Whose soldiers are they?
An Iraqi Teach-In, held in sentiment of the fourth anniversary of the start of America’s invasive war on Iraq (understatement of the year), featured a film titled The Ground Truth. It plunged into the lives of the American soldiers who trade their soul for the country, and the experience and subsequent treatment they are subjected to because of it. I spent just over an hour of my evening watching the film. I spent the rest toiling over the disturbances it caused within me.
A standard saying in team atmospheres, where a high aim is set, is to keep your eye on the goal, cleverly coaxing the player to never lose focus. The majority of the soldiers featured, and presumably that of those involved, thought they were in Iraq to either avenge 9/11, or protect against another like occurrence. They equate the collapse of the Twin Towers with the innocent civilian faces they see before them on streets, and repress any sense of humility and remorse as they take orders and pull the trigger. After all, a terrorist just might be hiding among those women and children.
These soldiers are taught that just because someone is wearing a Burka or looks Arab, they are the enemy. And in war they are fighting, there is some credit for such a caution, as their enemy is often dressed as a civilian. But there is no excuse for sacrificing the lives of people who happen to be at the wrong place at the wrong time: in an American’s way. Bush says we are in Iraq to free the oppressed. But if we kill them all first, who is left to free, and will there be any spirit left to rebuild the demolition and devastation America has caused?
When these soldiers who have followed orders and ruined innocent lives return home, they expect to find what was promised to them—assistance in re-establishing their lives and re-entering society. As the film said, an old saying goes, “A great soldier will made a terrible citizen.” Well, what perfect sense that makes. What killing machine can assimilate without obstacle? The film claims that bullets and bombs cause the most prevalent war injuries. Second is post-traumatic stress disorder, followed by a third of illness. PTSD is plentiful in veterans, and the government thinks assimilation is key. Throwing them back in the mix won’t solve the trauma, thought, and has resulted in severe effects—from ruined relationships to suicide.
If they aren’t killed in Iraq, then their soul filtered out and left in the shambled mess. These soldiers deserve to know what they are signing, what those enlistment officers really ought to tell them, and what their purpose for war truly is. They should know why they strap on a belt of ammunition, and why they shot the faces they do. These soldiers are people—our people—and need to be treated as such. Come on, America: demand we take care of our troops.
A standard saying in team atmospheres, where a high aim is set, is to keep your eye on the goal, cleverly coaxing the player to never lose focus. The majority of the soldiers featured, and presumably that of those involved, thought they were in Iraq to either avenge 9/11, or protect against another like occurrence. They equate the collapse of the Twin Towers with the innocent civilian faces they see before them on streets, and repress any sense of humility and remorse as they take orders and pull the trigger. After all, a terrorist just might be hiding among those women and children.
These soldiers are taught that just because someone is wearing a Burka or looks Arab, they are the enemy. And in war they are fighting, there is some credit for such a caution, as their enemy is often dressed as a civilian. But there is no excuse for sacrificing the lives of people who happen to be at the wrong place at the wrong time: in an American’s way. Bush says we are in Iraq to free the oppressed. But if we kill them all first, who is left to free, and will there be any spirit left to rebuild the demolition and devastation America has caused?
When these soldiers who have followed orders and ruined innocent lives return home, they expect to find what was promised to them—assistance in re-establishing their lives and re-entering society. As the film said, an old saying goes, “A great soldier will made a terrible citizen.” Well, what perfect sense that makes. What killing machine can assimilate without obstacle? The film claims that bullets and bombs cause the most prevalent war injuries. Second is post-traumatic stress disorder, followed by a third of illness. PTSD is plentiful in veterans, and the government thinks assimilation is key. Throwing them back in the mix won’t solve the trauma, thought, and has resulted in severe effects—from ruined relationships to suicide.
If they aren’t killed in Iraq, then their soul filtered out and left in the shambled mess. These soldiers deserve to know what they are signing, what those enlistment officers really ought to tell them, and what their purpose for war truly is. They should know why they strap on a belt of ammunition, and why they shot the faces they do. These soldiers are people—our people—and need to be treated as such. Come on, America: demand we take care of our troops.
posted by Ashley Corinn Waldorf at
9:48 PM
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