03darkshadow
New member
Perhaps I can share another more "personal" point of view.
My son Eric died in combat in Iraq on Sept. 20, 2006. The Humvee he was driving was hit by a road side bomb. He was 20 years old.
Politics aside, I will tell you that my home and my family's personal space was invaded by the media. Television cameras were parked outside my house, family could not come in or out without being bombarded by the media. My daughter could not even go to the neighbors. They went so far as to try and get into the church for the funeral service and the priest had to ask them to leave because they were disrupting the service.
I understand the opinion on the one side that thinks we need to take a picture each time the plane lands in dover - that made sense in the early wars - it reminded everyone that we are at war. However, now we have cameras at the war zones and one only needs to turn on the TV to see what is going on. From a personal side My opinion is that we should respect the privacy and wishes of the soldier's family.
I did have personal contact with President Bush (phone call followed by personal letter). I also was invited to the Governor's mansion in Maryland and had a private lunch with then Governor Robert Ehrlich. Niether used our meetings or conversations for any political gain and there were no "photo - ops" for the Governor to put in the local paper.
My son was awarded a Purple Heart and a Gold Medal. Our family was invited to Obama's Inauguration ball honoring our Nations Heros. President Obama was the first president in 50 years to snub this ball. Actions speaks louder than pictures.
http://www.clevelandleader.com/node/8627
i salute you, your family, and you son. may he rest in peace. and he has my thanks and gratitude for his sacrifice. :USA: