From Daily Kos - blueness's diary :: ::

The centrality of war is the intentional killing of human beings: the healer is charged with preserving life, to "abstain from doing harm." When these worlds collide, when a healer is tasked with applying the healing arts to those deliberately damaged by war, then, as one nurse learned, "you can never be ordinary again."

The note quoted above, left by another nurse at the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, speaks to that. Below are more such voices. Many more.

<snip>
Pediatrician Ronald J. Glasser in 1968 was assigned as an Army major to a hospital at Zama, in Japan. He never got near Vietnam. His initial assignment was in fact to treat people clear out of the war: the children of Japan-based American officers, and of other high-ranking government officials living there. But with six to eight thousand wounded Americans flowing out of Vietnam each month, Glasser, like every other available physician, was soon called upon to treat them, too.

And so, there in Japan, every day, Glasser encountered the war: "the blind 17-year-olds stumbling down the hallway, the shattered high-school football player being wheeled to physical therapy."

Glasser had trained to heal children; in Japan he found himself, in fact, treating children. Children sent to kill, returned mangled and maimed. Children broken, who would always be broken. As Glasser himself broke.

"At first, when it was all new," Glasser wrote in his memoir, 365 Days, "I was glad I didn't know them; I was relieved they were your children, not mine. After a while, I changed."
<snip>
Glasser's life was utterly changed. He is today, more than 40 years on, still wedded to those wounded in war: he recently wrote another book, Wounded: Vietnam To Iraq. Wherein we learn that there have been more amputations in Iraq than in any American conflict since the Civil War. That 30 percent of those wounded in Iraq suffer traumatic brain injuries. That physical injuries combined with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder place the number of Americans wounded in Iraq and Afghanistan at well over 100,000. That "eaths have traditionally been viewed as a measure of potential victory or personal danger in any military conflict . . . But in this war the use of death as a function of peril is not only deceptive, it’s delusional. Death in Iraq is no longer the real measure of risk. The story of this war cannot be told solely in the count of its dead. Whatever else may be said about the war in Iraq and Afghanistan, it is more a war of cripples and disabilities than it is a war of death."

In his first book, Glasser wrote this about combat medics:

A tour of Nam is 12 months; it is like a law of nature. The medics, though, stay on line only seven months. It is not due to the good will of the Army, but to their discovery that seven months is about all these kids can take. After that, they start getting freaky, cutting down on their own water and food so they can carry more medical supplies; stealing plasma bottles and walking around on patrol with five or six pounds of glass in their rucksacks; writing parents and friends so they can buy their own endotracheal tubes; or quite simply refusing to leave their units when their time in Nam is over.

And so it goes, and the know it. They will drop the point, trying not to kill him but to wound him, to get him screaming so they can get the medic too. He'll come. They know he will.

<snip>
There is a lot more in this article, and all of it should be read:
http://www.dailykos.com/storyonly/2009/11/...

"He'll come. They know he will."

I don't think the people of the US have come for the wounded and others.

So I graduated from South Lakes and did my undergrad at the University of Oregon (a world away from Northern VA). I studied biology and minored in chemistry with a focus on ecology. After graduating I worked seasonal wildlife biology jobs for a while in CA, OR and CO. After a while it became clear that this was not really enough and I needed to go back to school. I had a weird epiphany one day about becoming a high school science teacher so I did an M.A.T. with a focus on biology. I didn’t get a job anywhere that I wanted to live so I ended up spending just under a year traveling and working in Costa Rica as an ecological/tourist guide.

When I got back to the states I ended up getting a job working for a museum in OR directing an NSF funded project that was a natural resource management and technology career exposure program for Native American students focusing on salmon mitigation efforts with a major cultural integration component. I did this for 5 years and I’m currently a doctoral student at Oregon State University in the Science and Math Education Department focusing on free choice learning. I want to help facilitate outreach and education efforts for watershed scale restoration projects, I’m looking at ways to reach diverse stakeholders in these endeavors, particularly private land owners. I’m researching collaborative efforts and mechanisms for making inroads into rural communities where agriculture/logging is king. I want to try and change the way people approach land use and resource extraction. Ultimately I want to help create/enact land-use policy that will help balance natural resource extraction with ecological conservation. These are big goals and I’m just staring my Ph.D. and I’m already aware that I need to narrow my focus but I’m trying to clarify my interests.

