Sky is a pale blue gray and today is supposed to be rain free. I returned home last night in time to make dinner, chat on the phone and watch Bill Moyer’s Journal on public television. Last night it was about a documentary film made by Phil Donohue and Ellen Spiro, Body of War about the true cost of war. The story tracks Tomas Young and his family in the aftermath of the paralyzing injuries he received while serving in Iraq. Donahue met Young when he was visiting at Walter Reed hospital. Donahue says, “My inspiration for this film was the naked child running from the napalm. Remember that Vietnam picture? I mean, terrified, this little girl is totally naked... See the pain. Don't sanitize the war. If you're gonna send young men and women to fight for this nation, tell the truth. That's one of the biggest reasons for the First Amendment, and we haven't been. And so I thought 'I will tell the story,' the real story of the harm in harm's way.” I don’t know about you, but I miss Phil Donahue in our public life and discourse.
Not only does the documentary expose the difficulties of Young’s life now that he’s in a wheelchair and mostly paralyzed, it also is juxtaposed with clips of the Senate and House hearings that were held three weeks before the November 2002 election. You can see how so many Senators and Congressmen and women voted for the rush to war, how they were reading from their notes dictated by the Administration, except for those few votes of dissent. You can see once again Robert Byrd’s heroic pleas to the Senate and the American people to stop the madness. And you can wonder how these supposed leaders can sleep at night. The film will be released April 2 and the web site that lists where it will be shown is http://www.bodyofwar.com. The story is at http://www.pbs.org/moyers/journal
Meanwhile, Young has turned his energy into producing a CD. He writes: Being an antiwar activist in this day and age is frustrating. You fight and fight and nothing gets done and, when you add the daily struggles I endure just to get out of bed and try to have a normal day, life can be a tiring experience both physically and mentally. Music has helped me find the motivation to not only get up and fight another day but to do it with determination no matter how the frustration may stack up against me. Whether it be a song that is written from the perspective of a soldier confused at being in a position he doesn’t want to be in but has no say in the matter (“Hero’s Song” by Brendan James or “Day After Tomorrow” by Tom Waits), or a song written to inspire a vitriolic anger at the state of the union and inspire the listener to action (“B.Y.O.B. by System of a Down or “The 4th Branch” by Immortal Technique), music like the songs I chose for the BODY OF WAR CD compilation inspired a particular emotion in me that made me want to act towards the goals of ending the war and bringing light to the need for better veterans’ health care. These things are bigger than all of us and need to be paid attention to, so I can only hope that music of any kind helps and inspires you as much as it has helped me.
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