Don't Close Your Blinds

[mfabre]

This is one of the best e-mails I think I have ever gotten. I think it is worth everyones time to read it. I hope it can maybe share some insight.

The other day, my nine year old son wanted to know why we were at war ..My husband looked at our son and then looked at me. My husband and I were in the Army during the Gulf War and we would be honored to serve and defend our Country again today. I knew that my husband would give him a good explanation. My husband thought for a few minutes and then told my son to go stand in our front living room window.


He said "Son, stand there and tell me what you see?"


"I see trees and cars and our neighbor's houses." he replied.


"OK, now I want you to pretend that our house and our yard is the United States of America and you are President Bus h."


Our son giggled and said "OK."


"Now son, I want you to look out the window and pretend that every house and yard on this block is a different country" my husband said.


"OK Dad, I'm pretending."


"Now I want you to stand there and look out the window and pretend you see Saddam come out of his house with his wife, he has her by the hair and is hitting her. You see her bleeding and crying. He hits her in the face, he throws her on the ground, then he starts to kick her to death . Their children run out and are afraid to stop him, they are screaming and crying, they are watching this but do nothing because they are kids and they are afraid of their father. You see all of this, son....what do you do?"


"Dad?"


" What do you do son?"


"I'd call the police, Dad."


"OK. Pretend that the police are the United Nations. They take your call. They listen to what you know and saw but they refuse to help. What do you do then son?"


"Dad.......... but the police are supposed to help!" My son starts to whine.



"They don't want to son, because they say that it is not their place or your place to get involved and that you should stay out of it," my husband says.


"But Dad...he killed her!!" my son exclaims.


"I know he did...but the police tell you to stay out of it. Now I want you to look out that window and pretend you see our neighbor who you're pretending is Saddam turn around and do the same thing to his children."


"Daddy...he kills them?"


"Yes son, he does. What do you do?"


"Well, if the police don't want to help, I will go and ask my next door neighbor to help me stop him." our son says.


"Son, our next door neighbor sees what is happening and refuses to get involved as well. He refuses to open the door and help you stop him," my husband says.


"But Dad, I NEED help!!! I can't stop him by myself!!"


"WHAT DO YOU DO SON?" Our son starts to cry.


"OK, no one wants to help you, the man across the street saw you ask for help and saw that no one would help you stop him. He stands taller and puffs out his chest. Guess what he does next son?"


"What Daddy?"


"He walks across the street to the old ladies house and breaks down her door and drags her out, steals all her stuff and sets her house on fire and then...he kills her. He turns around and sees you standing in the window and laughs at you. WHAT DO YOU DO?"


"Daddy..."


"WHAT DO YOU DO?" Our son is crying and he looks down and he whispers, "I'd close the blinds, Daddy."


My husband looks at our son with tears in his eyes and asks him. "Why?"


"Because Daddy.....the police are supposed to help people who needs them...and they won't help.... You always say that neighbors are supposed to HELP neighbors, but they won't help either...they won't help me stop him...I'm afraid....I can't do it by myself Daddy.....I can't look out my window and just watch him do all these terrible things and...and.....do nothing...so....I'm just going to close the blinds.... so


I can't see what he's doing........and I'm going to pretend that it is not happening."


I start to cry. My husband looks at our nine year old son standing in the window, looking pitiful and ashamed at his answers to my husband's questions and he says...


"Son"


"Yes, Daddy."


"Open the blinds because that man.... he's at your front door... "WHAT DO YOU DO?"


My son looks at his father, anger and defiance in his eyes. He balls up his tiny fists and looks his father square in the eyes, without hesitation he says: " I DEFEND MY FAMILY DAD!! I'M NOT GONNA LET HIM HURT MOMMY OR MY SISTER, DAD!!! I'M GONNA FIGHT HIM, DAD, I'M GONNA FIGHT HIM!!!!!"


