Columbia family prepares to greet returning injured soldier-mother-wife

[Tom Yossarian Joad]

(Columbia) Dec. 31, 2003 - Anthony Jones and his two sons are headed to a military hospital in Augusta, where they'll see Anthony's wife and his sons' mother for the first time in about a year. Tywanda Jones, a sergeant in the United States Army, was injured in a supply truck accident in early December while serving in Iraq.

Doctors treated her in Kuwait and Germany but decided she'd be better off back in the US. Anthony says it's a trip he never thought he'd have to take, "I'm nervous, because I'm not exactly sure what's really going on with her. I'm just thinking she's ready to come home but not under these circumstances."

Isaiah only wants the best for his mom, "I worry about her, because I miss her so much."

Anthony says he doesn't know the full extent of his wife's injuries. He does know she hurt her hip and that there is a possibility she might never walk right again, "It's going to take some time to get adjusted to learning new ways of living. It's just going to take some time."

More: http://www.wistv.com/Global/story.asp?S=1583237&nav=0RaPJwLS

Why on earth are we sending mothers of children into harm's way?

[madrchsod]

1. why?

maybe we should ask bush why this women and her families sacrifice makes us any safer..

[mandyky]

2. "Volunteer professional soldiers" = poor people

earning money to go to college.

[kath]

22. you said it ,mandyky. And especially in this lovely American

economy, with all the wonderful high-paying jobs out there. NOT.

[ninkasi]

3. Heartbreaking...

All of this is breaking my heart. A young wife and mother, who will never be the same again. So many deaths on both sides, so many gravely wounded, so many lives shattered and destroyed.

The man responsible for all this death and suffering, Bush, does not care. He doesn't care who suffers, he doesn't care how much pain they endure, he doesn't care that it's tearing our country apart, not to mention what's happening to Iraq.

He knows only one thing, and that is getting his way. He will order people to their deaths, and ruin our country to do it. And he will never have a second thought, because he's incapable of caring about anything or anyone but himself.

So if the right-wingers wonder why we Dems are angry, they might want to talk to this young soldier, or her husband or kids. We've got to stop the neocon killing machine in 2004. Vote for anybody but Bush. Our lives depend on it.

[nadinbrzezinski]

4. For the same reason we are sending fathers of children

into harms way

In this respect I know they are soldiers... yes... if you can hack it in combat, and you want to do it... by all means.

This poor women, we are sending them into combat is just pure BS...

Now her injuries, the fact that her husband has no clue what they are
is what should be worrisome. I suspect she had a major hip fracture and that is why tehy are sending her stateside

If she was a man, would that make a difference? The injury is just as painful you know... and this is the tragedy of war, expecially one foisted on us on lies... not that a woman was injured in combat and happens to have children. I see plenty of those women leave for duty on the four corners of the world all the time, in both combat and support units...

I also see plenty of men, young men, leave into combat and you know what they are also married, as half of the force is married, and they also have children.... what loosing them to injuries or death is far less tragic somehow?

[Tom Yossarian Joad]

7. It is tragic when anyone dies in this ill concieved "war."

But, I'm sorry if it comes across as old fashioned, but mothers in combat zones just sits as a bad thing with me.

In WWII, the last surviving child in a family would be excused from combat. I think that the same attitude should be given to the Mothers of children.

[lostnfound]

8. Billy, I like your posts and this picture..

I agree with your comment about mothers in combat, too.

Your picture of Bush on the 'golf course' is brutal but true..perhaps the caption should read 'Support our troops and bring them home alive.'

[Tom Yossarian Joad]

14. Thanks, lostnfound...

Happy new year! :toast:

[nadinbrzezinski]

10. It is old fashioned

As I said, is it better when fathers of children die in war? Should we make a policy that only UNMARRIED MEN can go into combat? Boy there goes half of the US Military.

Look that is the tragedy, but women are part of the service.