Basically conservation and the preservation of wild areas have been a passion all my life. I’m studying different aspects of what goes into generating personal interests and emotions towards different subjects. I can now look back and recognize that your class had a huge impact on me at a critical period of my life. I don’t know if you meant to do this or not but the way your framed environmental issues and concerns really had a tremendous impact on me. I do see that other experiences helped establish my interests (my parents are avid outdoor people), but your class was instrumental in developing what has really been the driving passion for my professional career.

I have interacted with hundreds (if not thousands) of kids over the years and I’ve often thought if I can have the kind of impact on them you had on me I’ll die happy. I figured if you had the kind of impact on me that you did maybe I can reach some kids on the same level. I try to create a spark in them relating to environmental issues and think about ways that they can make a difference. I have stayed in touch with several former students of mine and some of them are indeed pursuing science careers.

I’m moving away from focusing solely on youth education now but I will continue to be involved in activities like citizen science projects designed towards promoting ecological literacy across different age groups.

Anyhow I’ve tried to get in touch with you a few times over the years, I called the Fairfax County school district etc but no dice until now. Hopefully this doesn’t freak you out, I just wanted you to know that you reached at least one of your students on a truly profound level and really helped shape my whole life’s work and passions. I can’t help but think I’m not the only one…

So here you go, 20 years later. I just wanted to make sure you know these things.

Thanks.


You never know. Ya know. I am utterly speechless.

and kind thoughts. This was one of the best presents I have ever received. I painted the town red. That took all of 15 minutes, and wore out my magic marker. I got hurricane backwash for my birthday.

I wish I had found DU earlier, but better late than never. I spent most of my time since 2000 holed up like a 'coastwatcher.' I had plenty of people to argue with by email. They were my relatives.

Whenever things got sideways, my Mama always said, "This too shall pass." I always answered her by saying, "Why does it have to feel like a kidney stone?"

Thanks again. This was a pleasant suprise.

I see fundie people.

I am okay. At least as far as my head. I have a grade 3 shoulder separation, but I did that years ago too. I can have it operated on if needed. However, I can still flip people off, and that is my minimum requirement.

My brother is coming tonight, and a cousin tomorrow just to be on the safe side. I need to find that side because I'm rarely there. I think they are all involved in militia shit, but I am family. Odd, but still odd family.

My cats are in a snit. I only left the bowl 3/4 full of food, and they could have starved. I pointed out that they had enough padding to last, but they were not amused. They could teach the Queen some things.

I really do appreciate all the support.

grits

Ow!

I have a headache, and I am dizzy. If my head wasn't so hard, I'd say I have a concussion.

And yay, I don't have health insurance.

I copied this from something years ago. I have no idea who wrote it.



Be careful what you vote for.

I am severing ties with the state of Confusion (SC), and the US and all other government entities that have claimed jurisdiction over me.

I declare my apartment to be the country of "Meh." Its capitol is in my bathroom and is WTFROFLOMGLMAODTM.
That's Welsh for "Bite Me."

My contracts with such entities as the power company, my landlords and such have been legally changed to treaties.

I am Queen Bee. My cats are my Ministers of State. One is Madame Scat who is in charge of Security. I have not issued a decree making a formal Patriot Act or some such nonsense. If Madame Scat will keep Palmetto bugs and other creatures at bay, I see no reason for such restrictive measures. Madame Mouse is in charge of supplies and food. She will inform me of any shortages.

They both have overlapping duties in certain areas. They will perform guard duty at night which involves getting as close to me as possible when I go to sleep. They will take turns during the day sitting behind me and patting me on my head. Both will scrutinize what is on teevee and make sure that the programs are entertaining enough for them.

In the country of "Meh" the following are the principles upon which it is founded:

All creatures are equal. There is an exception for Palmetto bugs and fire ants unless a treaty can be reached. They will recognize the borders of Meh or get squashed.

There is separation of church and state. If someone has a religion that is fine. I just don't want to hear about it.

There is free health care for my subjects (Scat and Mouse). I will provide my own, but that has been the status quo for a while so nothing has changed in that regard.

