A Difference in Perspectives: A Haibun
by
John J. Dunphy
Note: The prose was originally a newspaper column I wrote for the 1/27–28/24 edition of The Telegraph of Alton, IL. I decided to expand it into a haibun so it would reach a wider audience.
*****
As I write these words, I just learned that two SEALs, Navy Special Warfare Operator 1st Class Christopher J. Chambers and Navy Special Warfare Operator 2nd Class Nathan Gage Ingram, died on Jan. 11 in the service of our nation. Their mission was to seize an arms shipment that was being smuggled into Yemen for use by Houthi militants, who are backed by Iran.
The two men were aboard a small craft off the coast of Somalia when rough waters knocked one of them into the sea. The second man dove into the choppy water in an attempt to save his brother-in-arms. Both men perished.
Captain Blake Chaney, commander of Naval Special Warfare Group 1, stated that Chambers and Ingram “were exceptional warriors, cherished teammates, and dear friends to many.” President Joe Biden released a formal statement on Jan. 22 noting that he and Jill “are mourning the tragic deaths of two of America’s finest.” Joe extended his sympathy to the men’s family and assured them that “Our entire country stands with you. We will never fail to honor their service, their legacy, and their sacrifice.”
Joe spoke from his heart. He believes that American military personnel who lose their lives in the service of our country deserve our respect. Unfortunately, Donald Trump doesn’t share that belief.
As Jeffery Goldberg informed us back in 2020 in a piece for The Atlantic, Trump canceled a visit to the Aisne-Marne American Cemetery near Paris in 2018 claiming his helicopter couldn’t fly in the rain and the Secret Service wouldn’t drive him to the cemetery. He lied
“In a conversation with senior staff members on the morning of the scheduled visit, Goldberg wrote, “Trump said, ‘Why should I go to that cemetery? It’s filled with losers.’ In a separate conversation on the same trip, Trump referred to the more than 1,800 U.S. Marines who lost their lives at Belleau Wood as ‘suckers’ for getting killed in combat.”
There is a distinct possibility that Trump is totally unfamiliar with the Battle of Belleau Wood — or even World War I, for that matter. Rex Tillerson, who served as Trump’s first secretary of state, recalled that his former boss’ store of knowledge has many empty shelves. “His understanding of global events, his understanding of global history, his understanding of U.S. history was really limited. It’s really hard to have a conversation with someone who doesn’t even understand the concept for why we’re talking about this.”
Trump probably had no idea that U.S Marines fought in Belleau Wood through most of June 1918. Some of the fighting was hand-to-hand. “On June 30, 1918,” according to the American Battle Monuments Commission web site, “the Commanding General, French 6th Army, officially renamed Belleau Wood as ‘Wood of the Marine Brigade.’ “
Trump has also expressed contempt for our nation’s more recent war dead. John Kelly, Trump’s longest-serving White House chief of staff, admitted that Trump turned to him on Memorial Day 2017 when they stood among the Arlington National Cemetery graves of military personnel killed in Afghanistan and Iraq and said, “I don’t get it. What was in it for them?”
Trump claims to be “a very stable genius.” However, he can’t seem to grasp the simple fact that these patriotic Americans enlisted in the military out of desire to serve their country, even if it meant risking their lives in combat. They demonstrated altruism and self-sacrifice, two virtues that are totally lacking in Donald Trump.
Alyssa Farah Griffin, who served as White House Director of Strategic Communications under Trump, has said, ”Donald Trump will fundamentally never understand service the way those who have actually served in uniform will, and it’s one of the countless reasons he’s unfit to be commander in chief.”
I agree. Such an ignorant, malicious person doesn’t belong in the Oval Office or even within a 20-mile radius of the White House.
“NOT A SUCKER! NOT A LOSER!”
written on a note
stuck to a tombstone
John J. Dunphy’s poetry collections include Old Soldiers Fading Away, Zen Koanhead, Touching Each Tree, pagan rites, Bullet Cluster, Stellar Possibility and Dark Nebulae. He is also the author of non-fiction works such as Unsung Heroes of the Dachau Trials: The Investigative Work of the U.S. Army 7708 War Crimes Group, 1945–1947.