Get used to it

Hell I have been in combat myself and I have ovaries, not balls, to sound crass over it. I did my job... granted i did not have children at the time and the stupid manouvers were just stupid... (Yes that means that I did something stupid enough to deserve a stupidity award) Trust me, the person I grabbed and dragged out from a fire fight is alive and well and does not care that I do not have balls, but ovaries

The tragedy is not that mommy is dying. The tragedy is that this war was not needed. That is the tragedy. There are wars that need to be fought, (WW II for example) This one did not, which only amplifies the horror of it... and the tragedy of it.

By the way there is a reason why for many centuries women have been non combatants

Assume for a moment that you have two nations and both of them have the exact same popularion, 100 people, and fifty are women, and fifty are men. They go to war and one of them does not allow the women to see combat

At the end of the war each side looses exactly 49 troopers, so both decide to reach for a truce. One of them has 30 mor the exercise assume that the one that allowed the women to go to combat lost exactly 25 women.

Now the one that lost 49 men, has one very happy man and fifity women who will produce fifity babies, the other side will have only 25 females, so for every fifty that the other side has a year, they only can produce 25. All things being equal next war they will be out manned... and this was noticed by ancient societies. Hence why we do not like, instinctively, women in combat.

In an ancient society where many more babies died, having women delivering kids was preferable then facing combat... but in our modern society... this is no longer the case and women want to serve... we can argue the reasons why people want to serve. But the tragedy of loosing a mother is not worst than loosing a father. In fact in our ecomomy loosing a father has the potencial of being worst for the family, as women make 30 percent less than their counterparts for equal work.

The only place where equality exists is in the armed forces... hence equality in risk should also exist.

Hope this makes any sense to you

[Tom Yossarian Joad]

13. I see your points and don't think a single bad thing about your

opinions. I agree with your anthropological ideas on why women have historically refrained from war. You might want to consider that when one wore 100# of armour and equipment while swinging a 25# broadsword or even pulling pulling a 50# bow, upper body strength might come into play as well.

However, in a family, I feel if a parent is to be risked in War, preference to abstaining from combat should be given to the mother as it's my feeling that a larger percentage of women are more given to nurturing than a man. In short, in the majority of couples, the better parent is probably going to be the woman.

'Sides, I'm fifty years old and can be "old fashioned" if I want.

Cheers and happy new year!

[nadinbrzezinski]

15. Sadly the weight of the gear, really has not gone

down since Roman times

The weight of the pack and all of that is the same... the only difference is the bow...

Reality is most men and women are truly not fit for the line infantry and the current ratio reflects it, 10 suport for one combat trooper

And yes you are entitled to your old fashioned ideas... but having been there, done that, I can tell you I have seen men that did not belong there and women that did not belong there and it had nothing to do with gender, and you truly cannot tell who will be fit... truly until they are tested in combat. Some people freeze, others, things go into small motion and you do what you need to do.

All smells and tactile sensations just shoot up, you can see better, you can smell things that you wished you never did... and mostly you smell your own fear. Do I wish this on anybody? NO... but it has nothing to do with gender.

In time we will even have gays serving openly in the force... and that is the way it is, as societies evolve

[Tom Yossarian Joad]

17. Actually, I really have no problem at all with anyone choosing to

serve in the military. I guess the most simple way to put it is that I wish there was a way for women who have young children to opt out of combat duty. Women, Male and gay should all have the same rights to serve, I just feel that a mother should have the additional right to opt out of combat. There are plenty of support jobs available which are not in combat areas.

Call it a chivalrous hangover for the new year!

[nadinbrzezinski]

18. It is

Why shouldn't men have the same right?

Right now our military has about half of it married, and most
have children, young children. The average age is hovering around 20. You tell me, is that young specialist, Seaman, Marine or Airman less
qualified to stay home with young kids? And shouldn't he?

Now I will say this for the military, when children are born and the parent is at home, they do receive a good month for bonding... OFF, which shoudl be the practice in the civilian world as well.

But we cannot afford to make exceptions because this will create resentment.

I take it you really have no contact with the military... not only did I serve (not in the US Military), but my husband is retiring from the USN very soon... (as in oh a month), so I know what this would do.

