Wounded Warrior project, Paris attacks stuns student

This is a three segment story.

Part 1

Usually when you see a person in a wheelchair, because they are missing a leg, the first emotion you feel is pity. We instantly pity them and do anything we can to make things easier for them. However, they do not want pity. They want to be treated the way everyone else is treated.

I recently went to Orlando, Florida for a national journalism conference and competition. On the plane, I was seated next to two men. One was middle aged and the other was older. The older man spoke up and said he was “unaware Nov. 11 is Veteran’s Day.” The middle-aged man and I both turned towards him and looked at him, wearing shocked expressions. How could someone not know when Veteran’s Day is? I could not believe my ears because that previous week, I began working with the Wounded Warrior Project.

The Wounded Warrior Project is an organized charity that provides services and programs for active military members and retired veterans. I was blessed with the honor of being able to work with this organization and meet the wounded warriors involved. For a week, I spent time with people who would have laid their own life down for others they do not even know, for love of their country. They felt love towards people who do not deserve a split second of their time because we take things — precious things — for granted.

Sitting with the men and women who served our country was honestly the best experience I have ever had, especially when surprise colored their features on every new day. It was, and still is, heartbreaking to listen to them speak about their stories that they keep so secret for our sake, but in a way, that is exactly what we and the men needed. The United States Department of Veterans Affair released a study clarifying 22 veterans commit suicide every day. This is because no one takes the time to hear them out when they need help. Sure, there are things they may want to keep to themselves because the wound is still fresh, but if a person bottles up their feelings with intentions to protect a loved one, that person will eventually destroy themselves. That is exactly what is happening.

I do have to admit when I first started the Wounded Warrior Project, it was not a big deal, but once I began the project, my perspectives on life and its values changed dramatically. Men who grew close to their brothers in their military family would not always have them the next day. Life was being taken away so quickly it could give men whiplash. They were trained to kill, kill, kill but when it all came down to it, they learned to never, ever take life and our country for granted. These men witnessed terrible and painful things that will haunt them forever and their one wish is for us — citizens of America — to never learn values and morals the way they had to.

These men never received the proper welcome home they deserved. These men never were treated and supported the way we and the project did, aside from family. These men never suspected a thing they were presented with. Everything was intended to be a surprise and we accomplished that mission. It may sound cliché to say, but words cannot describe my experiences throughout that entire week. I wish I could have been with them for longer periods. Sadly, it is not like that. The memories I am so lucky to have collected, will be cherished forever and I will pass them on to whoever I can.

Part 2

People have it in their mind that because we live in a country that grants equal rights to everyone, nothing bad will happen to us. In our imaginations, we live in a perfect world where there is no hunger, no pain, no war and no feeling other than remote happiness. We, as regular humans, will turn a blind eye to reality. It is not only a natural psychological process we possess, but it is also one of the most evil doings a person can commit.

Every soul on this damned planet is guilty. We all make mistakes and we all are imperfectly perfect. No one likes paying attention to what is wrong with the world because we “do not see” a solution to fix it. We do not realize that that is what is needed to be done. People we place on higher pedestals preach constantly about ending world hunger and destroying all evil, but they do not initiate great action to start the revolution. That is where we turn a blind eye to reality.

To turn a blind eye means to pretend to not pay attention or notice something. Why are all of those lessons on bullies and bystanders taught to children throughout their school years? It is because even though it is someone else following through with the malicious acts, we are as evil as them, if not more. Bystanders aid the bullies because they do nothing thinking it will not happen to them. But the tables will turn and everything will be against us. Bystanders are just as vulnerable as the victims. We just refuse to see it.

As Edmund Burke said, “The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing.” We do not live in a perfect world and we never will. Ignoring problems will only create more problems. We are creating America’s fall because we ignore the truth.

Part 3

There is controversy on whether or not a child is “forced” to grow up early in today’s society. I completely agree that yes, some children are “forced” to grow up early, but in different circumstances. A study was taken on terrorism death rates, by statista.com, from 2006 to 2014. In 2006, 20,487 people were killed due to terrorist attacks and in 2014, the total was 32,727. Worldwide from 2006 to 2013, the rate dropped by 2,500 deaths but escalated in 2012 to 2013 by 6,000 deaths.

Terrorism is everywhere. Naturally, it is defined as “unlawful violence or systematic use of terror against civilians or politicians for ideological or political reasons, with the intention to create fear.” I do not see terrorism in that way. I see terrorism as the mass murder of innocent lives. President Barack Obama described the creators of the bombing in Paris as “killers with fantasies of glory.” From the beginning of time, there has always been a greed for power. This is where terrorism started.

Everything boils down to power. Historical wars were about gaining power, or escaping someone else’s control. The Islamic State however looks at life as a puppet show where they wish to be the masters pulling the strings. They dangle people by strings and manipulate them into spreading the presence of evil. If one person does not fulfill the requirements, they cut the string of life and gets rid of them.

ISIS attacked Paris, France so drastically to prove they do hold power, especially since they are able to recruit people from all around the world. Power drives people to insane heights and once they have that power in their hand they will do anything and everything to keep it. They swear to “strike America at its centre.” Harvard University evacuated because of an “unconfirmed bomb threat” on Tuesday morning. War is coming.

Some are saying Obama is showing “weakness in the face of terror”, because he is not immediately diving into war. The best thing will be going to war. One of the last times we dropped bombs, a war started, but there are its ups and downs.

I expect military enrollment rates to increase rapidly, calling in JROTC members of draft age and sending them to war. I expect poverty to enclose the world. It is true that it will take some time to defeat ISIS since they are a well-organized group of terrorists, but we never truly know what is real unless we try and fight for the change we have been seeking for years. It is true “we now send our children into the world the way we send young men to war” as spoken by actor Chad Michael Murray in the role of Lucas Scott. The nations we have built is falling apart and we throw children in with the mix of war, hate and power.

Darkness has blanketed the earth. The darkness of the galaxy surrounds our planet and we do not do any good to make an improvement. Frederick Douglas claimed “it is easier to build strong children than to repair broken men.” Children are now being treated as adults because of how terrible the world is. Children are better prepared now than an adult. Youth is growing up in a time of evil.

War is the initiation of gun fires and bombs exploding. It is the bath of blood, gun powder and tears. It coats its victims and all you can hear is the piercing screams of those who die fighting for what they believe. War is an act of cost to evil.

War is the electrifying shock that radiates through the world as the face of reality smiles bitterly before you. It is a flash of light that guides its deceased to heaven as they find their solace and signals us with cries for justice. War is the act of security.

War is the waves that flood the earth as young citizens walk into death and destroy evil and its purpose. Ringing bells of victory shall be heard by everyone as Evil falls to its knees and surrenders for what it has done. War is the act of change.

#PrayForParis