Images

I had originally planned a long, upbeat post to mark my return, but this week I have been haunted by the image above, photographer Nina Berman’s “Marine Wedding”. The groom, former Marine sergeant Ty Ziegel, was serving in Iraq when a suicide bomb attack left him trapped under a burning vehicle, melting his features beyond recognition. The bride is his high school sweetheart.

Our present war often seems unreal. Perhaps this is because in the youtube era no media event ever seems truly real; more likely it is because with the advent of an all volunteer army only a relatively small segment of America’s population bears the ghastly brunt of our Iraqi endeavor. Sometimes, it takes images like the one above to remind us that despite the distancing effects of modern media, the costs of the war in Iraq are very, very real. I have no political commentary or witticisms to offer tonight; the image speaks for itself.