Twisted priorities of the American public

Twisted priorities of the American public
Wounded Times Blog
Kathie Costos
July 1, 2013

I was just reading Fourth of July fireworks scrapped at some military bases due to budget cuts and got furious. Are fireworks fun to watch? Sure they are but people seem more upset about losing something fun for them than they are losing so many to suicide each year. They also ignore the fact that with the personnel cuts young men and women will end up losing the jobs they always wanted to do. It is almost as if the American public has forgotten what the celebration is all about.

JULY 4TH OVER THE YEARS
Today, Americans from coast to coast spend July Fourth celebrating our nation's independence and the freedoms we enjoy as a result. Over the years, many important events have occurred on this day. The following are some of the most historic.

1778 – From his headquarters in Brunswick, N.J., General George Washington directs his army to put "green boughs" in their hats, issues them a double allowance of rum and orders a Fourth of July artillery salute.

1781 – The first official state celebration occurs in Massachusetts.

1787 – John Quincy Adams celebrates July Fourth in Boston, where he hears an oration delivered at the Old Brick Meeting House.

1788 – July Fourth celebrations first become political as factions fight over the adoption of the Federal Constitution.

1791 – The only Fourth of July address ever made by George Washington takes place at Lancaster, Pennsylvania.

1798 – George Washington attends the celebration in Alexandria, Virginia, and dines with a large group of citizens and military officers of Fairfax County. In Portsmouth, New Hampshire, the keel of the 20-gun sloop of the war vessel Portsmouth is laid.

1800 – In New York City, the first local advertisements for fireworks appear. At the Mount Vernon Garden there, a display of "a model of General Washington's Mount Vernon home, 20 feet long by 24 feet high, illuminated by several hundred lamps" is presented. In Hanover, N.H., Dartmouth College student Daniel Webster gives his first Fourth of July oration in the town's meetinghouse.

1801 – The first public Fourth of July reception at the White House occurs.

1804 – The first Fourth of July celebration west of the Mississippi happens at Independence Creek, Idaho, and is celebrated by Meriwether Lewis and William Clark.

1805 – Boston has its first fireworks display.

1819 – An early and rare example of an Independence Day oration is presented (to a group of women) by a woman ("Mrs. Mead") on July 3 at Mossy Spring in Kentucky.

1821 – President James Monroe is ill, and the Executive Mansion is closed to the public. John Quincy Adams reads an original copy of the Declaration of Independence at a ceremony at the Capitol.

1825 – President John Q. Adams marches to the Capitol from the White House in a parade that includes a stage mounted on wheels, representing 24 states.

1826 – The 50th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence is celebrated (referred to as the "Jubilee of Freedom" event). Two signers of the document, Presidents John Adams and Thomas Jefferson, both die on this July 4.

It has always been about the independence of this nation obtained and retained by Patriots willing to give their lives for it. How can our "enjoyment" watching fireworks be more important than they are?

This was part of the long list of headlines last year around this time

Army Suicides Double From June to July
Military.com
by Richard Sisk
Aug 16, 2012

More U.S. soldiers killed themselves in Julythan were killed by the enemy in Afghanistan as the Army's monthly suicide rate for active duty troops more than doubled to a record high of 26.

Another 12 potential suicides occurred among Army Reserve and National Guard soldiers who were not on active duty. The total of 38 suicides in July surpassed the total of 32 soldiers killed in Afghanistan last month, the Army reported Thursday.

The suicide tally rose from 12 active-duty soldiers in June to 26 in July, while the numbers remained the same for the Reserves and National Guard – 12 in June and July.

The increases baffled and frustrated Gen. Lloyd J. Austin III, the Army's vice chief staff, just as they did his predecessor, Gen. Peter Chiarelli, who struggled to erase the stigma in the military that sometimes attaches to soldiers who seek help for emotional problems.

"Suicide is the toughest enemy I have faced in my 37 years in the Army," Austin, the former commander of U.S. troops in Iraq, said in a statement.

"And it's an enemy that's killing not just soldiers, but tens of thousands of Americans every year. That said, I do believe suicide is preventable," Austin said. "To combat it effectively will require sophisticated solutions aimed at helping individuals to build resiliency and strengthen their life coping skills."

The other services also faced increased rates of suicide and the same daunting task of finding methods of prevention.

Reminder about the headlines of this year talking about last year.

A more complete tally of U.S. military suicides last year: 524

So how did this happen? Because we cared more about what they could do for us than what they needed from us in return.