h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

for a good friend of mine. He is supporting a family who have recently lost their son, a soldier, who died earlier today from injuries received in Afghanistan. Also please think of the soldier's family.

I cannot imagine how you live with the constant anxiety that it will be your son coming home, either severely injured, or worse, dead.

Nor can I think how it must be to have the responsibility of knocking on a family's door with such dreadful news. Who comforts the comforter at times like this? My friend worked from 4am on Friday morning to 1am Saturday, then slept in his office for three hours, before starting again. He is still there, with the family, making all the necessary arrangements. Such a grim, grim task.

I know it's not my sad news, but I am shocked to discover how these things that you hear on TV, are actually played out in real life.

I've just seen two photos put up on BBC News of two young soldiers who died yesterday. One was cuddling a small child

I don't know what to say other than I feel the loss of every soldier who dies doing their duty. My father lived for many years with the memories of the horror of war, lost friends and survivor guilt, he didn't think he was anything special or understand why he was spared yet others were killed.

They shall not grow old as we that are left grow old. We will remember them.

God Blesses those who mourn- Matthew 5:4
When the burden is to big for us- be assured that it is not to big for HIM.

It takes a very special person to be able to comfort and support these brave families. Lanza, you are lucky to have such a person to call your Friend

Thank you all for your thoughts. They mean a lot.

Sometimes it helps to plunge into charity work that helps people who have lost loved ones, or that makes life more bearable for those who have come home from the war wounded. A few years ago, I sang in a benefit concert that contributed money to "Homes for our veterans," an organization that custom-designs and builds houses for veterans who have come home missing arms or legs, or who have have sustained other inhuries that make living in a normal house difficult or impossible. It was a privilege to contribute to the work that this organization does. The music we sang was a large choral work called "The Armed Man," composed by Karl jenkins.
http://www.karljenkins.com/armedman.php

As a Brother in the R.A.O.B. = Royal Antediluvian Order of Buffalo's, a solemn toast is taken during every Lodge meeting (worldwide) to all our personnel in our Forces on land, sea or air and especially to those who have fallen

Sorry, didn't make it very clear Paul, as I was trying to respect privacy, but my friend is actually in the Armed Forces. Also, the lad was another casualty apart from the ones already in the news this weekend, blown up, not shot.

hard to know what to say. But I wanted to post.

Thanks Effers.

I don't know how I feel about this myself to tell you the truth. I used to be an avowed pacifist, but the older I get the less sure I am.

He will get through it somehow, lanzababy, but the more moral support he can get now, the better.

But for the rest of us, who feel deep sorrow for the horror that soldiers and their families are going through, doing something that is connected to helping is not a bad idea. This channels energy into action. Even talking about it (here or elsewhere) is a good thing, because the miraculous organ that is your brain will process it, and may come up with a plan. Give it time. Your mind is a miracle...

Denmark just lost its 32nd soldier in Afghanistan last week. A pretty young girl of 22 summers. Blown up by a road side bomb. She was our first female to pay the highest price

There has to be another way

Lanza, it must be hard to have it brought so close to home. My heart breaks for the families who have lost loved ones, but for those who lose limbs I am heartened by the amazing work done with the amputees. They are an example to us all.

Pierce, I feel sad that we hear only of our own losses, and some from America, but nothing of the other nationalities putting their lives on the line.

I agree there has to be another way but it is a long time coming. You might have thought two world wars would have put a stop to such carnage. Such a senseless loss of life.



Websailor

If I knew a way to stop wars I wouldn't be sitting here, but I don't

I stick to the idea of buying all the opium and hash growing in Afghanistan though. It would ruin the taliban financially and the common afghan would turn away from them. So I believe

I assume you mean to burn it I would second that.

Websailor

I think they have tried burning it in the past, or spreading weedkiller over it? However, it is so important as an income source to the farmers, there needs to be some way of purchasing it, or ensuring there are other, better ways for the farmers to make a living.

Even without the source of revenue to the Taliban, just think how much better the world would be without all these hard drugs.

Unfortunately, there are other places where the stuff will grow. Colombia is an obvious example.

Just burning the drugs without compensating the farmers will only drive these farmers closer to the taliban

You have to ensure the farmers an income at least as high as what they earn now

After buying the drugs you can burn them if you want (if it can't be used for medicinal purposes) - that's just a technicality

Sure, if you could make them grow something else that would be greater but you would need to control all of Afghanistan all of the time - which has been proven for many years not to be feasible (ask the soviets) - plus again: The farmers must be able to earn as much on these alternative crops as they do now on drugs

Some years ago, MacDonald's (the fast food franchise) opened restaurants in Thailand and agreed to pay top dollar for potatoes if local farmers would grow them instead of poppies.

""Afghanistan's drugs industry was reported to make up more than half of the economy by 2007, having boomed since the fall of the Taliban. The country supplies over 90% of the world's opium, the raw ingredient of heroin.
International bodies and governments say the drugs trade is helping to fuel the Taliban insurgency, which is estimated to receive up to US$100m a year from the trade.""

extract from this page:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/1162668.stm