Wednesday, May 4, 2011

Bushwhacked Bastard

Thinking today that I really do not want to know anything more about a dead terrorist I came upon a realization. Yesterday was the anniversary of the day I raised my right hand and made myself subservient to the United States of America by way of membership in its armed forces. It was also the day I heard about the death of the fanatic responsible for the incursion in my life of fear and dread from without our borders. I rarely watch the news, and only discovered it because when I exit from my e-mail program, Yahoo News comes on the screen. They were more than happy to give over a majority of their reporting energy over to a dead criminal and monster.

I went on about my business and tried to be satisfied that the danger from that man might be minimized or, hopefully expunged from my psyche. But nooooooo….

I found it everywhere, on the radio on the way to work, on Facebook where I try to enjoy communicating with members of the human race who I have much affection for. It was on every television channel I surfed through on the television. My next door neighbor came over and offered me a beer to celebrate. I went to Wal-Mart and a man told me that it was a good day to be an American. I viewed five cars with the same bumper stickers that denounced the disposition of the body and marveled at the entrepreneurial acumen of whoever delivered that unctuous product in such quantities that five cars out of a city of some 100,000 people could find and purchase them in so short a time.

Thankfully, I heard nothing at work, and enjoyed the lesson and the kids. Thanked God for my job, and the kids I teach.

During my tenure in the Armed Forces of this great and noble country it was not necessary for me to take another human beings life. I am grateful for that. I am opposed to killing in any fashion except for defense of your, or your loved ones life. I came to this opposition as a direct result of the action taken at the behest of the recently deceased lunatic. I began to wonder after watching the buildings crumble to the ground, just when it became okay to kill. This quandary gave muse to one of the unpublished manuscripts collecting electronic dust on my hard drive. I took much soul searching to come to a place where I feel comfortable keeping God’s Sixth Commandment. I am also comfortable with the reality that my belief in this matter is not subject for discussion. I will not engage in a debate on this subject…with anyone.

I take exception to the ideas, given my belief about killing, that we should rejoice the death of this man. I have watched the videos, read the words, and truly believe that if his minions had ever kicked the door down in my house and shot me in the head that he would rejoice. Why in the bloody hell we call a world would I want to be just like him?!

As to whether he deserved it or not is a truly moot point. I might not believe that anyone should be killed, but I comprehend a reality about this situation. Any country that found themselves with the task of exacting justice on this person most certainly have found him guilty, probably based on his own unrepentant confession, and executed him. Not, however, without the obligatory media circus which would probably be much more penetrating and garish then what is currently being offered. With the inevitability of his death, it might as well happened right away, and conducted by someone who knew what he was doing.

As reported earlier, I did not have to personally cause the demise of any human being while in the Army, or since discharge. I did, however get to witness it in a most personal manner. One night, in 1973, while on guard duty, my supervising sergeant ordered me to give him the keys to the room we were keeping our firearms. We were on alert at the time due to threats from terrorists (Terrorism has been around for a while, it did not just show up on 911) in the area I was stationed and were keeping our weapons in a room in the barracks so as to offer us easy access in case of trouble.

I watched him walk to the room and enter. I started to go to the restroom and just as I turned to enter the latrine, I heard three gunshots. I went to the room and was told by the guys standing around the door that it was my duty to go in and see what had happened. I retrieved my weapon from the holster at my side(there had been shots fired) and opened the door. Lying on the floor was the Sargent with an M-16 lying on his chest pointing to what had been his face. Except…there was no face. Neither were there ears, or hair, or anything that resembled the top portion of a human body.

I shut the door, locked it, and called headquarters. I was relieved from my post after a while and I went to my room to go to sleep. Except…I did not sleep. I have remembered that sight every day for the last thirty eight years.

I think about the guy that pulled the trigger in that house in Pakistan and pray that he is alright. I pray that the image of what he saw combined with what he had to do does not stay with him as hard as what I saw has stayed with me. I am not anywhere close to being in the same place as that brave man, in fact, I am light years from knowing what that Navy Seal has to deal with as a result of having to take a madman’s life. I just found someone. He had to kill someone. He has to remember that he killed someone.

Okay, here’s where the armchair heroes and generals will stand up, righteously indignant and scream that I am unpatriotic or even, a traitor. I do not care. I care about that young man who had to kill someone to protect me and the yapping little dogs sitting on the laps of those who wave a flag around as if they had the first clue about what it takes to eradicate another human being in the service of their country. Those who live in a world where death comes at them through an electronic medium and wish to rejoice the death of another human being can kiss my ass!

We need to honor the commitment to justice that those guys jumping out of helicopters in Pakistan have and maintain in their hearts. We do not need to give that murdering son of a bitch one more second of time in the media. We do not need to allow him to have any more power in our lives because THAT IS WHAT HE WOULD HAVE WANTED!!!!!

I will close with a quote:

People sleep peaceably in their beds at night only because rough men stand ready to do violence on their behalf.
George Orwell

God Bless those rough men that are out there trying to see that we have some…

Peace