Unbearable Emptiness

[acmavm]

http://www.nytimes.com/2004/07/28/opinion/28kris.html

By NICHOLAS D. KRISTOF

Published: July 28, 2004

<snip>

ALEM, Ore. — Ever since a group of Iraqis told me last year about seeing a redheaded American soldier who was captured, held naked and then executed, I've been haunted by the question of his identity.

The first clues were in Nasiriya, Iraq, where in the aftermath of the war I interviewed the doctors and hospital staff who had cared for Pfc. Jessica Lynch. They said that the Pentagon had exaggerated the drama of her rescue, but what I could never put out of my mind was their tale of another American, whose name they never knew.

<snip>

So I visited Sergeant Walters's parents, Norman and Arlene Walters, at their home here in Salem, Ore. As they sat in their living room, heavy with memorials, photos and grief, Mr. and Mrs. Walters said that Don's hair had actually been reddish-blond, he had been injured in the leg, and he had smoked. Photos also show he looked young for his age.

What's more, the U.S. military recently informed Mr. and Mrs. Walters that Don had been captured before being shot.

<snip>

One of the revelations in the 9/11 commission report was the casualness of the resort to war. On the afternoon of Sept. 11, Donald Rumsfeld spoke of attacking Saddam Hussein, and President Bush began asking about Iraq the next day. Older men blithely found a war for younger men and women to die in.

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I almost fell out of my chair when I read this. To read these words from Kristof simply left me dumbfounded. Especially the last paragraph that I posted.

[teryang]

1. Excellent tribute

...to a hero in a senseless war.

[indigobusiness]

2. This war has been a tragic waste,

populated by tragic heroes and wasted lives. Trying to spin it and pump it up into something necessary makes it all the more tragic. Stories like this rip my guts out, but I won't look away. Those that have grown weary of it all and shut it out and just want to move on must be reminded by these stories, and this must be kept in focus until it is seen for what it is - a crime against humanity.

[Swede]

3. A crime against humanity is right.

But will there ever be justice?

[indigobusiness]

4. That is the question.

And why the focus must remain sharp. There is much left to reveal and balance.