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Ask a Vet - Christmas 2008
Author: TriSec    Date: 12/23/2008 11:27:11

Good Morning.

Today is our 2,106th day in Iraq.

We'll start this morning as we always do; with the latest casualty figures from the warron terra, courtesy of Antiwar.com:

Since war began (3/19/03): 4212
Since "Mission Accomplished" (5/1/03): 4073
Since Capture of Saddam (12/13/03): 3752
Since Handover (6/29/04): 3353
Since Election (1/31/05): 2774

Other Coalition Troops - Iraq: 316
US Military Deaths - Afghanistan: 629
Other Military Deaths - Afghanistan: 408
Contractor Deaths - Iraq: 445


We find this morning's Cost of War passing through:

$ 581, 975, 000, 000.00




So this is Christmas. As you'll note from the ticker at the top of the page, "President" Bush will leave office in just 28 days, perhaps the best Christmas present the nation ever got.

But what of the veterans?

The Good Dr. Maddow said it long ago now; the war in Iraq won't truly end until the last tortured veteran dies in his sleep in 2078 or so. I never served in my country's uniform, but I know plenty of people who have. (Perhaps strange here in uber-liberal, America-hatin' Gay-marryin' Massachusetts, but I digress.)

As the veterans come back, they are changed men and women. Some can recover and return to a semblance of the life they had "before Iraq", but some never do. Here is one of their stories.


TEMECULA, Calif. - When Army Sergeant Ryan Kahlor returned from two combat tours in Iraq last year, he was a walking billboard for virtually every affliction suffered by today's veterans. He had a detached retina, a ruptured disk, vertigo, headaches, memory lapses, and numbness in his arms. Fluid seeped from his ears.

He was diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and traumatic brain injury. He was violent and suicidal. He carried a loaded handgun everywhere. He drank until he passed out. He cut himself. He burned his skin with cigarettes. He bit through his tongue just to watch himself bleed.

Kahlor, 24, admits he came back not caring about anyone - the military, his friends, his family, or himself. But, pushed hard by his parents, he slowly accepted and then embraced counseling and treatment. Today, he has begun to recover.

His parents are still trying.

The Kahlors - a college employee and a nurse - have fought through a series of transformations unfamiliar to most military families.

Tim Kahlor says he and his wife, Laura, have been left with what he calls, only half in jest, "secondary PTSD." He says his doctor prescribed antidepressants to help him cope with his son's ordeal. And both parents, haunted by their son's physical and emotional breakdown, are fiercely opposed to the war.

Tim Kahlor, 50, who had felt a patriotic surge after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, turned against the war after Ryan complained during his first tour about ineffective body armor and poorly armored vehicles. Laura Kahlor, 53, blames the war for her son's psychological and physical torment. Although she is now grateful for the treatment he belatedly received, she - like her husband - wishes they had never let Ryan enlist.

They are still bitter over the several months that their son drifted while they pleaded with both Ryan and the military for effective PTSD treatment. Ryan survived several roadside bomb attacks in Iraq but was traumatized by the violence he saw.

"I was so naive. I was this kid from the Bible Belt who thought our country would take care of our soldiers," Tim Kahlor said. "I have guilt for helping him get into this."

A year after the terrorists struck America, Tim Kahlor drove Ryan, then 18, to the local Army recruiting office to sign up. Although the Kahlors would have preferred that Ryan attend college, they were proud of his determination to serve his country.

When Ryan wrote about equipment shortages, Tim telephoned and wrote to the Pentagon and Congress. Laura sent Ryan a hand-held GPS device after he complained that military devices kept failing.

Tim Kahlor joined Military Families Speak Out, a group opposed to the Iraq war. He marched in protests behind caskets, lined up boots outside the Capitol to represent the war's dead. He put up a sign outside his home: "Support Our Troops - Let 'em Come Home."

Continued...


