DIARY ENTRY #25

VOICES FROM THE GARDEN OF STONE 

By Don R. Marsh 

    The Arlington National Cemetery after midnight is as quiet as any other graveyard …except when the silent soldiers entombed there meet late at night to voice their concerns. You should go to Arlington on any quiet night when the soft breezes are blowing among the shadows of the white marble markers and you will hear the voices of the Stones, talking in whispers of remorse and regret of their shattered dreams of these once young men.

    If only those across town in government could hear what they discuss night after night here among the white marble tablets bearing their names, as well as the names of others who have fallen in battle.

    Those sentinels on duty tonight are among the lost generation from World War Two and Korea. Had they lived, today they might have been grandfathers, old men of seventy plus and most in their eighties. But destiny stepped in and decided that was not meant to be for them, they were to become The Forgotten Ones. These silent sentries from the past are the symbols of what might have been. They speak to each other, in soft voices, but no one else hears their message.

    In the stillness of the night, one voice speaks with a tinge of bitterness, "I thought they (the politicians) would have learned from the price we had to pay. When I died in the surf on June 6, 1944, on Normandy's Omaha Red Beach, I wasn't even old enough to vote for those in charge and here I am, stuck in this place forever."

    Another expresses his opinion and dismay that those in the main government seat in the nation's capitol drive past this hallowed ground everyday, "But they either have forgotten why we are here or else they don't care to remember why we came to this place. We gave our lives for their beliefs and ideologies. Would any of them wish to trade places with us? I doubt it."

    The kid from Chicago, an only son of a poor immigrant Jewish family next speaks. He says he'll never forget how difficult it had been for his mother to accept the information from the Army representative that he had been killed - in error, at St. Lo, France, in the bombing by our own U.S. Army Air Force planes. He spoke, "This new adopted country of ours was to be our safe haven from persecution in Germany and the start of a new life for us. My life ended in Normandy."

    Then my old friend from our post World War Two years of 1947-1949, when we served together in the time honored duty assignment as Military Escorts, at Fort Sheridan, Illinois, returning the war dead to their home of record, or a National Cemetery, for burial; John R. Rice, Sergeant First Class, Infantry, Regular Army, voiced his opinion, to say, "Soldiers don't win wars, we just fight the battles. Ours is not to reason why. That's what we do." This battle-scarred infantry warrior was a full blooded Winnebago Indian, from Winnebago, Nebraska. He reminded his listeners that it was none other than President Harry S Truman who signed the Executive Order on June 25, 1950, sending him and his unit, the First Cavalry Division, to fight in Korea. It happened here, in the fury of battle when John "bought the farm" on September 11, 1950, in the Pusan Perimeter. No one wanted to tell the truth and call it a real outright killing war, so they named it a "Police Action." John was one of the many of our defenders who paid the ultimate price and died in battle in a foreign land. Fifty odd years later we still have over 30,000 men stationed there to act as "peace keepers."

    To add to the irony of the moment, Rice, who had escorted the remains of many of his fallen Indian comrades' home, was then denied burial in his hometown. It became national shame when the good citizens of Sioux City, Iowa, refused to permit John's widow to bury him in the local cemetery because he was not a Caucasian, even though this was his native land. President Truman then personally directed the Army to bury John here in the Garden of Stone. His carefully selected place of honor is the grave located between the graves of General John J. Pershing and General Walton H. Walker. It is only fitting this native son was laid to rest with the highest military honors at the nation's most sacred and hallowed ground, among his military peers.

    One of the solemn voices had this to say about another catastrophe. "Why didn't John F. Kennedy and Lyndon B. Johnson hold off sending our forces piecemeal into Indo-China as 'military advisors' knowing full well we were stepping into a quagmire we would learn to regret? Look at what we lost there, another 58,000 men. Damn, when will we ever learn?" Today, our "military advisors" span the globe in foreign assignments.

    The former farm kid from Beebe, Arkansas, in a soft voice questioned why the guys in college were able to get draft deferments and did not have to serve like every other draft eligible young American. You know the theme "Duty, Honor, Country" … or were these just mere words on a wall someplace on the Hudson River in New York?

    The guy who died on the Death March at Bataan was the true cynic among the voices. Dripping with sarcasm, this is the way he put it, "Well now, my fellow patriots, who says that they have forgotten us? Don't they hold an annual Memorial Day service in our honor with speeches and VIPs who place a floral wreath in the midst of their television high profile coverage to show they really do remember us - even if for only one day a year? Where is your appreciation? Why they even have flags placed next to your very own marble marker to show that you served your country!"

    The politicians win in the war of words because they are immune to the casualties of war, whereas the men they knowingly send into battle will stand-alone when it comes time to make the personal sacrifice. The politicians survive all verbal battles, while the soldiers will perish. The latter, as Rice did, are forced to accept this as fait accompli.

    There is also the Honor Guards of Company A of the 3rd Infantry Division, the President's Detail. They are quartered in their Fort Myers, Virginia, barracks polishing their brass accouterments and spit shining the boots and cap visors. Theirs is a volunteer duty assignment, requiring one to function like a robot without showing any emotion.

