Waning war interest frustrates wounded troops

Waning war interest frustrates wounded troops

By Michelle Roberts - The Associated Press
Posted : Thursday Sep 10, 2009 7:11:47 EDT

SAN ANTONIO — A year after Capt. Sam Brown was set ablaze when a bomb blew up his Humvee in Afghanistan, the 25-year-old West Point graduate endures a steady schedule of painful surgery and stretching to break up knotty burn scars.

He also has another routine: checking a Web site that counts U.S. and coalition troop deaths in Iraq and Afghanistan.

For Brown, it’s one more regular reminder that the wars have not ended — something he says many Americans seem to have forgotten.

With the timetable set for withdrawal from Iraq and the fighting in Afghanistan nearing its ninth year, U.S. war coverage has waned, often pushed off the front page by the economy, health care and celebrity deaths.

But for severely wounded soldiers — those with huge burn scars and amputated limbs — the wars are no distant memory. Their long and painful recovery battles are a constant reminder.

“Unless you see it all the time, it’s just kind of easy not to remember,” Brown said. “The war is definitely not over.”
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Waning war interest frustrates wounded troops