Arrow-right Camera
The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Community Comment

Preface to Memorial Day…

Good morning, Netizens...

I receive a lot of e-mail from this source, and although he is barred from posting live, occasionally he writes so eloquently, so very much from the heart, that I cannot help myself but post his messages. Sitting in front of the open window overlooking The Virtual Garden this morning, he writes:

The sun is breaking through my window and as usual I could not sleep.   I was thinking about tomorrow. Memorial Day, originally called Decoration Day, it is a day of remembrance for those who have died in our nation's service.

There are all the ceremonies and events where uncaring politicians and bigwigs talk about things that they do not know of.  I think about my older brother who went to Vietnam and came home pretty shot up.  I was just an ignorant high school kid and did not understand.  Not too many people cared. The Government didn't, my family didn't.  He wandered and faltered and eventually took his own life. The Vietnam war was not necessary and was only a paranoid reaction by our politicians at the time whom had nothing better to do than to expend the lives of 50,000 of our finest citizens.

On Monday they will dedicate/groundbreak a new State Veterans Cemetary out near Medical Lake.  I find it sadly ironic that we can find the money to build a Cemetery to take care of out dead veterans, but there is no money to help or take care of our LIVE ones, of whom so many are now becoming homeless.

The VA hospital here is much like a repair factory. Broken Veterans go in and supposedly fixed ones come out, but they are never as good as new and the process is failing. One cant undo all the pain and suffering and midnight sweats and the monsters that come out of the night to haunt our souls with just a pill. We are never ever made whole again.

Von Clauswitz once said. Military action is the last resort of an incompetent politician, this having been proven again and again and most recently from our previous Commander in Chief. Sadly our political and military leaders spend lots of time and effort calculating how to fight a war, but they then never consider the costs of ending such, and the human cost of those whom have to fight it for them.

Many of us voted for Obama on the beliefs that lack of habeus corpus, justice and freedom, and truth would be re-established, that warrantless searches, illegal wire taps, state endorsed torture, secret prisons would go away. We also voted for "CHANGE" that has yet to happen.  We still have McMorris, Murray and Cantwell who keep talking out of both sides of their mouths. So all this bailout money goes to prop up corrupt corporations that have been running in the red for years, yet the money comes from the pockets of us whose been laid off and whose mortgages are failing and whose retirement accounts after years of scrimping and saving are now a pittance.

I keep expecting my government to fix and do the right things, but it doesn't. I guess my soul is very tired.  I will probably drag myself to the Cemetery's and the events, remembering those who gave all and cursing my Government that sent them there.  

Thank you my fellow veterans, your sacrifices will not be forgotten, nor the pain and suffering that you dealt with.  Someday I too will let all the hurts go away and will join you, and for one hour, of one day, of one year, they will put a pretty little flag on my grave and maybe people will stand around listening to our lying politicians, never knowing the sacrifices we made so the rest of you can live in freedom.

Signed,
Humpty Dumpty
p.s. All the kings horses and all the Kings men cant put Humpty Dumpty together again.

Tomorrow we may remember those fallen dead and living who have served our country. Many will not remember them at all, but will celebrate nonetheless. Unfortunately, everyone should, as we do take a lot for granted in this country.

Thank you Mr. Dumpty for your contribution and service.


Dave



Spokesman-Review readers blog about news and issues in Spokane written by Dave Laird.