I've worked with a POW/MIA group in the past and always knew that there are still many people who have not been accounted for. In all that time, though, I'm not sure that I ever heard a number. This morning I saw a list of those still on the "unaccounted for" status. It's from dtic.mil. I pulled up the pdf and there were 30 pages of names. Listed in addition to names: Branch of service; where they were last heard from; rank when the status was given; date; and where they were from. Sobering. Yes, we all know war is hell, but to put names to number statistics makes it hit home harder.
This is quite sad to learn but I am not surprise considering the mass number of fatalities during the Vietnam War. I have come across so many stories of soldiers' skeletons being found almost 70 years later from World War 2. This is disheartening because family members never have closure in a sense of giving their love ones a proper burial for their sacrifice.
Yes, very true, May102014. All of this should have had closure decades ago, but it's just never going to happen... for either war, I'm afraid. I haven't heard much about WWII remains still being found, but I feel that we'll never be able to close many more of Vietnam MIA cases. I'll always wonder how many of the missing were actually POWs for... well, who knows how long.
I am sure that we have MIAs from the Revolution. How many from the War Between the States? War is always sad. "If God's on our side, he'll stop the next war."
I'm not sure if God would stop a war since the Bible prophesies that there will always be war. He doesn't contradict Himself. But that said, your other statement, yes it certainly is sad! It's one thing to know that we have MIAs from all wars, but it's a very different experience (at least in my case) to see the names... the ages. I've always known about all the "unknown" graves in the National Cemetery at Gettysburg, but now that I'm working on the database, it's ... well, just different to know that one of those men classified as unknown at the time is actually (as an example) 17 year old John Smith who went to war because his widowed mama needed the extra money each month for food. When "unknown" becomes George Johnson, it's just more emotional for me. Call me silly, but that's me.
Just because the Bible says there will always be wars doesn't mean that God approves of war. The Bible says that many forms of evil will exist. There is nothing glamorous about war.
That is a very sad reminder that not everyone is even able to say a final goodbye to their lost loved one. It's a reality I guess I have always kind of been aware of, but not something I really think about, or do most people as we have out own lives to live on a day to day basis. But it's good to be reminded that for some, it never really ended, and you never know when you might meet someone who had a relative on that list.
Many soldiers unaccounted for, many more civilians probably unaccounted for as well. War is such an ugly time that has serious repercussions for years and years to follow. The war might be over, but the pain lives on.
