The forgotten cost of war
is driven home in a powerful way in a piece by Ron Kovic at Truthdig, titled The Forgotten Wounded of Iraq Most probably only know about Kovic from the movie biopic on him starring Tom Cruise in an Oscar nominated performance, "Born on the Fourth of July." If you saw the movie, forget about it and just read what Kovic has written.
Here is his opening paragraph, which only hints at the power of what you will encounter reading this piece:
And yet, that does not come close to understanding the cost of the war to those who were there.
Here is his opening paragraph, which only hints at the power of what you will encounter reading this piece:
Thirty-eight years ago, on Jan. 20, 1968, I was shot and paralyzed from my mid-chest down during my second tour of duty in Vietnam. It is a date that I can never forget, a day that was to change my life forever. Each year as the anniversary of my wounding in the war approached I would become extremely restless, experiencing terrible bouts of insomnia, depression, anxiety attacks and horrifying nightmares. I dreaded that day and what it represented, always fearing that the terrible trauma of my wounding might repeat itself all over again. It was a difficult day for me for decades and it remained that way until the anxieties and nightmares finally began to subside.THis evening represents ten years since our ill-conceive, illegal and immoral invasion of Iraq.We can talk and write all we want about the financial costs of that decision, how it distorted our politics, how the ongoing "war" on "terror" has led to an erosion of basic liberties and an over-expansion of government intrusion into our private affairs.
And yet, that does not come close to understanding the cost of the war to those who were there.