The Bill of Rights was good enough for the Founding Fathers. That is good enough for me. Amendments added after that are also considered valid.

I will consider signing treaties with friendly nations. However, I have broken off relations with the government of SC. Until they have someone in a position of authority who at least has the brains of a turtle, I will not have any diplomatic ties with them. Once they reach that august level, I will consider preliminary talks in hopes that they will work their way up the evolutionary ladder and reach some form capable of holding 2 thoughts in their heads at one time.

All written communiques must be spelled correctly.

Grits will be the official food.

This decree is effective as of November 4th, 2009.

I was 5 or 6 years old. I'm not sure of the exact age, but I was very young. My mother had taken my brother and me to the health department. He was a year older.

For some unknown reason, my Mama left me in the waiting room while she took my brother in for his shot. One man's waiting room is another man's exit station. I took off out of the door. Not for me to meekly wait like a sacrifice to the Gawds of medicine.

My escape was not well thought out, but I was bound for the train station that was not far away. My aunt had taken me there not long before, and I knew it was a way out.

My legs weren't very long, but I was moving them very rapidly. When my Mama came out of the door after somebody had snitched on me, I had a decent head start. However, I could hear her catching up as she 'sweetly' called my name. I knew I had to change my plan.

I ducked into the nearest building which just happened to be the town's police station. Think one step up from Mayberry. I ran into an open office where several men were sitting around, and scooted around some man's legs and underneath his desk.

When I heard my Mama, I preceded to wrap myself around his legs and hold on for dear life. I decided that wailing at the top of my lungs might help in some way.

It took a while for my Mama to explain what was going on especially with me wailing about getting stuck like a pig. I was finally untangled and reluctantly released into her care. They made her promise not to punish me and made it clear they would check on me.

I got my vaccination, and my Mama muttered at me all day. I decided to play under the house with my cats where it would be hard to reach me.

I have had many shots since then. However, I have never had one as exciting and life-threatening.

I tried to explain what might happen and was accused of bashing the people in my own state and calling them stupid. To be sure there are some who don't understand that water is wet, but a great majority do try to sort out what is going on. One problem is that they only get the message from one general source. Take the "kill grandma" meme. That was a general idea with a germ of truth. The germ of truth was that there was end of life counseling in the bill.

That got blown out of proportion and turned around into the idea that everybody had to be counseled and the way they died would be chosen for them. Grandma was the most sympathetic figure that would hit home with people. That message came at people from all sides.

Now there are people who may discount the Becks and Limbaughs, but they expect somebody to give them a straight story. The Rethugs either said it was true or they said nothing. This began to solidify that idea to some as fact no matter how preposterous we think it is. You have to flip yourselves into people and places that you may not know anything about and try to see how they hear what is said.

They aren't stupid. These people are being asked by others that they don't trust to accept a huge governmental change, and those that they hear most are making it seem horrible. The Rethugs have put all their chips on the table. This issue is one they will fight to the bitter end by any means necessary.

People have become so polarized in some places that you are either considered to be on one end or the other. The sides no longer listen to or trust anything the other says. Nobody is considered an honest broker so that they might try to build a Golden Bridge.

The problem is exacerbated by the uncertain economy and the other changes. The world as people know it is moving faster than they ever counted on. If they had a job to hold on to that would help them feel less vulnerable. People are either out of work or the jobs they have seem shaky even if they aren't in reality. They are scared shitless.

Even if I try to catch them now before any horrible ideas about reform become solidified, what do I say?
What facts can I assure them of that will be set in stone that they can hold on to them? Everything is still so nebulous that even if they believed me, I wouldn't have much but generalities. Will people have to buy the insurance? How much will it cost and what will the deductible be? What will it cover? How will it help the price people pay for their drugs? (An amendment is already in some bills to extend the time before some drugs can be made into generics from 5 years to 12 years.) Even if they can get this coverage, what are the rules that will assure them that they still won't have to pay a lot out of pocket.

If a state opts out, will the program be so smooth that there aren't problems that can't be magnified by people who don't like it? People are loathe to change. The devil they do know is better than the one they don't. If the reform appears to be still expensive and unwieldy, why is that any better than before.

