thedrifter
02-28-07, 08:32 AM
America abandoned young Marine in hell
By: J. HOWARD CREWS - Comentary:
Soldiers who lose their arms, legs, faces and body parts are considered heroes, until the memory of that war and its glory fades away. But soldiers and Marines who lose their souls in war, as did Cpl. Robert Pennington, suffer most. A young man who loses his core being, his soul, has lost far more than a body part. No body part is worth the sacredness of the soul. Shattered souls remain part of national consciousness for generations, and shape destiny.
All wars are evil; almost none are necessary. They are often instigated by men who have not seen combat and do not understand the demonic nature of war. Initially wars are popular with gullible jingoists, profiteering military industrialists and demagogic politicians who maneuver in every war. These racketeers blame "the few rotten apples" to deflect the eye of justice from their own far greater crimes. The truth is, most of the criminal actions by those in the lower ranks are never exposed. More tragically, almost none of those in the highest echelons are brought to justice -- unless they lose the war ignominiously.
Nothing is served by the imprisonment of Cpl. Pennington, except a false show of justice. If Pennington deserves eight years in prison, the evil men who marketed this criminal war deserve a punishment far worse. The ignobility of war leaders transcends into the turgid bowels of their wars.
What Pennington does deserve is the best psychiatric care and rehabilitation, no matter what the cost. He won't get it. The NC Times Sunday editorial admonished "Don't defund the troops." Tragically, this nation has already cut off funding for our wounded soldiers. Nearly one out of every seven U.S. troops who have died in the war in Iraq have been from North County Marine bases. Sixteen are disabled by wounds for every fatality. This defunding will have tragic consequences in North County for generations.
Pennington did not start this war. He entered this war a good kid, was sucked into hell, engaged it and used its forces to bring retribution and justice as he saw his duty. In hell we are not the masters of our fate. War is a moral black hole where the laws of moral gravity are inoperative. Judges outside the event horizon really cannot comprehend this.
Pennington could have had a bright future, were it not for the Bush war, and were it not for the military, which instilled into him the glory of war and the esprit de corps to seek revenge for the killing of his buddies. War is not like hell -- war is hell. Pennington has been there. Our nation's leaders have not, though some may deserve its delights. Why do we suffer fools who know so little about war to become our war strategists?
If our leaders had any grain of honor they would resign. If our nation had any modicum of courage, it would remove them. The least we can do is fund rehabilitation of our wounded troops.
-- J. Howard Crews lives in Fallbrook.
Ellie
By: J. HOWARD CREWS - Comentary:
Soldiers who lose their arms, legs, faces and body parts are considered heroes, until the memory of that war and its glory fades away. But soldiers and Marines who lose their souls in war, as did Cpl. Robert Pennington, suffer most. A young man who loses his core being, his soul, has lost far more than a body part. No body part is worth the sacredness of the soul. Shattered souls remain part of national consciousness for generations, and shape destiny.
All wars are evil; almost none are necessary. They are often instigated by men who have not seen combat and do not understand the demonic nature of war. Initially wars are popular with gullible jingoists, profiteering military industrialists and demagogic politicians who maneuver in every war. These racketeers blame "the few rotten apples" to deflect the eye of justice from their own far greater crimes. The truth is, most of the criminal actions by those in the lower ranks are never exposed. More tragically, almost none of those in the highest echelons are brought to justice -- unless they lose the war ignominiously.
Nothing is served by the imprisonment of Cpl. Pennington, except a false show of justice. If Pennington deserves eight years in prison, the evil men who marketed this criminal war deserve a punishment far worse. The ignobility of war leaders transcends into the turgid bowels of their wars.
What Pennington does deserve is the best psychiatric care and rehabilitation, no matter what the cost. He won't get it. The NC Times Sunday editorial admonished "Don't defund the troops." Tragically, this nation has already cut off funding for our wounded soldiers. Nearly one out of every seven U.S. troops who have died in the war in Iraq have been from North County Marine bases. Sixteen are disabled by wounds for every fatality. This defunding will have tragic consequences in North County for generations.
Pennington did not start this war. He entered this war a good kid, was sucked into hell, engaged it and used its forces to bring retribution and justice as he saw his duty. In hell we are not the masters of our fate. War is a moral black hole where the laws of moral gravity are inoperative. Judges outside the event horizon really cannot comprehend this.
Pennington could have had a bright future, were it not for the Bush war, and were it not for the military, which instilled into him the glory of war and the esprit de corps to seek revenge for the killing of his buddies. War is not like hell -- war is hell. Pennington has been there. Our nation's leaders have not, though some may deserve its delights. Why do we suffer fools who know so little about war to become our war strategists?
If our leaders had any grain of honor they would resign. If our nation had any modicum of courage, it would remove them. The least we can do is fund rehabilitation of our wounded troops.
-- J. Howard Crews lives in Fallbrook.
Ellie