There is a story, from the dark days of WWII. It may be apocryphal; it may not be. In any case, I've read about it in several books. One Christmas, perhaps in 1944, at a long-forgotten POW camp deep in Germany, American GIs decided to have a Christmas service. They did the best they could with the meager supplies and Red Cross packages, and ended the service by singing "Silent Night". According to the legend, the Americans were astonished when the Germans guarding them put down their weapons and joined in singing with them. For a brief moment, friend and foe alike were missing their families together, wondering if they'd ever see home again.

So.....remember our troops, remember their families, and just for a moment, maybe we can allow ourselves to think of a better future for us all.


Silent night, holy night
All is calm, all is bright
Round yon Virgin Mother and Child
Holy Infant so tender and mild
Sleep in heavenly peace
Sleep in heavenly peace

Silent night, holy night!
Shepherds quake at the sight
Glories stream from heaven afar
Heavenly hosts sing Alleluia!
Christ, the Saviour is born
Christ, the Saviour is born

Silent night, holy night
Son of God, love's pure light
Radiant beams from Thy holy face
With the dawn of redeeming grace
Jesus, Lord, at Thy birth
Jesus, Lord, at Thy birth "


http://www.westonpriory.org/esales/images/X01.jpg

 

123 comments (Latest Comment: 12/24/2008 05:23:32 by Raine)
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Comment by m-hadley on 12/23/2008 12:38:44
Heya Gang,

I am sending this greeting from my Dad's basement computer (dial-up, arghhh).

I'll try to find a wifi connection, but don't know if they have such things in Rural Indiana... Anyway, hope that you all are staying warm and healthy - have very happy and relaxing holidaze & :dance:

Cheers,

mfaye

Comment by Mondobubba on 12/23/2008 13:38:26
Comment by wickedpam on 12/23/2008 14:06:48
Morning :hug:

Comment by Scoopster on 12/23/2008 14:25:53
Morning all! The next couple days look to be insanely busy with the holiday coming up and the year end a week away. Please forgive me if I'm a bit scarce around these parts!



Excellent opening today Tri.

Comment by TriSec on 12/23/2008 14:40:29
Now Playing: "A Concert of Sacred Music" - Duke Ellington.



To be followed by the "Second Sacred Concert".



Both holiday staples in these parts, thanks to Eric Jackson of WGBH Radio.





Comment by wickedpam on 12/23/2008 14:52:39
The inaguration is going to be a good economic boost for DC, MD and VA. I know its going to be a good boost for our business, we already have winerys planning and marketing for this

Comment by Random on 12/23/2008 14:59:55
Random's Opinion on Warren.

The guys a bigoted asshole who's done a few good things.

And to ignore the guy because he's a bigoted asshole will ignore the good things he's done.



Comment by Raine on 12/23/2008 15:07:52
Good morning.

Comment by Mondobubba on 12/23/2008 15:12:01
Quote by Random:

Random's Opinion on Warren.

The guys a bigoted asshole who's done a few good things.

And to ignore the guy because he's a bigoted asshole will ignore the good things he's done.







I agree in principle with what you are saying here, Random. However, if the good things are outweighed by his bigoted assholeishness then you can ignore him and the good things he did. Let me jump right to the comparison with Hitler to get to the end of the argument quickly. Yeah Hitler came up with the autobahn, which is a great highway idea; but the genocide and destructive war cancel the autobahn out.

Comment by Random on 12/23/2008 15:18:59
Quote by Mondobubba:

Quote by Random:

Random's Opinion on Warren.

The guys a bigoted asshole who's done a few good things.

And to ignore the guy because he's a bigoted asshole will ignore the good things he's done.







