Are either of you military veterans," asked a 45 ish woman as she lowered her window while waiting for a red light to change. "John Fortier is a Korean War veteran," I replied while motioning to John. "My father is also a Korean War veteran," she answered. "And he is my hero."
"Thank you for doing this," she added and reached across the seat and shook my hand. This was indicative of last night's vigil, one filled with horn honks and waves of support.
While in Iraq, it was a horrific week. On Sunday, gunmen attacked Ramadan worshippers in Baghdad and nearby cities and bombs killed others. All told 33 Iraqis were dead and 91 more were wounded. But that was just a prelude to Tuesday when a massive explosion at an Iraqi Army recruitment center killed at least 48 and wounded 145 more men.
This explosion was so powerful it rocked central Baghdad and sent a black cloud over the city, while scattering body parts across the recruitment center and surrounding neighborhood. Considering the danger, you may wonder why anyone would want to serve in the Iraqi Army but consider the unemployment level.
It is 40% to 50%, twice the level of the U.S.'s Great Depression of the 1930's and Iraqi men desperately need jobs to support their families. This is what war does to an economy, it devastates it. In all, 81 Iraqis were killed that day and 178 were seriously injured in violence across the nation.
While in Afghanistan, President Karzai is demanding the U.S. withdraw its private army of "contractors" within four months. Iraq used to make the same demands based on the violence committed by the U.S. mercenary soldiers and found their demands ignored, the likely result in Afghanistan.
But thousands of miles away at our vigil in the Los Angeles area, the participants included a 60 ish man wearing an Army baseball cap. He said while he never served in the military, his father and two uncles did and that he has caps from each of four military branches displayed in his home.
Later, the vigil was joined by a 50 ish couple who often participate. And in the last 20 minutes it was joined by a 66 year old woman who shares in it monthly. In both cases, the people add so much warmth, it makes it easier to conduct a vigil for those who have paid so severe a price in these wars.
As the vigil came to a close, John Fortier remarked how quickly the time passed. And dear reader, because of my recent shoulder surgery, and on Tuesday an injection in my knee to heal an intermittent soreness, I could not conduct these recent vigils without John's assistance which he provides with such a positive attitude.
It is with this same positive attitude we host this vigil with the hope the U.S. will declare cease fires, negotiate Armistices and end these wars, returning the soldiers home safely to their families.
Dick
No comments:
Post a Comment