    The show of sorrow or personal grief can never penetrate their armor. To do otherwise are grounds for relief from duty and immediate reassignment. Precision drills, firing squads, folding of the flag and mournful notes of the Bugler's heart wrenching version of Taps is the repetitious and mundane routine they practice daily. Another day and another name on a white marble Stone. Eventually, these elite soldiers transfer and take leave of this perpetual Garden of Stone, the Valhalla of our warriors. In time, even some of these career Army men will return here to remain for eternity.

    A headstone of pristine white marble marks each gravesite at Arlington. Headstones of those of the Jewish faith are tapered marble shafts surmounted by a Star of David; stylized crosses mark all others. Annotated on the headstones of World War I servicemen who could not be identified is: "HERE RESTS IN HONORED GLORY AN AMERICAN SOLDIER KNOWN ONLY TO GOD." The words "AMERICAN SOLDIER" were replaced with the words "COMRADES IN ARMS" on the headstones of World War II servicemen's remains who could not be identified because of the tri-service nature of that war.

    The Memorial Day services at Arlington are the highlight of the year, but late in the evening on Mother's Day is when you can listen to the sounds of the Stones weeping. No, not for themselves, but for the loved ones of all military personnel whose fate is being decided at this moment by our leaders in government. After the deadly terrorists' air attacks in New York and the Pentagon, it has forced the USA, as the only world super power to fill the role of policemen for the world -- for a long and indefinite period.

    As the cauldron in the Middle East heats up and threatens to boil over into another Desert Storm, restraint is the impassioned plea of the voices of the Garden of Stone. The calculated danger of the inevitable "mission creep" without a viable exit policy looms on the horizon. The Stones know all too well from first hand experience that it is just a matter of time that once the battle is enjoined, others will eventually be sent to join them here at Arlington's perpetual Garden of Stone. If those who make the decisions to send men into battle would take a solitary walk among the white marble Stones on a brilliant moonlit night and stand in the center of this massive memorial, perhaps they could sense the urgent message and plaintive plea for everlasting peace.

    Whenever there is a severe lightening and thunder storm at Arlington, the Stones are communicating with Thor, the God of War, who is angered that we mortals are not listening to His omens, by the way of His eternal messengers, the Stones. The violent electrical storm serves to punctuate the foreboding prediction of many more lives that will be lost in the years to come in search of peace.

    As the author, Irving Cobb, once said, "If the dead could return to life, there would be no more wars."

This article was published in the 3rd Armored Division Association 1993 Newsletter Issue #3, Page 3

Publication or reproduction, in part or whole, is prohibited without written permission from the author, Don R. Marsh. All rights remain the sole property of The Marsh Family Trust.

 

Voices From The Garden of Stone – Part II  3/9/2006

 

 

A CASUALTY of WAR

By Don R. Marsh

 

The white marble markers over the graves in the Arlington National Cemetery were fully illuminated by the full moon as the forgotten “Voices” from this Garden of Stone were assembling for the nightly forum to discuss the new arrivals from the day’s ritual of the return to the earth on this hallowed ground reserved for fallen warriors.

 

It wasn’t too long ago that the “Voices” of the Stones were warning of this impending danger to come, but no one in the White House or on the Hill would listen. These “Voices” from the past wars know all too well from experience that when the war clouds appear on the horizon that soon after American troops would be sent around the world to become global policemen, paying the price once again, as it were – defending individual freedoms for the world.

 

The Stones’ prophesy of men going to war again was made several years ago, just as the events in the world were brewing and about to explode in a mid-east conflict. The liberal press was against our entry into endangered foreign affairs, but after the events of 9/11 the die was cast and the Pentagon began burning the midnight oil. The war room machine was getting into high gear -- without a planned long range viable exit strategy.

 

It was just a matter of time before we heard the words, “Shock and awe” as the heavens unloaded massive bomb loads over Baghdad . The cruel regime quickly collapsed in the face of overwhelming forces and the President celebrated his victory aboard an air craft carrier; but not without the loss of life.

 

The liberal press soon referred to one of the first soldiers’ bodies returned home as “A Casualty of War” and began a daily press score card of those killed and wounded. Not to honor those whose lives were lost, but to mount a political attack on our government’s policy of going to war. So the soldiers, marines, airmen, sailors and coastguards lost in battle were now just figures on the national press scoreboard. That is a helluva way to show respect for those who volunteered to defend freedom; including freedom of the press. Corporal Patrick Tillman, with a successful career in professional football, when he heard the call to arms and enlisted to become an Army Ranger. While serving in Afghanistan , in the Special Ops, he became a victim of friendly fire from his own troops and died in the barren desert, another Casualty of War.

 

When then Secretary of Defense Les Aspins, under President Clinton, denied Chief of Staff General Powell’s request for tanks and armored vehicles as a critical part of Task Force Ranger’s needed fire power for counteracting the AK-47/Kalashnakovs they would face on the streets of Mogadishu, Somalia, it stacked the deck against the 150 men from Bravo Company, 175th Rangers Regiment, Army Special Operations Command. It resulted in 18 members of Bravo being killed on 3 October 1993, including Army Master Sergeant Gary I. Gordon and Sergeant First Class Randall D. Shughart; both were awarded the Medal of Honor, posthumously for their heroic actions above and beyond. Each was given the final tribute paid to a hero. All 18 men lost in this expedition were dedicated as Casualties of War; whereas the error made at the Command level should have been described as a Tragedy of War. Once again, the result of career politicians making inappropriate military command field decisions.

