Homeless soldier

The recall of the Governor of Wisconsin has begun. Many are excited but will over a half million sign the recall petition in 60 days? And if there is a recall election who will run against him? How much will the recall election and new election cost?

In a recent Time Magazine there is an article called “The Other 1%”. It talks about how soldiers returning from Iraq and Afghanistan feel like an alien. The soldiers say that it is impossible to tell that we are a nation at war and no one wants to hear what the war is really like. One says: “There are no bond drives. There are no food drives or rubber drives. It’s hard not to think of my war as a bizarre camping trip that no one else went on.”

I can relate to these returning soldiers feelings of alienation. They hear talk about no tax hikes but increased war spending; they see Republican candidates debate themselves on issues not related to what they fought for; they see the recall movement and hear the news about sex scandals; they find a type of ‘reflexive’ thanking and honoring the troops but little understanding of how they were asked to put their conscience aside and “kill or be killed.”

With drones, mercenaries and removing the hell of war from our sight and minds, we have made war so alien to our minds and hearts. Soldiers returning from war face this world where greed and competition thrive, people get excited by recall efforts, where more and more are imprisoned and are homeless and neglected. They watch TV talk show like I am doing now where young men who never served in the military talk and talk about the future of Iraq.

When I see so much excitement about recall election and lack of interest in the militarization of our country and the separation of reality of war from our daily lives, I too feel like an “alien” in my country.

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