I see a tear roll down my husband's cheek and he grabs our son to his chest and hugs him tight, and says... " It's too late to fight him, he's too strong and he's already at YOUR front door son.....you should have stopped him BEFORE he killed his wife, and his children and the old lady across the wa y. You have to do what's right, even if you have to do it alone, before its too late." my husband whispers. THAT scenario I just gave you is WHY we are at war with Iraq. When good men stand by and let evil happen son, THAT is the greatest atrocity in the world. "YOU MUST NEVER BE AFRAID TO DO WHAT IS RIGHT EVEN IF YOU HAVE TO DO IT ALONE!" BE PROUD TO BE AN AMERICAN! BE PROUD OF OUR TROOPS!! SUPPORT THEM!!! SUPPORT AMERICA SO THAT IN THE FUTURE OUR CHILDREN WILL NEVER HAVE TO CLOSE THEIR BLINDS..."


This should be printed in every newspaper and posted in every school in America. Of course that won't happen so we'll use the internet. If your blinds are closed do nothing with this email. If they are open I do not need to tell you what to do.


GOD BLESS!!!!!!!!!!


Steven R Chandler, CMSgt
332 ELRS/Vehicle Management
Flight Balad Air Base, Iraq


Reprinted with permission




MRiser
KC8YPH

 

[tarmand]

Thanks for sharing.

 

[SwedishMeatball]

Thank you for sharing that.

 

[salmoneous]

Oh please. I think our decisions about war should be based on reasoned analysis of the situation, not on manipulative stories about crying children. Certainly not one that plays fast and lose with the facts. Where do people come up with the idea that the UN did nothing? For starters, they are the folks who disarmed Saddam.

But does anybody really believe the bigger lesson of the story? That the US and its soldiers should be in the business of ridding the world of all evil? And that if we don't go out right now and overthrow evey evil dictator on the planet, the US is doomed?

 

[LisaR]

Too bad that father didn't have the boy look out the window and see the other things going on around him............the homelessness in our own country. The people who are so sick yet can't afford medical coverage. The domestic violence that takes place every day in our country. The school systems that are failing. The list goes on and on. I guess we all see different things when we look outside.

Lisa

 

[YourMajesty]

Oh please. I think our decisions about war should be based on reasoned analysis of the situation, not on manipulative stories about crying children. Certainly not one that plays fast and lose with the facts. Where do people come up with the idea that the UN did nothing? For starters, they are the folks who disarmed Saddam.

But does anybody really believe the bigger lesson of the story? That the US and its soldiers should be in the business of ridding the world of all evil? And that if we don't go out right now and overthrow evey evil dictator on the planet, the US is doomed?

"Have you forgotton...?" They would like to kill us all ... they've mentioned that fact many times.

 

[YourMajesty]

Too bad that father didn't have the boy look out the window and see the other things going on around him............the homelessness in our own country. The people who are so sick yet can't afford medical coverage. The domestic violence that takes place every day in our country. The school systems that are failing. The list goes on and on. I guess we all see different things when we look outside.

Lisa

I do see this. In fact I work for our local health department for a government program that helps people. I believe in what I do. We help women, infants, and children, but the health department also has child guidance, dental, family planning, materal health...on and on. We help many people everyday even those that are not legal in our country. What do you do? My husband also help defend our country in the reserves so I can help them here at home.

 

[ElizK]

That's a pretty amazing analogy. It's somewhat how I've tried to explain my support of this war to others. Thanks for posting!

 

[jbdreamer]

Yes, a great way to teach children about war. By traumatizing them.

 

[mfabre]

You all are so welcome for the post. I am the wife of a United States Marine and am very proud of him and what he does. I would hope that if our childern would ask about the war we would be able to answer with such a powerful message.

