Home From Iraq, and Without a Home

Nicole Goodwin and her daughter Shayla

The New York Times yesterday carried this shocking story of a female veteran, recently served in Iraq and honourably discharged, who is homeless in New York with a one-year old daughter. You can read the article for the explanation of how this can happen, but really, it doesn't need an explanation so much as an apology. This link came via American Samizdat.

Something sweet and sad to listen to

On National Public Radio, 'Doonesbury' and War. Listen with RealAudio or MediaPlayer to free-lancer Ben Walker's poignant commentary on cartoon character BD, who just lost a leg fighting in Iraq.

Tom Hayden tells it

A very powerful article by Tom Hayden in the Nation, concerning the myths of the Vietnam War and why now is the time to examine them and refute them.
"If I were George W. Bush, I would be terrorized by the eyes of those scruffy-looking veterans, the so-called band of brothers, volunteering for duty with the Kerry campaign. They look like men with scores to settle, with a palpable intolerance toward the types who sent them to war for a lie, then ignored their Agent Orange illness, cut their GI benefits, treated them like losers and still haven't explained what that war was about. They know Jane Fonda is a diversion from a larger battlefield. They are the sort who will keep a cerebral United States senator grounded, who have finally figured out who their real enemies are and who are determined that this generation hear their story anew. They are gearing up for one last battle. Chickenhawks better duck."
Thanks once again to non-blogging friend Joani for this link.