This 'N That

Remember the riddle "who's buried in Grant's tomb?"  Technically the answer is no one since Ulysses and his wife are entombed, but at least people know where they are.  The same can't be said for some of those who are buried at Arlington.  Like the atrocious conditions at Walter Reed revealed a few years ago, this is also a national disgrace.  Why is it so difficult to treat our soldiers with the respect they deserve?  After suffering the ultimate sacrifice how can they be treated so poorly by those who were entrusted to preserve their remains?  It used to be an honor to be buried at Arlington, now it's where's Waldo.

Jeff Huber (wish he'd been my CO but the Navy didn't take me seriously when I tried to enlist in 1974) has his usual insightful observations on the fallacy of thinking we can win the debacle in Afghanistan. The original mission was never accomplished and has been lost to the caskets of history, so of course we must continue to involve ourselves in another fruitless and never ending land war in Asia.  Is it because the Afghans don't look like the Japanese, Vietnamese or Koreans that people don't realize that Afghanistan is in Asia as are Iraq, Iran and Israel?  What the heck are we fighting for?

Regime change in Iraq was discussed before 9/11.  Then why didn't the troops have all the equipment they needed?  Probably for the same reason that they aren't receiving all the help they need once they are injured or discharged.  Because the goal was to topple Saddam and consequences were never considered.  Not to the troops, their families, innocent civilians or the stability of the country.

The phrases "there's nothing new under the sun" and "what's old is new again" have been around for a long time...because they're true.  In If A Man Answers (1962) Sandra Dee's character trains her new husband (Bobby Darin) to be more attentive by using the techniques from a book on dog training.  Today's parents are discovering the Dog Whisperer's techniques also work well on children.  Or, as my baby brother said after a few months of training his dog, "I should have had a dog before I had children."  As is pointed out in the movie and in this article, it's really the trainer who is being trained.  Consistency is the key and my parents excelled at that.  If it was no when I was two, it was no when I was eighteen unless it had been due to a height or age requirement.  I really miss my dad.

Adopted children should be able to find their biological parents after they are old enough to understand the consequences.  For Matthew Roberts those were definitely more than he planned on.  It isn't every day that one discovers that their father is one of the most hated murderers on the planet.  That's really sad.

BBB