Subject: Mail From Hack, 2000-11-15
Date: Wed, 15 Nov 2000 12:25:18 EST
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1) Hack's Column: SOME THINGS NEVER CHANGE
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--1--
SOME THINGS NEVER CHANGE
BY DAVID H. HACKWORTH
>> For it's Tommy this, an' Tommy that, an' "Tommy wait
outside";
But it's "Special train for Atkins" when the trooper's on the
tide ...
Yes, makin' mock o' uniforms that guard you while you sleep
Is cheaper than them uniforms, an' they're starvation cheap ...
We aren't no thin red 'eroes, nor we aren't no blackguards too,
But single men in barricks, most remarkable like you ... <<
Rudyard Kipling's 19th-century poem "Tommy" perfectly captures
the
frustration of many in our armed forces toward the disconnected
mind-set of
too many of today's politicians, media folks and uncaring
Americans.
When the country has a gun pointed at its head, nothing's too
good for the
troops. But when the market's high and peace is blowing in the
wind, signs
quickly proclaim: "No dogs or soldiers allowed."
There's no national threat this week, but our Tommys and Tammys
are suddenly
in the spotlight. It's their absentee ballots that may decide
the
presidential election and who will be their next commander in
chief. What
irony! Now those who wear our uniform have become critically
important to an
administration that for the past eight years has treated them
with
callousness and contempt -- as if they were indentured servants.
They've been sent on one harebrained mission after another, none
of which
have zilch to do with national security. Their ability to defend
America has
been dulled by social experiments seemingly designed to turn a
once-disciplined, highly effective fighting machine into a
politically
correct commune. They've been marginalized, downsized and
socialized, screwed
with, manipulated and jerked around every way but loose.
Finally, these defenders of ours have made prime time and Page
One without
another USS Cole tragedy or an old atrocity charge or a new
scandal. Now that
they're the main event, let's hope they use their 15 minutes to
send a loud
and clear message about what's on their minds.
About how they've had to wear the widespread Madeleine
Albright-type of
disdain, the sophistry that since they're all volunteers, they
should grin
and bear it as they wade through the cesspools of the world.
Or how they're forced to pander to high-living politicos, their
pals and
entourages as they fly America's new nobility, their wives and
spoiled kids
around the world on jaunts at taxpayer expense. All the while
enduring long
separations from their own families, many of whom exist on food
stamps and
hand-me-downs.
These are the Tommys and Tammys who in the past eight years have
paid with
their lives in Albania, Bosnia, Colombia, Haiti, Kosovo, Kuwait,
Saudi Arabia
and Yemen, to name a few bloody spots. And now -- shock! -- this
year their
absentee ballots actually may be counted. They actually may play
a critical,
even indispensable role in the year 2000 election. And along the
way, maybe
they'll start getting some respect.
Of course, since most reporters share the Madeleine attitude,
few in the
Fourth Estate pay much attention to the troops unless it's the
"Thin red line
of 'eroes" when the drums begin to roll...And when one of theirs
such as Time
magazine's Margaret Carlson uses national TV to dump on our
soldiers from
Florida who voted by absentee ballot while serving in the
world's hellholes
-- calling them "tax dodgers" -- it goes virtually unreported.
Rarely does anyone acknowledge that the sacrifices of our troops
-- past,
present and future -- are what allow the Carlsons to employ
their
constitutional right of freedom of expression to sully the
people who daily
lay their lives on the line to protect those very rights.
Few in the regular force blow the whistle over their misuse and
abuse for
fear of losing their jobs. But if conscription once again filled
the ranks of
our military, this nonsense would stop. Citizens would be
concerned with what
was happening to their children, as would the suddenly
enlightened press and
pols.
Sadly, things probably won't change much for the regulars until
the draft is
reinstated. But as long as it's the same old story for the
troops, Kipling's
caveat still holds:
>> An' it's Tommy this, an' Tommy that, an' anything you please;
An' Tommy ain't a bloomin' fool -- you bet that Tommy sees! <<
And so do the wonderful men and women who defend America in
these troubled
times -- whose vote actually may mean something this time
around.
***
c 2000 David H. Hackworth
Distributed by King Features Syndicate Inc.
http://www.hackworth.com is the address of David Hackworth's
home page.
Sign in for the free weekly Defending America column at his Web
site.
Send mail to P.O. Box 5210, Greenwich, CT 06831.
--2--
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