I agree in principle with what you are saying here, Random. However, if the good things are outweighed by his bigoted assholeishness then you can ignore him and the good things he did. Let me jump right to the comparison with Hitler to get to the end of the argument quickly. Yeah Hitler came up with the autobahn, which is a great highway idea; but the genocide and destructive war cancel the autobahn out.


but Warren isn't hitler. Warren isn't trying to kill all the Gays. All Warren did was be an asshole and say shitty things about Gays. And in my mind, being an asshole, and saying shitty things doesn't outweight the good things he does.

Doesn't mean i've got to like the asshole, but i can acknowledge what he's done.

Comment by BobR on 12/23/2008 15:23:35
morning folks... :coffee:



Excellent blog, Tri - btw, I normally don't edit other people's blogs unless asked, but I decided to move the location of the fold so it didn't take up so much space on the front page... hope you don't mind.

Comment by Raine on 12/23/2008 15:27:06
If Rick Warren had his way, he would oppress a certain class of people. These are the lesson of the past that we must not let happen. No he is not Hitler... he is, however -- an oppressor.

Comment by BobR on 12/23/2008 15:30:04
Quote by Random:

Random's Opinion on Warren.

The guys a bigoted asshole who's done a few good things.

And to ignore the guy because he's a bigoted asshole will ignore the good things he's done.



To take Mondo's view to less extremes:



Warren may have done a few good things, but that doesn't excuse him being a bigoted asshole.



His being in a position of authority and power amplifies his negatives, because his followers will take those positions and make them their own.

Comment by Random on 12/23/2008 15:35:20
Quote by Raine:

If Rick Warren had his way, he would oppress a certain class of people. These are the lesson of the past that we must not let happen. No he is not Hitler... he is, however -- an oppressor.


And so we are going to out on trial people for what they want to do? He's an asshole, I'm giving you that, but all he has done is be a vocal asshole. If all it takes is to be a vocal asshole about a group of people to get them thrown out, despite the good they've done, then i'll propose right now that everyone here stop looking towards this countries constitution. Because the majority of the founding father's, Jefferson, Madison, were slave owners, which we can all agree is a despicable act, one that haunts this nation to this day. At what point does the good out way the bad? Jefferson wrote the declration of independence, We was a scholor, he cheated the French out of land, but does that really outweigh the fact that he owned slaves?

And does that really mean that a vocal asshole is tied to that, despite his works in helping people?

Comment by starling310 on 12/23/2008 15:35:44
Quote by wickedpam:

The inaguration is going to be a good economic boost for DC, MD and VA. I know its going to be a good boost for our business, we already have winerys planning and marketing for this




Speaking of MD and VA....Uuummm....my friends and I drove 8 hours to Richmond on Saturday to see our friends Closing Night and it was FREEZING!!!! What gives!?!?



Comment by Random on 12/23/2008 15:36:49
Quote by BobR:

Quote by Random:

Random's Opinion on Warren.

The guys a bigoted asshole who's done a few good things.

And to ignore the guy because he's a bigoted asshole will ignore the good things he's done.



To take Mondo's view to less extremes:



Warren may have done a few good things, but that doesn't excuse him being a bigoted asshole.



His being in a position of authority and power amplifies his negatives, because his followers will take those positions and make them their own.


So his negatives are inhanced, but his postives aren't?

Comment by BobR on 12/23/2008 15:38:22
Apropos of today's blog post, here's another movie of a war front interrupted by Christmas: Joyeux Noël.



Highly recommended...

Comment by Random on 12/23/2008 15:39:19
I've got to go, but I'll leave you with this to think about.



Jimmy Stewart, a great actor, has done some of the best films ever made, from a wide range of topics and themes. Jimmy Stewart is was a Republican that campaigned for Reagan and Nixon. Should his works in film be discounted because he helped some of the crookedest presidents get into office?

Comment by Raine on 12/23/2008 15:40:25
Quote by starling310:

Quote by wickedpam:

The inaguration is going to be a good economic boost for DC, MD and VA. I know its going to be a good boost for our business, we already have winerys planning and marketing for this




Speaking of MD and VA....Uuummm....my friends and I drove 8 hours to Richmond on Saturday to see our friends Closing Night and it was FREEZING!!!! What gives!?!?