The bets will be on that a program can be put into place that people will like enough to accept against all the negative hoopla they will hear. the government bureaucracy works against this idea. Inertia will work against reform very forcefully at the beginning. Moving all of the levers to get a program smoothly rolling at a decent rate of speed is not the government's forte.

I have a friend who works very closely with the state legislature trying to pass issues. I asked her about the opt out provision. I wanted to know from someone who has had to deal with these people constantly if she thought it would be smooth sailing. Was I being too pessimistic? She laughed and said I wasn't being pessimistic enough.

Single-payer would be the best. It would be easily explained. The consumer doesn't get caught up in how much who pays what to who.

Google public option and try to come up with a simple definition that nails down the details. Yeesh!

as it is a matter of framing and money. Whoever frames the message in the best way to highlight their side will have a leg up. Medicare + 5 would be great, but that ain't gonna happen.

Then there is the matter of money. AHIP will see that the OOs get it.

I am no longer flabbergasted by the "Christians" who are proponents of harsh measures. This has actually been going on for quite a while.

At Christmas when I visited my relatives in NC, they extolled the virtues of Jesse Helms. One summer I exchanged flaming emails with an evangelical cousin who was bonkers about illegal immigrants, and proposing measures that were beyond the pale.

I asked him if he thought Jesus would help those poor people or flail them for daring to try to help their families. He ignored that and went right on. I "suggested" that he redact the entire New Testament.

I had to go to church for years, and I learned a whole different theology than the one proposed by Christians now. They should be fined for false advertising.

I call them Leviticans because their beliefs run much closer to that book of the Bible. They are unforgiving, harsh, petty and mean. When they can see someone who is suffering in any number of ways and blame it on the victim, that is just willful meanness.

They are so out of control that they are rewriting the New Testament to match their beliefs. These goobs don't want anything to challenge their beliefs and make them appear hypocritical. I am waiting to hear one of them say that Gawd has ordained them to do this.

Maybe some think mean isn't a harsh enough term. I think it fits them perfectly. They mook into every tiny corner of life and try to make it as unbearable as possible. They scrape away at the dignity of anyone who doesn't fit their model.

A lot of people have so little now that their dignity is the most important thing they can hold on to. That scrap of self-worth may be all that keeps them going. It is a tiny flame they hold on to for dear life in hopes that it will light a bigger fire when they hope that things get better.

The Leviticans would mock them and extinguish that if they can. Mean is their motto. If it isn't mean, then it isn't in their creed.

Leviticans! Use that term and spread it to brand all those who are have a false faith.

Whatever my beliefs, I won't mock the people who do try to live up to Christian ideals. Those that live with the Golden Rule aren't the ones doing the damage. Religion is simply love lived in my book.

And you wonder why the region is still different?

There are a lot of people here who have changed. We are still pushing.

The loudmouths get all the airtime.

It is a 2-way street. The cycle of hate isn't just from one side. Every time somebody bashes the South in terms that you have just used, people remember the war.

Except for the goofball secessionists & Confederacy freaks, people don't dwell on the Civil War 24/7.

How can we forget the war when it is constantly thrown at us all the time?

If people can't discuss the issues in modern terms, then it will never go away. I am not saying it should be forgotten. The horrendous nature of the war and slavery should still be a lesson never forgotten.

However, when every issue involving the South somehow circles back to that time, then the whole issue erupts again. It happens on DU with South bashing comments and threads.

I am so liberal my family and friends are gone. I keep pushing back so that the region will eventually change, and they will too.

DU can be a sanctuary. It can also be just another place to get bashed, and this time from another side. When you broadbrush the South with your comments, you hit me too.

Do you realize the toll that pushing back down here takes mentally and physically? Sometimes DU can just add to it.

Somebody will probably tell me to just leave DU.

{and no, I am not trying to claim that what I face is nearly as bad as the problems minorities still face. Unfortunately, there is till too long a way to go yet.)

1. the use of violence and threats to intimidate or coerce, esp. for political purposes.
2. the state of fear and submission produced by terrorism or terrorization.
3. a terroristic method of governing or of resisting a government.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

On 9/11/2001, a group of men caused the deaths of 2976 innocent people using horrible means. They were labeled terrorists. The terror they caused struck fear into the heart of America. We have been fearful of terrorists beyond our borders ever since that date.