 

One of the Stones was offering his opinion tonight; he wasn’t surprised at the number of new arrivals, saying, “These are the risks we take, this is what we do – we are soldiers. We volunteered.”  Although it was just another routine day for those Honor Guard soldiers firing the volley of three rounds over the graves as the flag was being folded and the bugler sounding Taps. The men participating in the Arlington burial detail would undergo change daily, but the emotional toll on the families who attend the ceremony would continue in a never ending stream. These are the true victims of war.  As Ernest Hemingway said, “War is a crime. Ask the Infantry and ask the dead.”

 

“A Casualty of War.” Cold unemotional empty words to those in each one of the families left behind – take the old gunny Sergeant from Camp Pendleton , with 17 years of service and looking forward to that retirement check in a few short years of a thousand bucks a month for life. Now his wife and two kids, attending high school in Oceanside , would soon be forced to immediately vacate the government quarters they occupied on base and pull up stakes to find a new home. Property being high as it is in southern California prevents widows and their children in relocating in nearby towns; so decisions have to be made whether to either  return to Podunk Ville, Arkansas or  try to find a cheap rental in town to struggle to survive on a meager widow’s pension. In reality, the Casualty becomes plural for the families left behind.

 

In the mean time, those in Congress are wrangling over the dilemma whether to bring the troops home now as versus those who state the opposite – stay the course. All well and good, except for the latter, none of those making the decisions for our troops to stay for an undetermined term will be those in the killing zone risking death daily by IEDs and sniper fire. If the troops return now, we lose face in the Mideast because we had to cut and run. If we stay, the number of those Killed In Action, already exceeding well past 2,000, will undoubtedly increase as each day goes by. If the troops stay, and as it appears they will, more Casualties of War will continue to mount and the detail at Arlington will continue to maintain the task of honoring these men and women who made the ultimate sacrifice. Today we have in excess of 130,000 troops stationed in Iraq . Sixty plus years after the end of World War II and we still have forces in Germany (not to mention the DMZ of  Korea)  and more recently Kosovo and Bosnia. We get involved easily, but the politicians bungle the job of getting us out – with honor, as in the case of Vietnam . Then the returning veterans were spit upon by the public – in some left wing parts of the country as an unwarranted injustice.

 

 The powder keg is ready to erupt into civil war in Iraq between the militant religious factions, expanding beyond borders, with or without American troops present.

 

The Arlington Honor Guards walking their posts at night cannot hear the “Voices”, but if they could they would know that the Stones, the unseen ghosts, are not pleased with the decisions being made up on the Hill. Honorable men and women elected to make the right choices are often swept up in the politics of the nation and furthering their own reelection position; rather than taking into due consideration the life and death of the men and women sent into war zones.

 

None other than General Eisenhower on March 12, 1943, wrote his son, John, then a West Point Cadet, “Modern war is a very complicated business and governments are forced to treat individuals as pawns.”  Ike lost 2,715 men Killed In Action, 8,978 wounded and 6, 528 missing after the Kasserine Pass , North Africa debacle. Those pawns were designated Casualties of War. But as Irving Cobb said, “If the dead could return to life, there would be no more wars.”

 

The former Marine Sergeant in the 1st Marine Expeditionary Force from Camp Pendleton was on his third tour of duty after having been previously wounded in the Fallujah house to house fighting early on, but the odds caught up with him while being the first man in the door on a raid looking for insurgents. Destiny placed him in the wrong place at the wrong time. The blast from a RPJ was the last flash he saw on this earth; just three months shy of his rotation date. He had joked with his buddies that he loved the Corps and was determined to reenlist to become a “lifer” and do the twenty. He was among those laid to rest today. Soon after the flag was folded and presented to his young widow, the family had departed, the firing squad marched off, the bugle was cased and silent, the grave workers prepared to lower the cement box into the hallowed ground for the final act of the ceremony. The end of his life on earth was recorded as a numbered entry in the ledger of the Arlington Records. Another Casualty of War.

 

The silent witnesses, the Stones, took note that this young Sergeant was more than just A Casualty of War; he had now become one of them and soon his silent “Voice” would add to their growing numbers in a plea to the politicians on the Hill, hoping they find a conscientious solution – for now, until the next one.

 

The Arlington Cemetery is a never ending saga. The nuclear winds of war are beginning to swirl among the sands in far off places -- where Farsi is spoken. To be continued. Shalom.

 

“Fear no more the heat o’ the sun, nor furious winter’s rages; Golden lads and girls all must, as chimney-sweepers, come to dust.” William Shakespeare in Cymbeline

 

 

 

Publication or reproduction, in part or whole, is prohibited without written permission from the author, Don R. Marsh. All rights remain the sole property of

 The Marsh Family Trust