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The Crucifixion of Tomas Young by Chris Hedges

Tomas Young, Toronto International Film Festival, 2007

Image by jbach via Flickr

by Chris Hedges
Writer, Dandelion Salad
Truthdig
March 11, 2013

KANSAS CITY, Mo.—I flew to Kansas City last week to see Tomas Young. Young was paralyzed in Iraq in 2004. He is now receiving hospice care at his home. I knew him by reputation and the movie documentary “Body of War.” He was one of the first veterans to publicly oppose the war in Iraq. He fought as long and as hard as he could against the war that crippled him, until his physical deterioration caught up with him.

“I had been toying with the idea of suicide for a long time because I had become helpless,” he told me in his small house on the Kansas City outskirts where he intends to die. “I couldn’t dress myself. People have to help me with the most rudimentary of things. I decided I did not want to go through life like that anymore. The pain, the frustration. …”

[…]

via Truthdig

Chris Hedges spent two decades as a foreign reporter covering wars in Latin America, Africa, Europe and the Middle East. His latest books are Days of Destruction, Days of Revolt, Death of the Liberal Class, and The World as It Is: Dispatches on the Myth of Human Progress.

Copyright © 2013 Truthdig

see also

Injured Veteran Keeps Up His Fight, Deciding To Live

see

Don’t Mention the War! by Lesley Docksey

Hubris: Selling the Iraq War + Hubris Isn’t the Half of It by David Swanson

Iraq: A Twenty-Two Year Genocide by Felicity Arbuthnot

Don’t Enlist, But Don’t Just Take My Word For It by Lo

from the archives:

Chris Hedges: War Exposes The Lies Of Patriotism

The Maimed by Chris Hedges

Donahue on C-SPAN: Body Of War (videos)

Bill Moyers Journal: Body of War: Donahue & Spiro (videos)

9 thoughts on “The Crucifixion of Tomas Young by Chris Hedges”

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  5. I cannot believe what I just read but these ungodly wars have taken the lives of so many of our veterans.When I think of all the civilians who have also lost their lives its heart breaking.When I look at this image:Image by jbach via Flickr it also makes me wonder what the hell we were ever doing in Iraq and Afghanistan in the first place.
    Chris Hedges tells it like it is. His writings make us all wonder with much doubt about what we are fighting for.
    I could go on and on but its been said many times.

  6. What Pale words that comes!

    As life ends for some it goes on for others, yes the perils of encroaching death, the horrors of what is on the other side never comes full circle until the last moments.

    What have we learned from reading this post, stop needless and aggressive wars? Has it been this way throughout history —- sure has read the story how Cain killed Able. The bloodline of Cain natural and Adopted have been the ones that have run from and denied the good actions of Conscience. And yes they are still on the move today as bad as it is, but above all of our disparities sits our Great Creative God in control.

    So what can we say or do that would make a difference believe that HIS providence will come suddenly to relieve the pain and suffering caused by bloodline of Cain.

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