US Veterans

[mkensinger]

And if I may, I'll add a third...

*BTG*

All My Best to All...

Techymike,

The post was a wonderful thing...it gave you a chance to "voice" some heavy concerns, and it helped a lot of us remember how we felt, and open our minds and our hearts to help one another...and for me, personally, to get to know another brother...thanks for that, it is my pleasure to know you...

Always,

(amen)

Michael

 

[JimJoe]

I'll tell a bit of my background. My dad was a prisoner of the Japanese in WW2. They made him, along with many others, a slave laborer because he surrendered. A clear violation of the Bushido Code. He was on Corregidor Island and was later transferred, on one of the hell ships, to the Japanese Home Islands.

The Japanese I have a dislike of are the camp guards and commaders. No one else. I have been told I am in the wrong, by WW2 vets and others. I see no reason to dislike the rest of the Japanese populace.

I volunteered and joind the US Navy. Many of my high school friends volunteered and joined the Army. One-third of them died in Viet Nam. I don't go to high school reunions.

In the North Atlantic Ocean, while I was in the USN, were were having a training exercise. One of the patrol planes in the training went down. All 7 of the people on board were lost. Our ship was sent over to look for survivors. The water temperature was 38 F. It took longer for us to get there than any survivors of the crash could have lived through the cold. We found partial remains of one person. Just one. I asked my parents when I went on leave, after we got back to the US 6 months later, if they had seen anything about this in the news. They had not. It took me months to forget what the spotlight I was operating showed me down there in the water. One of the guys later told me I had that 1,000 Yard Stare right afterwards. To explain, its the look you get when pushed beyond your limits, in extremis.

As for not knowing what is outside the county or state or nation, I live in, it is very easy these days to find out. Newspapers and tv stations carry news they have room for. Even if someone doesn't have internet at home, there is the public library. I use multiple sources for news. I try not to make snap decisions on what is going on. And if someone disagrees with me, I fail to use the political rhetoric, which I feel is very dumb, of 'oh you must be a fill-in-the-blank'.

I really see no reason to fall for certain kinds of political claims.

Say, if a certain politician were claimed to be a Martian (silly example so as to not start a rambunctious discussion). I would check and see if life were possible on Mars. Since it isn't, I wouldn't go exclaiming and jumping on the bandwangon of people exclaiming the Martian needs to be removed from office.

 

[Techymike]

I thought bought what you said and it makes me recall a number of actions my team was forced to take. Lets say we survived and that is what really counts.What we did in combat is nothing when it comes to coming home and living every day one day at a time. Our ghosts will haunt us forever but they are dead and we are alive, remember that! Take a deep breath and exhale. We came home and that is all that matters! It was hard to explain to others but they will never know what I mean. The stains will forever be with you but you simply have to deal with what is and let what was be gone.