Fear is an extremely powerful emotion. It is an innate basic survival mechanism. Fear can instantly override other emotions. Fear can also be affected by social influences and can become mass hysteria.

The fear engendered by the events of 9/11 was cynically used to manipulate people into supporting certain actions such as the invasion of Iraq, and the passage of the Patriot Act. Both of these actions made a lot of people feel safer at the time. Anybody opposing these actions were denounced as unpatriotic for a long time.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

However while the focus of our fear was aimed at actions coming from outside forces, we never stopped to consider the fear being engendered by people within our own borders. I have thought about this since Obama was nominated, and a serious effort was started to reform health care.

Since a real effort to reform health care was started, Republicans have used every means to try to defeat it or shape into a useless bill. Because President Obama has always made this a priority, they are using their opposition to reform as a way to defeat him and deal a serious blow to the Democratic Party.

The health care system in this country is broken. There are horror stories every day about people who cannot afford decent care or are overwhelmed by their bills. 45,000 people die every year because they don't have health care. The Republicans know this, but they have ignored the problems that so many of their constituents have in order to play a political game.

If they were offering a serious plan that might really work, this would be very different. If the Republicans were trying to amend the bills presented by the Democrats using productive suggestions, they would be in acceptable opposition. Instead they have chosen to obstruct every part of reform using every negative they can.

The tactics they use most are designed to scare people, and make them fearful of any change that is presented. The Republicans boldly lie about health care reform bills and make the provisions in it seem as dangerous as possible. They have scared people to death about a change that would help them and a lot of other people.

These aren't minor changes. What is being proposed is an overhaul of health care that could truly make everybody's lives better. A change this big is somewhat scary in and of itself. In order for it to truly be accepted, everybody needs to present it in generally a positive way. If true reform doesn't happen, people's lives will get worse across the board.

If people then realize that reform needs to happen, the task left is how to reform the system. The Republicans refuse to offer any meaningful suggestions. There have been private health care reforms that have worked for a while. However, because the insurance companies weren't regulated in any way, they were able to eventually sandbag those efforts. They would cherry-pick the healthiest people from the new group, and leave them with the people who needed the most care. That was unsustainable.

The Republicans are using fear to control people in order to maximize the possible gains of their party. They have terrorized people into opposing something that is in their best interests. The insurance companies have terrorized politicians by threatening to withhold contributions to them unless thay back the companies.

A lot of Democrats appear to have terrorized themselves. They are scared of fighting and doing anything evn though they are the majority. Whenever a Republican boos at them, they get the vapors over the loud noise and threats. The Republicans used reconciliation to pass a lot of bills, but they have scared the Democrats silly about using the tactic. Since Teddy died, their is no strong voice demanding action and leading the way.

The Democrats are petrified of giving it all they have got because they are scared to lose. You very rarely win if you are worrying about losing. It is time. If this isn't a cause worth fighting with every ounce of energy thay have, then there is no cause that will ever truly be a real victory. I don't care if they pass lesser measures with some cojones because they didn't show up when they were needed most.

Make no mistake about it. This is a war, and health care reform has become a pivotal moment. If the Democrats do not pass meaningful reform, they won't cease to be a factor. They will however be diminished.

The Republicans are generally the party of those people who are the unreconstructed South. They are mimicking that region in more ways than one. They are outnumbered badly and should not be such a force. However, they have bolluxed up the Dems with their tactics, and Reid might as well be McClellan. It is time to cut the bullshit, and go after them with overwhelming force. Their will be casualties, but there is no other way to defeat a smaller, well-organized, and dedicated force in a timely manner. This is heresy coming from a Southerner, but we need a Grant and a Sherman.

America has been terrorized long enough by the bigoted, narrow-minded, and deceitful people who want no change. This group is now pared down to its esesential core. There are very few moderates left, and this is the group that deserves to be trounced.

On 9/11, 2976 innocent lives were lost. Everybody saw the horror and it is part of the American psyche. They deserve to be remembered, and those that were responsible need to answer for what they did.

However, the 45,000 people who are left to die every year deserve to be recognized too. Their deaths cannot be attributed to foreign influences. They are on our heads. Everybody knows them in some way. Letting this continue is unthinkable and immoral.