Hypocrisy, propaganda, the governtment — and you

This is probably too late/early for me to tackle this, but here goes. I want to get stuff up while I remember it.

Went to the local National Guard airfield/base today to watch a friend receive his Purple Heart. He was injured in Iraq last year just a few weeks before he was supposed to get shipped home with the rest of the Guardsmen.

Anyway, it was the first time I had been over there. I was nervous for some reason -- more nervous than when I went down to the Air Force base to watch the airshow and see the Thunderbirds. Then again, when I went in 2000, we weren't at war.

Since this was a day to honor my friend and another soldier who was wounded, I didn't want to make waves. I wore long pants so the tattoos wouldn't show. I wanted to wear my black "I did NOT vote for Bush" bracelet, but I couldn't find it. I did find my peace pin -- a very small blue button with a white dove on it. I slipped it into my pocket rather than pinning it to my blouse. I figured I'd decide when I got there; I wanted to see how many cars had the "we support our troops" magnets attached. Most of them did.

I had the luck of being behind my friend when I pulled up to the security check point. After checking my ID, car registration and proof of insurance, I was allowed past the barricades and onto the base. I was careful to obey the posted speed limit and not do anything that would label me a "progressive" or anti-war or, goodness no, anti-Bush.

When I arrived at the outdoor pavilion, there was a big crowd there. I parked and greeted my buddy and we walked over to where the ceremony was taking place. Lots of families, lots of kids. Lots of pregnant women who looked to have similar ... due dates. There was plenty of mingling going on; many of these folks hadn't seen each other for some time. We ended up sitting in the front row, right were the general and colonels could see us. Oh goody.

After the introductions and national anthem, there was the invocation. A colonel or lieutenant colonel read it -- stumbled through it, really. There was mention of god protecting troops during this time of peace (what the fuck was he talking about? time of peace? where?). There was mention of god guiding the troops safely home (what about the ones who were killed or injured? no, really, don't give me a bullshit religious answer, ok?). I don't really remember much more of the invocation, simply for the fact it struck me as extremely hypocritical and I just couldn't get past that. I'm a heathen. Deal with it.

The general got up and prattled on about how much the troops had done in Iraq -- how much they had accomplished, how they'd done more than any other unit there, but he didn't list specific examples. He spoke of how the former governor, now secretary of the interior, called him on Memorial Day from Arlington National Cemetery, where Dubya would be arriving to lay a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown. Dirk, of course, told the general how proud he was of the troops and how his thoughts and prayers (naturally) were with them and Boise and the rest of the state. Leave it to Dirk to get PR out of the day when the "replacement" Gov. Risch was a no-show. Gotta love it.

Thankfully, the Purple Hearts were awarded right away. Very much a photo op and very military with little pomp and circumstance. The rest of the ceremony was devoted to the Freedom Awards -- the handing out of mementos to everyone who had gone over to Iraq. Flag in a neat display case, limited edition coins, lapel pins and a box.

The box, which was referred to as a "National Guard footlocker" supposedly contained a board game based on Operation Enduring Freedom, or whatever the hell it's being called this week, mission cards for the kids so they could carry out missions at home, and assorted other recruiting tools to get them interested in joining up just like mommy or daddy. After all, the military is going to need more recruits to maintain the occupation.

It was a nice day. I don't want that point to be lost in all off this. I respect what my friend did over there and I'm extremely proud of him. But he didn't vote for Bush, either. He doesn't like the reasons we're over there. It's a lot more personal for him.

And I'm not anti-military. I'm anti-war. I don't like being lied to, and I'm disgusted at how easily the American people were duped. We're governed by fear. Living in fear from 9/11. Living in fear of another 9/11. It's no wonder we're cowed. Look at all the other things we live in fear of:

Iraq
Iran
China
nuclear weapons
bird flu
gay marriage
abortion
higher taxes
migrant workers
race
gas prices
hurricanes
war
peace
living
dying
being different
growing old
being alone
being fat
being unhealthy

I could go on, but I think I made my point.

A lot of those are single issues that were used to divide us during the last presidential election. A lot of those are single issues that divide us today because the government doesn't want us unified on too many of them. Can you imagine the power we'd have if everyone stood up against, say, high gas prices? Can you imagine the power we'd have if everyone voted?

There's a lot more to this that I'm still trying to digest. But it's getting late and I have to be up in a few hours.

One aside: That peace pin stayed in my pocket until we were back in the parking lot, escaping before we got roped into staying for the barbecue. I gave it to my friend. He knows about the price of freedom -- and the value of peace.