstract concept against which some lady blogger campaigns:

Cpl. Garrywesley T. Rimes, 30, of Santa Maria, Calif.
Lance Cpl. Tenzin Dengkhim, 19, of Falls Church, Va.
Staff Sgt. Ioasa F. Tavae, Jr., 29, of Pago Pago, American Samoa
Sgt. James A. Sherrill, 27, of Ekron, Ky.
Cpl. William D. Richardson, 23, of Moreno Valley, Calif.
Sgt. 1st Class Stephen C. Kennedy, 35, of Oak Ridge, Tenn.
Staff Sgt. Christopher W. Dill, 32, of Tonawanda, N.Y.
Lance Cpl. Jeremiah C. Kinchen, 22, of Salcha, Alaska
Sgt. Javier J. Garcia, 25, Crawfordville, Florida
Spc. Glenn J. Watkins, 42, of Carlsbad, Calif.
Lance Cpl. Juan C. Venegas, 21, of Simi Valley, Calif.
Staff Sgt. Kevin D. Davis, 41, of Lebanon, Ore.
Pfc. Casey M. LaWare, 19, of Redding, Calif.
Spc. John W. Miller, 21, of West Burlington, Iowa
Spc. Manuel Lopez III, 20, of Cape Coral, Fla.
Cpl. Tyler J. Dickens, 20, of Columbus, Ga.
Cpl. Michael B. Lindemuth, 27, of Petoskey, Mich.
Capt. James C. Edge, 31, of Virginia Beach, Va.
Spc. Aleina Ramirezgonzalez, 33, of Hormigueros, Puerto Rico
Pvt. Aaron M. Hudson, 20, of Highland Village, Texas
Sgt. Angelo L. Lozada Jr., 36, of Brooklyn, N.Y.
Sgt. Tromaine K. Toy Sr., 24, of Eastville, Va.
Spc. Randy L. Stevens, 21, of Swartz Creek, Mich.
Pvt. Joseph L. Knott, 21, of Yuma, Ariz.
Pfc. Steven F. Sirko, 20, of Portage, Ind.
Maj. Steven W. Thornton, 46, of Eugene, Ore.
Pfc. Sam W. Huff, 18, of Tucson, Ariz.
Spc. Jacob M. Pfister, 27, of Buffalo, N.Y.
Pfc. Kevin S. K. Wessel, 20, of Newport, Ore.
Cpl. Kelly M. Cannan, 21, of Lowville, N.Y.
Lance Cpl. Marty G. Mortenson, 22, of Flagstaff, Ariz.
Pfc. Robert A. Guy, 26, of Willards, Md.
Pfc. Gavin J. Colburn, 20, of Frankfort, Ind.
Cpl. Kevin W. Prince, 22, Plain City, Ohio
Hospitalman Aaron A. Kent, 28, Portland, Oregon
Sgt. Anthony J. Davis Jr., 22, of Long Beach, California
Spc. Gary W. Walters Jr., 31, from Victoria, TX
1st Sgt. Timmy J. Millsap, 39, Witchita, KS
Spc. David L. Rice, 22, Sioux City, IA

And let's not forget that in Afghanistan, there is still a war against the terrorists, Osama bin Laden and Al Qaeda, that President Bush promised the American people he would use every last resource he had at his disposal to track down and capture or kill.

Sgt. 1st Class Allen C. Johnson, Los Molinos, California, was shot and killed when his unit was ambushed by enemy small-arms fire during a combat foot patrol in Uruzgan Province on April 26, 2005. Also dying in Afghanistan, for what has become a cause paid lip service only by the Bushites, were Spc. Robert W. Defazio, of West Babylon, NY; Pvt. Robert C. White III, Camden, NJ; Chief Warrant Officer David Ayala, NYC; Sgt. Maj. Barbaralien Banks, Harvey, LA.; Capt. David S. Connolly, of Boston; Spc. Daniel J. Freeman, from Cincinnati; Sgt. Stephen C. High, of Spartanburg, SC; Sgt. James S. Lee, Mt. Vernon, IN; Master Sgt. Edwin A. Matoscolon, hailing from Juana Diaz, PR; South Carolina native Maj. Edward J. Murphy; Chief Warrant Officer Clint J. Prather, of Cheney, WA; Staff Sgt. Charles R. Sanders Jr., Charleston, Missouri; Spc. Michael K. Spivey, from Fayetteville, NC; Spc. Chrystal G. Stout, Travelers Rest, SC; Spc. Sascha Struble, of Philadelphia, New York; Pfc. Pendelton L. Sykes II, Chesapeake, Virginia; and Staff Sgt. Romanes L. Woodard, from Hertford, NC.

Check your children as they sleep soundly tonight; many parents don't have that warm feeling you're getting.

Posted by Bill at May 2, 2005 11:56 PM