I swear it feel s like Northern Tier Cold down here.



it's like 30 degrees but that wind chill is just wicket cold...



Comment by starling310 on 12/23/2008 15:41:01
Regarding Rick Warren:



It's a tough call. As a Gay Woman, his views are a personal affront to my life.

I agree that I think Obama is supporting him by default by giving him an opportunity to speak at this innauguration.

However, I am always hoping that people could change. And, I suppose I am curious to hear what he has to say. It feels like waiting for Hillary to give her concession speech. Will he unite? Will he divide? Is he having a change of heart? It is Christmas; season of supposed miracles. I don't know.



Again, I would have preferred Obama pick someone else. But, I am curious to see what the man has to say.



Comment by BobR on 12/23/2008 15:41:13
Quote by Random:



So his negatives are inhanced, but his postives aren't?


His overall impact on the world is more likely negative.

Comment by Raine on 12/23/2008 15:42:12
Quote by Random:

I've got to go, but I'll leave you with this to think about.



Jimmy Stewart, a great actor, has done some of the best films ever made, from a wide range of topics and themes. Jimmy Stewart is was a Republican that campaigned for Reagan and Nixon. Should his works in film be discounted because he helped some of the crookedest presidents get into office?


No of course not. And I understand what you are saying, and this indeed is not a black or white issue.











Comment by wickedpam on 12/23/2008 15:56:52
arrgghhhh!!!! why is FB fighting with me!

Comment by Raine on 12/23/2008 15:57:00
Sanchez from Montebello is Carlos Sanchez? DI dI hear him say that he was a guest mook?

Comment by wickedpam on 12/23/2008 15:58:34
Quote by Raine:

Quote by starling310:

Quote by wickedpam:

The inaguration is going to be a good economic boost for DC, MD and VA. I know its going to be a good boost for our business, we already have winerys planning and marketing for this




Speaking of MD and VA....Uuummm....my friends and I drove 8 hours to Richmond on Saturday to see our friends Closing Night and it was FREEZING!!!! What gives!?!?

I swear it feel s like Northern Tier Cold down here.



it's like 30 degrees but that wind chill is just wicket cold...







Hey - I ordered 78 degrees and sunny, at this point I would just be happy with average temps which I think are in the 50's.



Comment by velveeta jones on 12/23/2008 15:59:01
Morning!

Sipping coffee and watching my civil liberties disappear. Course, with the weather being so cold and my coffee getting cold - they come back onto the mug!



(reference to the fabulous gift from BobR)

Comment by BobR on 12/23/2008 16:03:48
the kittens are running amok!

Comment by wickedpam on 12/23/2008 16:04:19
Quote by Raine:

Sanchez from Montebello is Carlos Sanchez? DI dI hear him say that he was a guest mook?




:spit:



Methinks someone is starting to believe there on press, as it where.



Comment by TriSec on 12/23/2008 16:05:38
Ya know, I like winter, but this is ridiculous!



I'm sitting here in the office with two layers on, wearing fingerless gloves, a blanket thrown over my chair as a heat trap, and my space heater blasting under the desk, and I am still uncomfortable.



I moved my thermometer; once I get an accurate reading it's off to building services.





Comment by Raine on 12/23/2008 16:06:01
Quote by BobR:

the kittens are running amok!
They are plotting the eventual Overthrow of Bobber.



Comment by wickedpam on 12/23/2008 16:07:06
Quote by BobR:

the kittens are running amok!




isnt' that their job? :scratchhead:



Comment by livingonli on 12/23/2008 16:09:19
Good morning everyone.



If I have to sleep with gloves on, my landlady should be giving me some heat.



I've got the package from Clintster. Should I wait for him to show up to open it?

