I sometimes use the StumbeUpon app associated with the Firefox browser, just to add some spice and variety to my web experience. Recently, I stumbled upon a page titled Faces of the Fallen. What caught me off guard were the number of faces of dead soldiers that lined the page.
No, I don't live under a rock, and yes, I know the country is at war... What I find disturbing is the fact that so many have died, and so little is said about it.
As a student many years ago, I recall studying the various wars, WWI, WWII, Vietnam, Korean, and the Civil War. All of the fore mentioned wars had entire chapters, some even BOOKS, dedicated to them. If my memory serves me correctly, it appeared that this nation was very involved in the welfare, concern, and support of the soldiers. Those who lost their lives were honored and the headlines constantly carried news of life on the war-front.
What's happening here in America today? On the Faces of the Fallen website, I see a staggering total of 5,014 soldiers that have lost their lives in Iraq and Afghanistan; that's a lot of dead bodies.
I comb through local and national news papers, expecting to see headlines of war, what I find instead are headlines about estranged girlfriends killing their boyfriends, TV stars getting divorced, and the continuation of job loss in America. Have we forgotten that a war is blazing?
Don't get me wrong, I'm no advocate for war, especially middle eastern war. I can think of many other ways to spend resources and money... Can you say DARFUR?? However, since we have sent bodies to the desert to be human shields, I think we should at least not forget that they are there.
Stop by the page Faces of the Fallen (http://projects.washingtonpost.com/fallen/), it puts things in a very human light when you actually have mothers, fathers, daughters and sons that have given their lives (for oil and greed...did I say that???). You probably wont see a big headline in the newspaper about them, far too many stars getting divorced or DUIs to have room to talk about a dead soldier.
For you to ponder...
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Very good blog, and one that may not get many responses. People shy away from issues like this. I agree that war today is viewed much differently than it was a forty years ago, people took it seriously and it stole headlines. Today war is something that happens far away and to other people and is not as newsworthy as the new sitcom premiering on a network station. I checked out the site and agree that seeing the faces makes the reality of war all the more real.
ReplyDeleteLooking at those faces is heartbreaking even though I know war brings death. This country seems to be forgetting the important things and focusing on the wrong issues.
ReplyDeleteUnfortunately the American people like gossip more than reality or truth, and the truth is that our people are dying over there.
ReplyDeleteI checked out the page, the pictures of the soldiers that have lost their life are staggering. I guess I hadn't noticed that not much is being said about our soldier dying in large numbers but thats probably wont the government wants.
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