Painful truths

I’ve been trying not to write about Iraq except in the most general terms.  It’s tough not to; the situation there is taking a personal toll on this house, begging for some sort of acknowledgment even if the press refuses to do so.  Whatever happened to embedded reporters?  At least seeing them, dusty, sweaty and anxious every day on the hour reminded us of the truth, that we’re at war.  At least if they were covering it, I didn’t have to mention it.  Someone else spilled words for me, but now, I guess I’m going to have to dole them out myself.

My stepson’s been in Iraq for a while now; every time the phone rings, we jump all over ourselves trying to get to it in case it’s him.  We got a call the week he arrived; he said at that time he might not call again for a month.  He called again the following week, quite unexpectedly, and I wasn’t here to catch the call.  I feel terrible that he had to get a machine after what was probably a couple hour wait in line to call home. I feel worse that I barked at my daughter for not answering the phone and missing a call this past week; fortunately it was only my father-in-law and not my stepson.  This is not the way I wanted my daughter to step up to the responsibility of phone usage, expecting her to be as hyper-vigilant about answering the phone.

Every time there’s a new development in Iraq – especially when a serviceman has been shot -- we are on pins and needles.  My husband and I try not to show an excess of concern in front of the kids, but it’s not as if they’re unaware.  My daughter asked this past week when two servicemen were killed if one of them could be her stepbrother.  There’s no way one can lie about this kind of thing to a bright nine-year-old who pays attention to the news.  It’s the kind of truth that has to be choked out in measured doses.  I had to tell her with a tight throat and a wrenching gut that yes, it’s always a possibility, but we hope not and we’d hear very soon if it was.  Try not to break into tears while wretching that out in front of your child.

A letter arrived today, the first one from my stepson since he left.  I can’t open it – it’s addressed to his father.  It’s lying there on the kitchen counter, stamped in purple ink diagonally across the face, “APO ADDRESS”.  Not some impersonal evening newscaster making an announcement in a cool, dispassionate and professional manner; a handwritten reminder of the truth that we’re at war.  I have to conceal it from my kids; if they see it, they’ll dog me with questions until my spouse returns from his fishing trip with his father.  It’s not fair that I have to handle dishing out the truth about this situation on my own; we can wait until we’re both here to talk with the kids about the contents of this slim white envelope.  I’m angry with myself for holding this back from them, for being such a chickenshit – but what good would it do to give them three days of “I don’t know when, I don’t know why, I simply don’t know.”  They’ll want and they deserve far more than that, they’ll want the truth.

The truth is the war isn’t over.  It won’t be over until all our service people are home, until my stepson is home. 

It may not be over even after this landmark.  For some people the last war is still not over.  For others, Vietnam is still not over.

And that’s another truth that will have to be taken in measured, painful doses.

2:51:27 PM    comment []

SOLAR STORM WARNING

Watch for disruptions to phones, television, radio, WiFi, other electronic transmissions, possible power grid disruptions during the next several days due to large solar flare activity in progress over the last 24-48 hours.  (Might explain some rather interesting and highly broken cell phone and wireless communications I've had this morning...wish I'd known about this before yelling into the phone multiple times!)

NOAA also advises there may be strong aurora activity.  Nuts, my folks won’t catch it over Lake Superior; they’ll be visiting me here in down state where it’s supposed to rainy for the next 24+ hours.  Viewing over the lake is spectacular when conditions are right; the aurora and its reflection off the water can be quite bright, like moonshine.

Be sure to grab your camera and look out overhead tonite and the next couple of nights.  Due to the severity of the flares and storm activity (G3 to G4 levels), folks as far south as Texas may actually see aurora borealis. 

I’d love to see if you come up with anything since I’m sure to miss any northern lights due to our local weather conditions.

12:16:23 PM    comment []

WARNING: SLOW BLOGGING AHEAD – THE SECOND WAVE

The other in-laws arrive today.  Nah, I really shouldn’t call them that since they’re my folks and hubby’s not here to “enjoy” them anyhow.

They’ll be with us from now to Tuesday, when they’ll return to the no-longer white north.

In the mean time I must scramble to get a couple golf outings together for my dad, brother and I, organize and cook a dinner for thirteen of us on Saturday evening, and keep the kids in line while my folks are here.

That puts blogging squarely on the back burner.  I’ll post when I can. 

If you're dropping by, take off your shoes at the door, the carpets will be damp!

And bring some beer, will you?  I'm working up quite a thirst. Thanks!

12:07:41 PM    comment []

Build-A-Meme Project:  Sticking our necks out in a big way

Don’t miss Arianna Huffington’s piece in Salon; she makes incredibly valid points about the Democrats’ failure to go to the mat on issues where they are ahead of Republicans.

“After all, the problem isn't that Democrats are on the wrong side of the issues. It's that they are afraid to make an issue of being on the right side -- not to mention smack dab in the middle of the American mainstream.

For example, only one out of four Americans believe the latest round of tax cuts will significantly reduce their taxes, and just 29 percent think the cuts are the best way to help stimulate the economy. Yet Democrats seem congenitally incapable of challenging a president whose entire domestic agenda consists of more and more tax cuts for the wealthy.

The numbers also favor the Democrats on the foreign policy front. According to the latest Wall Street Journal/NBC News poll, 57 percent of Americans are opposed to investing the time and money needed to rebuild Iraq. But the Democrats sit idly by, their thumbs otherwise engaged, while the administration's Iraqi tar baby grows stickier by the day.”

There’s no way around it – at some point the Democrats are going to have to take the risk and stick their necks out.  This Project will have to do exactly that, embrace risks eagerly.  If Democrats (hell, ALL liberals) don’t, they’ll have four more years to whine feebly and demur while Dubya takes us all down in nyucular flames.

Be sure to check the latest posts in the Freedom 2004 forums!

9:47:44 AM    comment []