Not to be confused with the dark side
By: JOHN VAN DOORN - North County Times | ∞
On a Memorial Day filled with majestic memories of men and women who gave their lives doing the fighting that their elders said was necessary, and often was, certain stories that had nothing to do with honor or glory or somber recollections have seeped into the consciousness from the latest war ---- Iraq.
These stories cannot, will not, sully the importance of America's day to remember. They worked their way to the top of the news, nonetheless, underscoring a truth that all Americans accept, deep down.
It is this: that war, which in the first place represents the failure of nations to sit around a table and talk their way to civilized solutions, is man at his ugliest. When the idea is to kill, how else can it be?
Still, men do try to do the thing the honorable way. They learn the "rules of war," then go out and try their best to obey them, no easy task in the whir and whine, roar and boom, hiss and crump of shot and bomb.
The rules can be ignored, too, or forgotten. Maybe that's what happened one day in Iraq last year, one awful day. Here are excerpts from late weekend reports by the Associated Press:
"A Pentagon official said investigators believe Marines committed unprovoked murder in the deaths of about two dozen people at Haditha in November."
"The investigation involves Marines based at Camp Pendleton who are members of the 3rd Battalion,1st Marine Regiment, military officials said."
"Haditha is not the only case pending..."
Clearly, there'll be hell to pay. No one excuses, no one condones murder, if that's what happened, if that's what it was.
Better to weep.
Better still to look at the crosses of Memorial Day, row on row, and remember that under there lie the good guys who century after century reported for duty, sir, and then performed splendidly, which is to say, they fought by the insane rules that are supposed to govern war.
And far too often, hundreds of thousands of times too often, they died at it.
More Stories
Advertisement
Decoration Day wrote on May 29, 2006 2:33 AM:That's what it was called when I was a little kid. It made us proud. The symbols were US flags and bunting. It meant picnics and innocence. It meant that those who had died and were being honored had given their lives for a noble cause; there were no ambiguities. There was no chant of 'one two three four - what are we fighting for?' Our proud and duly honored soldiers were fighting for their own country. It seemed like the right thing to do at the time. I guess times have changed. Boy how I miss the fifties!
Me wrote on May 30, 2006 6:37 AM:What a sensitive and touching tribute to those who lived to serve, and served to die. You give me hope. Thank you, John Van Doorn.
Response to Decoration Day. wrote on Jun 3, 2006 8:26 AM:The fifties were the same as today! Pull your head out of the clouds! We just have more news covering it, because most people are pathetic voyeurs. In the fifties the news was controlled, so you didn't here about so called wrong doing. You definitely didn't here about things within minutes of there happening around the world, and on a continuos basis like we do today. The soldiers of today are just as loyal as back then, today's soldiers are as just eager and able as back then, the difference is we now can see what is really happening on the battlefield. It isn't a pretty site! Most American can't stomach it. It was just as nasty back then as it is today. If you showed the American public in the so-called fifties the images that are shown today, which look the same as it did on the battle fields of the fifties, people would be whining and just as grossed out. I served 22 years, war is ruthless and not very nice to see. What do you expect the American's to say when they see this in the news everyday! Oh! As for your implication of difference between then and now and saying how proud boys were fighting for "...their country." What was Germany all about! Who were we fighting for then? Japan attacked us not Germany. But in Germany, we saw a mad man bent on prejudice and ethnic cleansing, ruthlessly killing of Jews. No one else was doing anything about the it, so we stepped in, like the wars of the middle east of today! The greatest generation doesn't have the market the noble causes! This cause is just as noble, it is just harder to do today with a camera in your face and a sh#@ house lawyer looking over your shoulder as you breach the door where a terrorist ran into.
- OCEANSIDE: Killer may be granted parole (6596)
- RANCHO BERNARDO: Cyclist hit by car was retired Navy captain, avid athlete (5925)
- SOLANA BEACH: Pregnant woman, fetus killed in I-5 hit-and-run (5174)
- CHARGERS: Sproles carries Bolts to playoff win over Colts (4342)
- ENCINITAS: Carlsbad has questions about Encinitas shopping center plan (3939)
Advertisement