The cost of war

During primary season, I was a supporter of Dennis Kucinich. One of the major reasons was that I wanted a Department of Peace (in 2008 and 2004 and now). I want to know what is possible outside of the violence we currently operate under. I worry about its effects: on the enemy, on us, on the world. Even in the case of "just" wars and revolutions, somehow even the "right" side always seems to engage in powerful wrongs.

In The Gazette of Colorado Springs, there is a very thought-provoking story. It is about one of costs of war: its effects on our soldiers and, by extension, ourselves. It's a long piece, but I think an important one.

It begins with:

Before the murders started, Anthony Marquez’s mom dialed his sergeant at Fort Carson to warn that her son was poised to kill.

It was February 2006, and the 21-year-old soldier had not been the same since being wounded and coming home from Iraq eight months before. He had violent outbursts and thrashing nightmares. He was devouring pain pills and drinking too much. He always packed a gun.

“It was a dangerous combination. I told them he was a walking time bomb,” said his mother, Teresa Hernandez.

His sergeant told her there was nothing he could do. Then, she said, he started taunting her son, saying things like, “Your mommy called. She says you are going crazy.”

The full story is available at Casualties of War, Part I: The hell of war comes home.