My father Alex Efthim was a Captain in the Army Air Corps,
combat intelligence, Pacific Theater, World War II. He always taught me
in any peace march to find the veterans and walk behind them. I always
have. My father was a member of Veterans for Peace,
and his idea of peace was about human rights and justice. So is mine. My friend Michael McPhearson now runs
Veterans for Peace; he served in the Gulf War. For a while, Michael lived in
New Jersey while his wife Deborah Jacobs ran ACLU-NJ. Now they're in
St. Louis, and after Mike Brown was killed, were on the ground in
Ferguson. This is Michael's Facebook status of a couple days ago, and I
find it about perfect. I hope you find
a way today to honor those who never came ho me, and to let your concern for living veterans move to action on their behalf.
This is Michael
I wanted to get this down before I forget his name. I just met a Black
Vietnam combat vet named Milton. He saw me walking and called out, "Hey
young man are you a veteran?" He was so enthusiastic, shaking my hand.
He told me where he served, who with etc like
we vets and service members do when we meet. I told him my service
credentials. He went on to tell me he always wants to thank veterans
because he was not thanked and was treated bad when he returned home. I
told him about Veterans For Peace, gave him my card
and a brochure.
We talked about how we are sent to serve and thrown away when we come
home. We agreed on how we are lied to about why we are sent to war. He
called the politicians professional liars being paid to lie.
As I was about to go, he told me he was going to take the brochure and
place it on the bulletin board at the shelter where he is staying. Until
that moment I had no idea this enthusiastic, smiling and energetic
veteran was homeless. I asked him his name again,
we shook hands in what I'll call the Unity fashion, we hugged and I set
off feeling very emotional.
I'm tired of meeting homeless people. We have homelessness because of
greed, indifference and a depraved social structure. I am particularly
hurt when I meet homeless veterans. This one was such a wonderful happy
man. There is no excuse for this. The U.S. is
waging wars around the world to the tune if a trillion dollars a year.
Killing innocent people in the name of freedom and discarding many sent
to do these dirty deeds. What other word is there for this other than
evil?
Call me naive, idealistic or foolish. Whatever, but God(dess) did not put us here to do this. I won't accept it.
If you see me this Memorial Day, don't wish me a happy one
and don't thank me for my service. Reflect on how to stop this madness.
Figure out something large or small, grand or minute you can do and then
do it. That's a real way to honor those who
have died in war. Peace is possible, but we must be wiling to
sacrifice and belive in it just as much as it appears we believe in
killing and chaos.
[emphasis added]
Rosi
Efthim::Memorial
Day 2015
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