Memorial Day

We observe Memorial Day today, even though the "real" Memorial Day occurs at the end of the week. Whenever we observe it, Memorial Day is designed to be a day of rememberance. It's a day when we should remember departed or absent family and friends. It's a day when we should remember our parents, grandparents, and ancestors; we should remember what they gave so that we could be where we now are. Most of all, it's a day when we should remember the sacrifices of our warriors.

These are the men and women who stood, and now stand, between us and harm. These are the men and women who are dedicated to preserving that wonderful freedom we enjoy. These are the men and women who first raised their hands and said, "yes, we can, and yes, we will." Without those who are willing to put their lives "on the line" for all of us, our Nation would not have been born, would not have survived the threat from internal civil strife, and would not have been able to help other Nations survive world-wide threats to their continued independence, twice. Without our warriors, this Nation would not be able to stand as a bulwark of freedom, an advocate for human rights, or that "shining city on the hill." Our warriors are essential. So please join me this Memorial Day, whenever you observe it, in saying a prayer for those warriors who serve. Join me in taking the time to thank a warrior for his or her service. Most of all, please take the time to remember.....

Wonderful WASPs!

I love the Women in Military Service to America Memorial! It's in a beautiful location at the ceremonial entrance to Arlington National Cemetery. The Memorial houses a number of collections dedicated to Women who have served in the armed forces, including a computerized register of women veterans. The Memorial has hosted a number of very important exhibits, and they have just opened a great one!

On November 14th, the Memorial opened a traveling exhibit called "Fly Girls of World War II." The exhibit is dedicated to telling the story of the Women's Airforce Service Pilots or WASPS. The WASP program lasted two years, from 1942 to 1944, and allowed women to train to become pilots and allowed them to fly. They test-flew bombers and ferried airplanes to the war zone. Unfortunately, the program was disbanded after only two years, because Congress wouldn't grant the WASPs military status; they were considered civil service employees until 1977 when they were finally recognized as military veterans. An article on the exhibit opening published in Family Security Matters, quotes one WASP as saying,

“We think it’s marvelous that people remember what we did,” said Scotty Gough, 86, who served with the WASP for only one year because she was one year too young when the program started. “I loved flying so much that if I had had the money, I would’ve paid the Air Force to let me fly.”

“For many, many years people knew nothing about us, and it’s important for generations to know what we did and what we were. We were the first ones to fly for the Army, and that’s why today’s women are flying jets and in the Air Force.”

As a woman Air Force veteran, and the mother of a woman Air Force pilot, I salute these brave women who paved the way for us. Without their contributions to their country, I would not have been able to have served. Without their example and dedication, my daughter would not have been able to fulfill her dream to fly. Thank you WASPs!

Teenage Boy Disease

When I was actually trying criminal cases, I would often have to consider whether the person I was prosecuting or defending had a mental health issue. You see, in order to do an effective direct or cross-exam, you really need to have at least a little bit of an idea what you’re talking about; just enough to make you dangerous, so to speak. As a result, I ended up becoming pretty friendly with several mental health professionals and even had occasion to crack open the 4th Edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual on Mental Health Disorders (which, according to PsychiatryOnline website, is the “standard diagnostic tool used by mental health professionals worldwide to promote reliable research, accurate diagnosis, and thus appropriate treatment and patient care”). This book, known as the DSM-IV-TR, is the tool most psychiatrists or psychologists turn to when diagnosing patients who have a mental health problem.

All of this is a rather lengthy introduction to one of my pet theories. After a number of years’ observation and some personal testing, I have a theory that perhaps we should add a diagnosis to the DSM-IV-TR. “Teenage-Boy-Disease.” Now to suffer from “teenage boy disease” you have to be male. Now lest those of you out there make unfounded charges of sexism, I have seriously considered whether there should be a corresponding “Teenage-Girl-Disease.” Perhaps. However, that is for another post. If so, the symptoms would be different and the disease would manifest in different ways. It is also possible that the disease would manifest earlier, perhaps in a prepubescent girl’s fascination with all things equine, because (of course) girls do mature faster than boys. In my limited observations, however, teenage boys act differently to certain stimulus than do teenage girls. It’s a fact. Get used to it. Thus, “teenage-boy-disease.”

Suffers of “teenage-boy-disease” demonstrate distinct symptoms over the course of several months to several years; depending on the severity of the disease. One of the primary characteristics of the disease is the tendency toward the nocturnal. Suffers have trouble waking up in the morning, often requiring multiple alarm clocks, “nudges” to wake up, or banging of trashcan lids to actually come awake (particularly when there is a need to go to work or school), and may have difficulty falling asleep at night (particularly when there are places to go, people to see, or things to do). Suffers will, however, want to sleep during the day, often falling asleep at inopportune times, such as during class or while watching a movie, or in the middle of a discussion with a adult, unless placed in a standing or front-leaning position.

Another primary characteristic of teenage-boy-disease is an extreme fascination with electronic games of any type, often at the expense of other productive efforts (such as school or work). Suffers of teenage-boy-disease will spend hours, sometimes morphing into days or weekends, trying to win electronic sports games or kill all the alien zombies currently invading Earth. The disease is also characterized by an extreme fascination with sports of any type, things with wheels (particularly flashy cars), and violent or extremely stupid movies. For some reason, suffers of teenage-boy-disease also find it particularly hilarious to be able to quote stupid movie dialogue verbatim.

Suffers also have trouble with self-confidence; reflected in an obsession with finding the “right” acne medication, the “best” deodorant, and the “finest” pair of jeans. This lack of self-confidence may also manifest itself in a compulsive need to build muscle tone and frequent trips to a local gym. (However, this compulsion is not always bad, since it may also result in a beneficial type of informal group therapy with other suffers of teenage-boy-disease.) One symptom of the lack of self-confidence is the tendency to get tongue-tied or say stupid things around members of the opposite sex. With those suffering extreme symptoms, the sufferer may even act like a buffoon or repeatedly trip over feet that suddenly seem way too large when within three feet of a female.

Now I’m not a psychiatrist or psychologist and I have never been trained in the mental health field; but I have been an officer, have led young men and women, raised three children to adulthood, and I like to watch people. Those experiences wouldn’t qualify me as an expert witness, but I like to think that they do qualify for something. In my opinion, teenage-boy-disease is real (taking my tongue somewhat out of my cheek). From what I’ve seen, young men, fresh out of high school, are often still suffering from the disease or from leftover symptoms of the disease. I think there’s a case to be made for some type of universal service requirement as a maturation step to allow recovery from teenage-boy (or girl) disease. Now, I’m not calling for a universal draft, and I’m not proposing some type of AmeriCares-type social service requirement. I’m not sure that I even have a specific proposal. I just know that of the young men and women I’ve been associated with, those that have gone through some type of maturing process, whether it was intended or not, tend to achieve their goals. That maturing process can include military service, social service, or religious service. It just seems that some type of service teaches values and helps a young person mature and lose the characteristics of teenage-whatever-disease; which is nothing more than selfishness and self-absorption. Now isn’t that a good thing and something we should think about?