Final Salute
January 17, 2008 1:12 PM   Subscribe

I don't cross post from other sites (digg), unless there's a good reason. Final Salute is a good reason. Additional links/background are there, but go to the slideshow. And this photo.
posted by ObscureReferenceMan (28 comments total) 7 users marked this as a favorite
 
Fucking hell. Just... just... fucking hell.
posted by dersins at 1:19 PM on January 17, 2008


Semper Fi.
posted by Gungho at 1:28 PM on January 17, 2008


Thanks to the photojournalists who force me and others to remember both the direct and indirect victims of this war, and to curse every damn person who perpetuates the tragedy from which both are borne.
posted by uaudio at 1:30 PM on January 17, 2008 [3 favorites]


.
posted by MrMoonPie at 1:31 PM on January 17, 2008


Powerful!
posted by ericb at 1:39 PM on January 17, 2008


Those pictures just make me incoherent with anger and sadness. I'm the father of a young man and I'm not sure how I would get over his death in Mr. Bush's stupid vanity war. The pain from this idiotic venture is going to last for generations.
posted by octothorpe at 1:42 PM on January 17, 2008 [4 favorites]


Powerful stuff, but also a double.
posted by monju_bosatsu at 1:50 PM on January 17, 2008


I have the utmost respect for Major Beck. His decency and humanity, and those of the marines who attended the deceased, touched me deeply. I hate that we need people like them because of this war, but I am so glad that we have them.
posted by misha at 1:51 PM on January 17, 2008


This picture too is stunning.
posted by Flashman at 1:54 PM on January 17, 2008


I can't view any more of that slide show right now. I'm crying at the reception desk and that's not ok.
posted by The Light Fantastic at 1:57 PM on January 17, 2008


Powerful stuff, but also a double.

Damn! I searched, and searched.
posted by ObscureReferenceMan at 2:19 PM on January 17, 2008


If it is a double, I missed it...

Because of the importance of everyone seeing this, I ask that it not be deleted... An election is coming up, let's keep this fresh in our minds...

I could only get through half of them, I've got a son who is a Marine now, and a son I lost (not a military event) 17 years ago...it was just too hard...

my thoughts to everyone in every picture...may they learn how to survive this....
posted by HuronBob at 2:25 PM on January 17, 2008


I probably shouldn't post this, but this makes me angry. All of the ritualized CRAP and the worshipful objectification of a national flag, and the posthumous MEDALS ("what do you want, a medal?") make me sick. Is it great that they do this for the families, give them reasons to believe that their loved ones death meant something or was for some greater good?

Sure it's great.

Wouldn't it be greater if it wasn't necessary and the artificial borders and the "my country is better than your country" and "don't cross this line in the sand" macho crap is the root CAUSE for all of this needless carnage.
posted by spock at 2:35 PM on January 17, 2008


Gee, spock, such touching sentiments. Perhaps the families don't share your opinions on CRAP.
posted by wafaa at 2:42 PM on January 17, 2008


One thought... I didn't post this to make a "down with war", or "anti-Bush" statement. I was just so touched by Katherine Cathey's photo, and then the whole slide show and story. I was also crying at work. But I thought this needed to be posted to remind us that war, or even serving one's country in peacetime, has consequences. And there are always families involved, and we should be aware of the sacrifices they all make. Not to mention the duties/ceremonies that servicemen perform for fallen comrades, and the burdens they carry. Words fail me.
posted by ObscureReferenceMan at 2:46 PM on January 17, 2008


worshipful objectification of a national flag

You can't objectify something if it is aldeady an object.
posted by wafaa at 3:00 PM on January 17, 2008


"Is it great that they do this for the families, give them reasons to believe that their loved ones death meant something or was for some greater good?"

Maybe spock - who wrote the above - went too far with the subsequent "macho crap" comment.

But it's fair to question the ennobling intention of the ritual attending military deaths. (It's been done well in the movies with Arthur Hiller's satireThe Americanization of Emily).

I think you can feel deeply moved - and uneasy at the same time.
posted by Jody Tresidder at 3:03 PM on January 17, 2008 [3 favorites]


or already...
posted by wafaa at 3:17 PM on January 17, 2008


I can't finish this just now.

Semper Fidelis
posted by MapGuy at 3:34 PM on January 17, 2008


There is only so many times I can stand having my heart broken during one presidency.
posted by Astro Zombie at 3:49 PM on January 17, 2008


You can't objectify something if it is aldeady an object.

You're right. The word I was looking for was "deification".
posted by spock at 4:03 PM on January 17, 2008


Made me sick when I read it a few months ago. Marines are taught that our job is to fight and die but it should be for a fucking good reason.
posted by zzazazz at 4:22 PM on January 17, 2008


.
posted by rooftop secrets at 4:57 PM on January 17, 2008


Semper Fi
posted by strontiumdog at 5:02 PM on January 17, 2008


"To those who have fought for it, freedom has a flavor the protected will never know!"
posted by CWODave at 6:31 PM on January 17, 2008 [1 favorite]


thanks.
posted by anotherpanacea at 6:42 PM on January 17, 2008


Thank you. I've seen these photos before, but they are just as moving the second time.
posted by vorfeed at 1:16 PM on January 18, 2008


Yea, I had to fight back tears, BOTH times.
posted by snsranch at 2:49 PM on January 18, 2008


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