Veterans Day: All About War
By
Jesse Kornbluth
Published: Nov 11, 2009
Category:
Non Fiction
At Fort Hood, President Obama did what Presidents aren’t supposed to — he personalized war, he made us see “dead soldiers” as thirteen friends and neighbors, as thirteen dead people. In case you missed it, he humanized the shooting victims with compelling details:
Chief Warrant Officer Michael Cahill had served in the National Guard and worked as a physician’s assistant for decades. A husband and father of three, he was so committed to his patients that on the day he died, he was back at work just weeks after having a heart attack.
Major Libardo Eduardo Caraveo spoke little English when he came to America as a teenager. But he put himself through college, earned a PhD, and was helping combat units cope with the stress of deployment. He is survived by his wife, sons and step-daughters.
Staff Sergeant Justin DeCrow joined the Army right after high school, married his high school sweetheart, and had served as a light wheeled mechanic and Satellite Communications Operator. He was known as an optimist, a mentor, and a loving husband and father.
After retiring from the Army as a Major, John Gaffaney cared for society’s most vulnerable during two decades as a psychiatric nurse. He spent three years trying to return to active duty in this time of war, and he was preparing to deploy to Iraq as a Captain. He leaves behind a wife and son.
Specialist Frederick Greene was a Tennessean who wanted to join the Army for a long time, and did so in 2008 with the support of his family. As a combat engineer he was a natural leader, and he is survived by his wife and two daughters.
Specialist Jason Hunt was also recently married, with three children to care for. He joined the Army after high school. He did a tour in Iraq, and it was there that he re-enlisted for six more years on his 21st birthday so that he could continue to serve.
Staff Sergeant Amy Krueger was an athlete in high school, joined the Army shortly after 9/11, and had since returned home to speak to students about her experience. When her mother told her she couldn’t take on Osama bin Laden by herself, Amy replied: "Watch me."
Private First Class Aaron Nemelka was an Eagle Scout who just recently signed up to do one of the most dangerous jobs in the service – diffuse bombs – so that he could help save lives. He was proudly carrying on a tradition of military service that runs deep within his family.
Private First Class Michael Pearson loved his family and loved his music, and his goal was to be a music teacher. He excelled at playing the guitar, and could create songs on the spot and show others how to play. He joined the military a year ago, and was preparing for his first deployment.
Captain Russell Seager worked as a nurse for the VA, helping veterans with Post-Traumatic Stress. He had great respect for the military, and signed up to serve so that he could help soldiers cope with the stress of combat and return to civilian life. He leaves behind a wife and son.
Private Francheska Velez, the daughter of a father from Colombia and a Puerto Rican mother, had recently served in Korea and in Iraq, and was pursuing a career in the Army. When she was killed, she was pregnant with her first child, and was excited about becoming a mother.
Lieutenant Colonel Juanita Warman was the daughter and granddaughter of Army veterans. She was a single mother who put herself through college and graduate school, and served as a nurse practitioner while raising her two daughters. She also left behind a loving husband.
Private First Class Kham Xiong came to America from Thailand as a small child. He was a husband and father who followed his brother into the military because his family had a strong history of service. He was preparing for his first deployment to Afghanistan.
Why is this personalization so rare? Because war is a meat-grinder. And it’s not just the bad guys who die. If we saw war up close — saw it for what it is — we might not be so gung-ho for the military adventures that are meat and drink for presidential advisers who like to think big about History and Freedom.
As I write, decisions are being made about a war that must see more American troops, fewer American soldiers or some third response. You may or may not want to clutter your mind with realities this ugly. If you do, here’s a list of books and films about war….
a chronicle by a New York Times war correspondent
Portraits of those who won the nation’s highest military award
Samantha Power’s landmark book about genocide
The Things They Carried
It’s fiction, but it’s awfully close to Tim O’Brien’s experience in Vietnam
All Quiet on The Western Front
Certainly the best novel about World War I, maybe the best of them all.
Graham Greene’s masterpiece about the French folly in Vietnam — and the American one to come
We Were Soldiers Once…and Young
The first battle between U.S. and North Vietnamese troops, so closely reported you know every man who died — and their magnificent leader.
When Michael Herr went to Vietman for Esquire Magazine, no one cared who he talked to. This book could not happen now.
Defiance
Jews escape the Warsaw Ghetto to fight the Nazis in the forest
How did Hitler come to power? It took fewer people than you’d think.
Battle of Algiers
The Algerian rebellion against the French, shot documentary-style. A meditation on torture and imperialism that will shake whatever you believe.
Hotel Rwanda
Tribal warfare, and an unlikely hero.
