New Year's From Yesterday Into Tomorrow

Reflecting on past events in 2009 is indeed very interesting.  We had a new president take office who had promised change during his presidential campaign and pledged to bring our soldiers home.  Since then he has pledged to add additional soldiers in Afganistan.  Our soldiers are weary of being away from their homes and families for so long.  Enlistments are down and many soldiers are leaving the service and not reenlisting.  Many soldiers have chosen careers in law enforcement and other public service occupations.  Some have given their very lives in protecting us during the past year as soldiers in far away places and here at home serving us in many law enforcement agencies and in other public service occupations across the country.

Some of our military men are still being held captive in other countries.  One is being held today in Afganistan by the Taliban.  Many others are still being held in North Korea.  Some say there are others in Northern Laos near the Chinese border.  From our prespective here in America it is always "tomorrow" in North Korea or Laos.  From the prespective of our POWs in those countries America is "yesterday" due to the time zone.  Yes it really seems to them that they have been forgotten in "yesterday".  Yesterday for them is many years ago when they were sent to fight in a war in a far away land that they did not start or volunteer for.  Yesterday during the North Korean and Vietnam wars many of them did not enlist as most of our soldiers do today.  They were "drafted" and forced to fight in these wars.  Most of them went without complaining as they thought it was their duty with honor to go.  Some of them chose not to go and fled to Canada and other countries to avoid being sent to war.  Several years later the United States government forgave the ones who fled and awarded them amnesty!  The ones that went and were captured were forgotten and have been to this day labeled either "chose to stay" or "missing in action and presumed dead".

"Tomorrow" there is hope someday soon to negotiate the release of these men and bring them home.  It will more than likely not be the result of the United States government to win their release.  Many hearings in Washington DC have occurred without any positive results or even the recognition that these military men even exist.  Even though overwhelming evidence has been presented to them. There have been refusals and denials of their existence by the very government that sent them off to war years ago.  It will take a private effort to win the release and return of these men.  Some of these men may even be British soldiers as well.  So we will see what happens "tomorrow" in 2010, it may indeed be a year of exposing deception and untruths.  If it really does happen  it is bound to create a year that will be remembered by the American people and "touch" all of the then "former" polticians who have chosen to ignore these men.  There of course will be those that will emerge as "heroes" and those that will be "scapegoats". 

“"The tools of conquest do not necessarily come with bombs, and explosions, and fallout. There are weapons that are simply thoughts, ideas, predjudices, to be found only in the minds of men. For the record, predjudices can kill and suspicion can destroy. A thoughtless, freightened search for a scapegoat has a fallout all it's own for the children yet unborn."

Author Rod Serling (Twilight Zone)

To all of the soldiers and POWs still serving and  being held in far off lands - stand your post with honor.  Someday your day will come to return home to your families and home once more.  There is always hope for "tomorrow".

May God Bless and Protect  All of You!