This morning in the Monterey Herald newspaper, an article appeared on a back page (B4) that hit me kind of hard. The title:
"Lifelong friends die together in Iraq"
They played together in childhood, wrestled together in high school and joined the Marines together after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks (...)
In the article, the story is told about two friend who had grown up together in a typical small Californian town. After the 9/11 attacks, they wanted to do something for their country, so they joined the marines in an act of patriotism. During their second tour of duty in Iraq they were rejoined. While on tour in a place called Anbar province, they were ambushed and killed (just like that).
Here is where life is so comfortable and unreal, far away from the ravages of an unjust and awful war. Echoes of sadness and death sometimes trickle into the daily lives of folks who do not even think about life and death matters.
Why would something so important be hidden in the back of the newspaper and not on the front page?
Two lives less.
