Faith Hill 2.0
Greetings and salutations from the sand, sun and surf of Cape Cod, Martha’s Vineyard and the sunny, mild, calm island of Nantucket! Great to be with you on this Monday morning, the 12th day of March, 2012, a calm, sparkling start to this eight o’clock hour in the fair town of Cotuit, ‘where the ocean meets the wood’, a place that must be visited to truly appreciate, so come on down, ‘we’ll leave the LIGHT on for ya!’. Some pretty bleak news coming out of the eleven year long war going on in Afghanistan, worlds away from the peace WE all enjoy in our own nation’s backyard (one percent of US go and fight wars to keep US all safe), as we all voice an ‘opinion’ on whether or not that war should be going down in the first place. Until we have politicians who have put some real skin in the game, i.e. real veterans who have seen combat up close and personal, I think they should ALL just gain access to a big cup of shut the f up. This humble reporter does not know enough about the ground situation in that historically never before ‘defeated’ country, in many respects a fourth century nation, as we try and introduce democracy to it’s core, however, most Americans feel it may be time to pull those troops out of harms way, especially after the horrible incident over the week end, where a 38 year old U.S. soldier left his post, presumably walked to the nearest town and opened fire, killing men, women and most tragically, children. This latest U.S. military meltdown, adding to the accidental Koran burnings and the defecation of the bodies of dead Taliban soldiers, has brought danger and disgrace to the military brass and all those under them, bravely continuing to fight the war against the Taliban and the war at home screaming for peace in the region. Post Traumatic Stress Disorder is a very real problem in the U.S. military today, very, very few in the national media are addressing it. Soldiers, some on their fifth, sixth, seventh tours of duty, are playing hurt, psychologically that is, and the army, in it’s infinite wisdom, is putting these boys who have PTSD back on the front, heavily medicated with selected serotonin re-uptake inhibitors (SSRI’s), such as Prozac or Lexipro, as well as tranquilizers such as Ambien, a powerful sleep ‘aid’. The labels on these medications clearly state ‘this product should not be used if performing any hazardous occupations’… Isn’t combat a ‘hazordous’ occupation? Hello, McFly, is this effing thing ON?!! To add insult to injury, when these soldiers return to the U.S., many times to broken families, yes, when they return ‘home’, because they represent the ‘other 1 percent’, they are largely ignored, with a great FEAR of seeking counseling for constant nightmares, constant vigilance and hypersensitivity, thoughts of suicide, homicide and other horrible memories of war, filling their heads, thus, bringing no closure or peace, something you and I take for granted every day. Many returning Veterans turn to street drugs and booze to relieve the constant, nagging, some times intolerable anxiety, only adding to the problem that needs to be healed via the care offered up by a loving counsellor or mental health professional, working through their fears together, ‘two heads are better than one’, especially if one head is giving you the wrong signals, bringing them out of the FOG OF WAR, and into the LIGHT of day, a tough journey, but well worth the ‘fight’, believe me, I have been there. Another problem many of these brave men and women face is saving ‘face’, fearing the STIGMA of being labeled as a ‘mental case’, and so, thousands upon thousands of wounded warriors fall below the cracks of society, falling prey to homelessness, despair and death, a tragic end to the service they provided this nation, a nation that is so caught up in the insanity of plutocratic horse racing, they have lost sight of what really matters. Peace begins with you and it begins with me. I ran across this quote, from an ‘unknown’ author, and I thought you might find it comforting. Have a wonderful day and week ahead folks and keep in mind one thing and one thing only, well, you can keep as many things in mind as you like, but perhaps, remember this someday…we are all in this together. ‘Faith is the opposite of fear, as much a part of love as fear is of attack. Faith is the acknowledgement of union. It is the gracious acknowledgement of everyone as a Son of your most loving Father, loved by Him like you, and therefore loved by you as yourself. It is His love that joins you and your brother, and for His love you would keep no one separate from yours. Each one appears just as he is perceived in the holy instant, united in your purpose to be released from your guilt. You see the Christ in him, and his is healed because you look on what makes faith forever justified in everyone.’ PRESERVE THE WILDERNESS! Peace~M