Comment by livingonli on 12/23/2008 16:10:33
Quote by Raine:

Quote by BobR:

the kittens are running amok!
They are plotting the eventual Overthrow of Bobber.



How could something so cute be so conniving?

Comment by wickedpam on 12/23/2008 16:11:58
Quote by livingonli:

Good morning everyone.



If I have to sleep with gloves on, my landlady should be giving me some heat.



I've got the package from Clintster. Should I wait for him to show up to open it?




There is logic in what you are saying but it shouldn't have to come to that point. Sounds like you need to have a discussion with your landlady.



and I would open it now ;)



Comment by Raine on 12/23/2008 16:18:06
Excellent calls this morning regarding Rick Warren..

Comment by Raine on 12/23/2008 16:18:38
I will be wearing a White Ribbon.

Comment by Will in Chicago on 12/23/2008 16:19:45
Good morning, bloggers!!



TriSec, a good entry and a sad one. Too often, our veterans go unremembered. We must change this.



The Daily Headlines are up.





TriSec, the story you tell at the end of the blog entry reminds me of the song "Christmas In the Trenches," written and performed by John McCutcheon:







Comment by Scoopster on 12/23/2008 16:31:40
Quote by TriSec:

Ya know, I like winter, but this is ridiculous!



I'm sitting here in the office with two layers on, wearing fingerless gloves, a blanket thrown over my chair as a heat trap, and my space heater blasting under the desk, and I am still uncomfortable.



I moved my thermometer; once I get an accurate reading it's off to building services.



I think they piped your heat down to my office - it feels warmer than a hospital ward in here today!

Comment by Raine on 12/23/2008 16:40:55
Red State Update...





I think they are getting more and more like a redneck version of the Colbert Report.

Comment by Raine on 12/23/2008 16:53:25
Comment by clintster on 12/23/2008 16:54:31
Quote by livingonli:

Good morning everyone.



If I have to sleep with gloves on, my landlady should be giving me some heat.



I've got the package from Clintster. Should I wait for him to show up to open it?




I'm here... go for it!

Comment by Mondobubba on 12/23/2008 16:55:52
Quote by BobR:

the kittens are running amok!




Get the ace kitten wrangler Kizzy on the case.

Comment by Raine on 12/23/2008 16:56:11
Comment by Mondobubba on 12/23/2008 16:58:14






Eww. Why don't you just get a job at BK, that way they pay you to smell the way body spray smells.

Comment by Raine on 12/23/2008 16:59:12
Where did Liv go?







Comment by livingonli on 12/23/2008 17:00:39
I've got me a Pac-Man mug. Nothing like that retro charm. I can put my Hot Chocolate in it. Thanks, Clintster.

Comment by livingonli on 12/23/2008 17:01:38
Quote by Raine:

Where did Liv go?







Still here. Trying to go through too much in the morning.

Comment by Raine on 12/23/2008 17:02:09
:clap: coolness!!!



Nice gift Living!

Comment by livingonli on 12/23/2008 17:03:02
More winter storms heading to the Midwest. We're supposed to get rain here tomorrow.

Comment by Mondobubba on 12/23/2008 17:04:13
Quote by starling310:

Regarding Rick Warren:



It's a tough call. As a Gay Woman, his views are a personal affront to my life.

I agree that I think Obama is supporting him by default by giving him an opportunity to speak at this innauguration.

However, I am always hoping that people could change. And, I suppose I am curious to hear what he has to say. It feels like waiting for Hillary to give her concession speech. Will he unite? Will he divide? Is he having a change of heart? It is Christmas; season of supposed miracles. I don't know.



Again, I would have preferred Obama pick someone else. But, I am curious to see what the man has to say.







I kinda like what the good Dr Maddow said late last week about Warren. He is giving the opening prayer, which is where we have been. Civil Rights Pioneer (I forget his name, sorry) is giving the closing prayer, which is where we want to go. I kinda like the symbolism that Rachel was going for.