The hazing of soldiers is only one way our volunteer soldiers are victimized. Karl Marlantes, in his book, and on Bill Moyers show, explains how different it was before Viet Nam, when no soldier was sent on so many tours of duty. He interviewed one stressed family where the soldier was going on his SEVENTH tour. The trauma that is associated when a normal person takes a life takes time to get over. The young men who kill , burn , and maim, need time and rest to recover, but they are sent back, over and over --'Thou shalt not kill' is a tenet you just do not violate, and so all your young life, that's drilled into your head. And then suddenly, you're 18 or 19 and they're saying, "Go get "em and kill for your country.' And then you come back and it's like, "Well, thou shalt not kill' again. Believe me, that's a difficult thing to deal with," Marlantes tells Bill. |
Read the rest of the story HERE:
At www.nytimes.com
I began teaching in 1963,; Ba and BS in Education -Brooklyn College. I have the equivalent of 2 additional Master's, mainly in Literacy Studies and Graphic Design. I was the only seventh grade teacher of English from 1990 -1999 at East Side (more...)