Fayettenam... an Iraqi Abstraction?

Who knew the blog could turn into a diary? I am so knackered from lack of sleep, but I am forcing myself to write anyway. The annoying sounds of automobile engines, the incessant screaming in my ears (tinnitus from infrasonic pollution), the standing wave in our house, the sound of machine gun fire, the shaking of the earth from Howitzer fire. Charlie Rose said he thought to many Americans the war in Iraq was an abstraction. Try living in a town that trains military soldiers. Try living in a town from whence the 82nd Airborne is dispersed. Try living in a town at war where 5 dead GI’s come back in one week, and the chaplain has to notify their families. An abstraction? I have to watch Charlie rose to find out what I am feeling, because my feelings are all over the chart. It is a relief to hear things on his program about Iraq, because one way or another those feelings find their way back to Ft. Bragg and then Fayettenam. Tar Heels or not. Duke Blue Devils or not. North Carolina State Wolfpack or not. No matter in ‘Nam. Here there is the country’s largest Harley Davidson store. Here is where EPA emissions interestingly overlook hundreds of straight pipe exhausts spewing noise and hydro-fluorocarbons into the air. The Fayetteville Police Department is understaffed by 30 officers because of either low pay or danger on the job. Consequently the state’s window tinting law is severely neglected, and people drive around on shiny custom-made rims in total obscurity. When I get my car inspected by the governmental watchdog that is the OBDll test (Argh!!!) they tell me it is an $80.00 fine for each window tinted too dark. Still an invisible army circles the streets. Traffic lights in ‘Nam are uncommonly long. In the sweltering summer heat and humidity you can sit at a traffic light for over three minutes, donating your hard earned dollar to the CARTEL. It pisses me off! I just want to turn my engine off and ride my bike, rather than being exploited by a traffic signal. Crazy? Try living here.