God Bless

 

[JennyMominRI]

The problem with this is that we did not go to war with Iraq because Saddam was an evil man that needed to be stopped. We didnt go to the UN saying we wanted to fight Saddam because he was a bad man..He was a bad man doing evil things in the 80's too,and we had no urge to go to war then..We went to war on the claims that he currenty had weapons of mass destruction.
And I am a Gulf War Era veteran who would NOT want to serve in this war.
I'm glad Saddam is no longer in power.Iraq.But he is just one of many horrible and vile leaders on this planet

 

[dmslush]

Too bad that father didn't have the boy look out the window and see the other things going on around him............the homelessness in our own country. The people who are so sick yet can't afford medical coverage. The domestic violence that takes place every day in our country. The school systems that are failing. The list goes on and on. I guess we all see different things when we look outside.

Lisa

Absolutely! People cannot imagine how many calls I get a week at the shelter from women who have been assualted here in the UNITED STATES in public by their spouses.. 99% of them receive NO help from witnesses to the crime. We allow our own wives and children to be beaten, raped and murdered right here in the US and we turn a blind eye to it. If anyone really wants to know how much Bush loves the innocent and wants to protect them, look at what he wants to do with the VOCA fund. It is taking the work of ALL the domestic shelters in the US writing to our political figure heads and BEGGING for this important fund not to be drained which will result in the closing of many, many, many shelters. If we want to stop terrorism, we are going to have to start in our own homes. If the US feels that they should police and protect the innocent, we need to start in our own neighborhoods.

 

[dmslush]

The problem with this is that we did not go to war with Iraq because Saddam was an evil man that needed to be stopped. We didnt go to the UN saying we wanted to fight Saddam because he was a bad man..He was a bad man doing evil things in the 80's too,and we had no urge to go to war then..We went to war on the claims that he currenty had weapons of mass destruction.
And I am a Gulf War Era veteran who would NOT want to serve in this war.
I'm glad Saddam is no longer in power.Iraq.But he is just one of many horrible and vile leaders on this planet

SO was also in the Gulf War and says the same thing, he would never want to be in this war.

 

[MsLeFever]

The problem with this is that we did not go to war with Iraq because Saddam was an evil man that needed to be stopped. We didnt go to the UN saying we wanted to fight Saddam because he was a bad man..He was a bad man doing evil things in the 80's too,and we had no urge to go to war then..We went to war on the claims that he currenty had weapons of mass destruction.

I totally agree. And I know that the story is just a story but if that guy was terrifying my son I'd be pretty upset!

 

[BelleMcNally]

SO was also in the Gulf War and says the same thing, he would never want to be in this war.

My father also served and has expressed great dismay over the current situation...as have many of the men and women who served with him.

 

[cardaway]

Oh please. I think our decisions about war should be based on reasoned analysis of the situation, not on manipulative stories about crying children. Certainly not one that plays fast and lose with the facts. Where do people come up with the idea that the UN did nothing? For starters, they are the folks who disarmed Saddam.

But does anybody really believe the bigger lesson of the story? That the US and its soldiers should be in the business of ridding the world of all evil? And that if we don't go out right now and overthrow evey evil dictator on the planet, the US is doomed?

Well said. Just one of many examples of glurge that some see as wonderful and others see as sick pieces of trash.

 

[tink38]

I agree with you 100% about the war. I also believe that Mr. Bush needs to concentrate on what is going on in his own counrty. Flame me if you want, I really don't care. I voted for the man, but as a person whose family has been effected by Hurricane Katrina, I don't understand our president lately.

Monique

 

[luvmydogs]

I ran this by my father, a former Marine who tourned in Vietnam. Although he feels loyalty to his Corps brothers and sisters ("once a Marine always a Marine"), he said he believes that speaking in euphemisms and metaphors about this war does a disservice to those risking their lives because of political lies.

When he talks to ds10 about his service, he's appropriate but straightforward--and I respect and appreciate it.

 

[robinb]

That was clap-trap when I read it the first time a couple years ago. It's still clap-trap now.

 

[tekmom]

Both of my brothers were marines and my brother-n-law(National Guard) just got back from Iraq. They all agree that it is a mess and that although they support all of the soldiers that are there, they do question our ever changing reasons for being there.