I waited a few days to blog about this story because I had mixed feelings, and I hoped they would change. However, they have not.
I was touched by this story about post traumatic stress syndrome from the Vietnam War probably just as much as everyone else. However, I guess my reactions were quite different. Not only was I saddened by the ending and heartbroken for Lyman, who watches his own brother die, but I was angry as well. In this class, it feels like half of the stories that we read only serve to leave a bitter taste in my mouth about our country. Not only have we read about slavery, but we have touched on multiple stories about Native Americans where little sly comments against "white people" have been slipped into the writing. To clarify, I am the last person to say that white people are above all others or that America has no problems, but it feels like every time I leave our class recently, I am disappointed in our society as a whole, whereas before class I felt confident that we were at least making something of a difference for other countries and providing a good place for our children to be educated.
Concerning this story, I am aware of the effects of post traumatic stress disorder or syndrome. I have done more research on it than probably most of the people in our class. My best friend is a cadet at Westpoint and my boyfriend is a Private First Class Marine. I have grown up around military men since my uncle was a Marine and my grandfather fought in WWII, and I have attended his WWII reunions every summer and have loved getting to know these wonderful veterans. Sadly, I feel like I am probably one of the only supporters in our class of the things that our military is sent out to do. I will never say that war is glamorous or that I think people should be killed. I HATE the concept of war. I hate that our men are dying and that many were drafted into Vietnam when they did not want to go. However, sometimes I am more fed up with the fact that in college, we read the most depressing stories of their experiences fighting for our country, such as this one. Where are the stories of patriotism and victory? Why do we not read about how grateful Vietnamese children were when they saw American troops coming to save them from the Viet Cong?
I guess I will end by saying that I am NOT a proponent of war. I am as much for world peace as the next person. But in the meantime, our country needs protection, and sometimes other countries need our help. Our men have signed up to defend us, and I hate to think that all I have learned in my classes in college thus far is that there are no positive outcomes of war, that all soldiers, Marines, sailors, and airmen regret their experiences, and that we do not provide them with support when they return home, which is no longer true. I guess I just wish there could be a positive spin on all of these negative situations from our stories, but I'm only one person in the class expressing my opinion.
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I was really intrigued by your blog post, as you raised quite a few valid points. I think the reason that we're always focused on the negative aspect of society might be because it allows more of an opportunity to think about how we can change it (or in this case, what has changed since the story was published, since it's been a while).I too have family currently serving, I didn't really see these stories as unpatriotic. It's just two men's experiences pre and post fighting in the war. I agree that we take much better care of our returning soldiers than we used to, but there's still a lot to be done-- the suicide rate among returning soldiers has been rising consistantly for years and just recently hit an all-time high since the beginning of recording those statistics.
ReplyDeleteOverall I'm glad I randomly chose to read your blog, as you definitely put a different spin on things! Why didn't you speak up in class?!
Just to clarify, Nicki, you are certainly not the sole supporter of the troops in this class! I was so glad to read your blog and see that someone else experiences similar feelings towards our country, our soldiers, and war in general. I come from a military family as well: my grandfather fought in Vietnam, both my parents have served in the Army, and my dad is still on active duty, having been deployed twice so far during our current “War on Terror.” I sympathize with many of your complaints of our country’s attitudes towards war and the way it is portrayed. Like you, I certainly do not agree with the idea of war and would much rather that my dad, as well as thousands of dads across the country, could carry on without the possibility of being deployed yet again. However, my dad has told us many stories of just how beneficial the soldiers have been in Iraq and how many individual Iraqis are grateful for the services that American soldier provide. It is unfortunate that our media casts the war in such a negative light and only emphasizes the isolated atrocities that are revealed when sinful, human nature gets the better of some soldiers. I understand, in a way, how the media sees these types of stories as containing greater “public interest,” but if these shameful realities are the only “news” presented about the war, it is no wonder that America does not support the war, and to a great extent, does not support its soldiers. Personally, I find this heartbreaking and angering, and I, too, wish that Americans’ perspectives could be changed.
ReplyDeleteHey guys!
ReplyDeleteGlad to know a few people agree with me, at least on a few points. Amanda: I didn't say anything in class because I hate starting those controversial debates, and it would have taken us away from the story. This issue has just been bugging me for a while, and I guess a blog seemed like the best way to get it all out there!