I haven’t tried to hide the fact that I have no admiration for our present President. I could just sit here and write down all the ways he has let us down as a nation. However, I’m not going to do that today because he has done something that has earned my respect. Oh, I’m sure it wasn’t his decision. He has an army of sycophants that feed him the words he is supposed to say; that is, when he has anything to say without getting flustered, like when he loses his place on the dais.
He is bringing our troops home from that cursed country where all we were doing is getting our young men and women torn apart, or with a flag draped over the coffin.
You know, our President has been in government for 50 years. I think he has learned many different ways to make money that aren’t all legal, but he is bringing our troops home. This was exactly like Vietnam, including the equipment they left for the Taliban. When I heard that, I was reminded of the helicopters landing on the roof of the Embassy in Saigon and running, like they were cowards or something. How it truly sickened me to see the helicopters being pushed off the deck of the ships on which they were landing.
I read about some who are angry that he left all the equipment we paid for to the Taliban. However, that is one thing I agree with him again. If you are going to give up on a lost engagement, drop whatever you are doing and run. There is no sense in leaving even a large contingent if you are aware that the support so needed in a battle zone is not there. Nor will it ever be again. I believe we have such sophisticated weapons at our disposable that we can see and destroy some massive build up of the Taliban before they reach out to us, as they did on 9/11.
I think perhaps the only thing that looks good is that many of the wounds that were suffered by the troops in Vietnam have now been named, and care is a lot more available. That does not mean we should just forget these returning troops. They are sure to have terrible memories of wounded or maimed comrades.
I had a young man who asked me once how it was to shoot a man in war. You would be surprised at how devastating that is. First you have to really be trained to do what you know is not in the plan of your life and then convince yourself that what you are ordered to do is approved by the folks back home. In this case it might be a little more difficult as, again, the government sent them out to die for nothing. War is not always won by the good guys. The military performed as you would expect, but again they were not used as they should have been.
I watched a film the other night where an outpost was established at the bottom of a ring of mountains. The U.S. soldiers were at the bottom. They know this and will suffer the effects of what could be called abandonment by their command. But, even though it is another case of petty men wanting to wear a few more medals, my prayer is there will be some sort of recognition of their sacrifices, perhaps a parade. Not like the wonderful parades held after a victory like World War II, but some way to show them how much they mean to us.
I have watched the Veterans Administration (VA) shrink the medical services needed for men and women who have suffered. Let us demand that they do not continue this in the face of returning service members that will need help. I am blessed with good medical care and some really caring folks that work for the VA. They always treat me very nice and recognize the fact that I was wounded in places that you can’t examine. I can tell you, if you have a loved one who served in that terrible country, just love them. Their wounds may be unseen but terrible inside.
So, along with my usual cracks about our politicians, I have good news. In case you have been busy, we have a new company in Gonzales. Papé (pa-pay), one of the largest material moving companies in the world, has taken up what I think is the last of the industrial park along Gonzales-River Road. My son, who actually works there, gave me a tour and these guys don’t mess around. They had a little corner on John Street right by the onramp for 101. It was crowded and was not a good place for a company that moves very heavy loads.
So they came to Gonzales and have publicly stated that they are part of our community and they will do their part to help the City make Gonzales a better place to live. Along with telling me they wanted to be part of the community, I found out that they have sponsored the Knights football team, whose coach lives next door. He’s happy the kids are happy, and Papé is fulfilling their stated commitment to become part of our little town.
Please ask, in your next prayer, that the kids coming home from that hellhole are mentally and physically well.
God Bless.