Teh fact that women have "easier Fitness standards" (except for the Marines where all are Marines... they averaged them) already creates enough problems.

Nice conversation by the way... this is one issue where many civilians are really off from it... by the way the ohter place where women serve and take the same risks are police, fire and EMS... and it has taken a lot of crawling and proving that one can do the job just as well. We really do not want to go back...at least I don't. And yes I was one of the trail blazers as well... and it was not easy. Never realized at the time I was dong a very pro femininte thing, just wanted to serve my community... oh well

[Tom Yossarian Joad]

19. As to having no contact with the military...

Actually, I do. Father was a Marine, Grandfather AND Grandmother
in the Navy. I have good Friends in Iraq and Kuwait right now.

As to why shouldn't men have the same right? If they can be a mother, I suppose they should. I haven't run into that many men capable of that feat.

[nadinbrzezinski]

20. Then askyour friends just how much resentment

this will create in the force....

I am serious... this will create a huge morale problem.

As to men, sorry, but if we are going to tell women you can stay
home, so can men... and yes I feel very srongly about it. We will not agree, whihc is very obvious... and it is a way to turn back the clock of social advance. If we do this with soldiers, why not cops, firefightes, hey office workers? They also need time to bond... in fact, and sorry if I sould patronizing, why not just keep women in the kitchen... is this old fahioned enough?

Women are choosing to do this job... by god let them and no they are not that special. Kids suffer when a parent leaves, it does not matter if this happens to be mom or dad... in fact it is worst when kids are a tad older... not young babies.

[Tom Yossarian Joad]

21. True, I guess we agree to disagree and it has been enjoyable

discussing it with you.

:toast:

[arcane1]

11. "now watch this drive"

classic pic!

I have a hard time when ANY parent of young children goes into combat, whether they are male or female

this war is a tragedy for both genders, American AND Iraqi

:evilfrown:


hey Bush! How many orphans did you make in 2003? :shrug:

[nadinbrzezinski]

12. Correct the war is the tragedy not the gender of those killed

or injured in it

[LWFred]

5. Why are we sending mothers of children into harm's way?

I thought that was a right for which feminists have been fighting rather vehemently. Am I wrong?

The military is not an elaborate welfare program. Tywanda chose her own path... She enlisted with full knowledge that she had children and a husband to support. While you folks are belly-aching about her perceived "exploitation", I can only hope her family is celebrating her service to her country. For all you know SGT Jones had unconditional support for the war in Iraq and is a hard-core Freeper.

SGT Jones is a hero. You sad folks who can think of nothing other than how to exploit her for a minor gain in the '04 elections should be ashamed.

[Tom Yossarian Joad]

6. I think you may be at the wrong website.

No one here has said or felt anything negative about Sgt. Jones. On the contrary, we wish this harm had never come to her or her family. That's the topic.

You're damn right with "you sad folks." We are sad that so many have died in a war that was built on lies and is more akin to Germany's invasion of Poland or France than it is of any Previous American conflict since the Phillipines of a Century ago.

[Book Lover]

9. I don't know that it was at the top of our list

but it certainly falls under the "treat us equally" banner.

I agree with you that there is a logical inconsistency if one said "oh this poor mother" and refused to say "oh that poor father" but I think people will allow their speech to be influenced by their emotions, and that's OK.

Welcome to DU and Happy New Year!

[Jacobin]

16. Uhm, ya mean, she's "protecting our freedoms"??

Which "freedom" would that be? Freedom to have cheap gas?

Why do you think we invaded and are occupying IraqNam?

WMD? guess not.

Cause Saddam was a brutal dictator and our country always deposes brutal dictators where ever we find them? Um, nope.

Cause you believe Faux news links between Al Qaida and Saddam?
Yep, that's probably what's up with this post. Open yer eyes, fer cryin out loud. Wake up and smell the coffee, cause we need Americans to stand up and take our country back from the neo-cons.

I ask you to consider whether our forefathers would have approved attacking another country to take its resources. Please think about that and let me know if you think they would approve.