Author Archives: padresteve

About padresteve

I'm a Navy Chaplain and Old Catholic Priest

August 4, 2009 · 23:59

Flooding! Flooding! Flooding! When Water pours from the Ceiling and Padre Steve Gets to Write a Sports Blog

steve on top of the rock Padre Steve: Soon to Be Sports Blogger…Could it lead to the Big Leagues?

This has been an interesting few days. I got a chance to get some rest over the weekend, saw some baseball games, spent time talking to Chicago Cubs and a Philadelphia Phillies scouts on different nights, spent some time talking with Tides Pitchers David Pauley and Radhames Liz in between innings. Both are interesting folks, Pauley and his wife just had a baby and Liz is one of the few pitchers in the Major League 100 mph club. Both are nice guys and I hope that both do well. I think that Radhames has a good chance; he seems to have his control back and can throw a ball of fire. Last night I went to the game and had almost my full cast of characters in place. Elliott the Usher and I had our usual running commentary during the game, Barry the Scorekeeper was back after visiting his family and going to a wedding over the weekend out of town. Chip the Usher was in his appointed place, Marty the Card Dealer, Mandy the Tides Store Manager who by the way is leaving us for another job, congrats but you’ll be missed kid. Ray and John my Vietnam Veteran of America friends who pour the beer behind home place had just returned from the organization’s national conference. The only person missing was Kenny the Pretzel Guy. Heck I even had my buddy Elmer the Shrink as a guest. It was a great night even though the Tides lost. Today I was able to see the score in between patients and the Tides won 8-7 to split the series with the Chiefs.

I came in to work this and got my usual large 24 ounce coup of Southern Pecan coffee with 4 French Vanilla creamers and four packs of Splenda from Pat down at the Dancing Goat. I got changed, did my duty turnover and got busy, but not nearly as busy as last week. It has been a good day, some good ministry, a lot of hard work doing some writing for our residency program and some nice times on the wards with some great people, staff and patients alike. However, in between rounds of my ICU a coworker ask to talk to me about helping with a project that she is working on. I went to my office and when I opened the door I saw water spreading out across my lowest bidder carpet. I look up and the words “oh crap” or something synonymous passed through my lips. My ceiling tile near the sprinkler system was sagging down, water coming at a steady drip from it as the tile itself was cracking under the weight of the water that it had soaked up. Now this is not the first time this has happened, last time it happened after hours and was a soggy mess, the rotten tile looked like really bad oatmeal gone really bad. I was not impressed so immediately I put in a call to facilities saying “I need you guy’s STAT, my ceiling is leaking and looks like it about to crash.” It took a while for the guys to get here and when they did they looked up and said, “Sir move all your stuff, this could get ugly.” I already had moved almost everything to the high ground and rapidly moved the last box. He brought down the tile and oh what a mess. Fortunately after they looked they knew where to go to fix the problem, now I only have some residual drips from the insulation around some ductwork. Thankfully that is done and hopefully by tomorrow my ceiling is fixed and I can arrange to have my carpet cleaned by our housekeeping folks. Praise God for Grace the lady who cleans my office and waters the plants that would die if not for her great work. She found a second garbage can to put in the middle of the room to contain the residual drips from the ceiling and vacuumed the crap from my floor. It appears that the Deity Herself ensured that things broke my way in what could have been a nasty mess.

The past week was also interesting as I have two opportunities to do some blogging as a Sports blogger. Maybe it will be a step to being on ESPN’s Around the Horn, sitting next to Woody Page. Who can tell right? Evidently my stuff is getting seen and at least some folks like it. I have been invited by the Virginia Pilot, our local Virginia Beach, Norfolk and Chesapeake newspaper to have a blog dealing with Baseball, general sports and life. I was approached last week by the Most Valuable Network an independent sports network located at www.MVN.com to do something similar for them. I received approval from my boss and legal to go ahead. These blogs will be up by the end of the week or maybe the weekend. I will post the links to the stories on these sites to this site. The blogs will primarily focus on baseball and life and will likely on MVN be entitled The View from 102, The Church of Baseball. The Virginia Pilot will likely be Padre Steve’s View From 102Baseball Life and Faith. Once they are set up I will post the links here. The articles will all be sports and life related and will occasionally delve into the heretical sports of football and basketball and will not be located on this site which will remain fully up and running as it does now.

Peace, Steve+

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Filed under Baseball, Loose thoughts and musings

Tagged as 100 mph club, around the horn, barry the scorekeeper, baseball scouts, ceiling tile, chicago cubs, chip the usher, david pauley, elliott the usher, espn, harbor park, john the beer guy, kenny the pretzel guy, mandy the tides store manager, marty the card dealer, mvn.com, norfolk tides, philadelphia phillies, Radhames Liz, ray the beer guy, southern pecan coffee, Splenda, sports blogs, syracuse sky chiefs, the dancing goat, vietnam veterans of america, virginia pilot, water leaks

August 3, 2009 · 16:43

I Think I Feel a Sermon coming on…How Some Churches Stopped Caring and the Neglect of Pastoral Care

“When they had finished breakfast, Jesus said to Simon Peter, ‘Simon son of John, do you love me more than these?’ He said to him, ‘Yes, Lord; you know that I love you.’ Jesus said to him, ‘Feed my lambs.’ A second time he said to him, ‘Simon son of John, do you love me?’ He said to him, ‘Yes, Lord; you know that I love you.’ Jesus said to him, ‘Tend my sheep.’⁷He said to him the third time, ‘Simon son of John, do you love me?’ Peter felt hurt because he said to him the third time, ‘Do you love me?’ And he said to him, ‘Lord, you know everything; you know that I love you.’ Jesus said to him, ‘Feed my sheep.” John 21: 15-17

“Take care that you do not despise one of these little ones; for, I tell you, in heaven their angels continually see the face of my Father in heaven.” Matthew 18.10

Back when I was doing my Clinical Pastoral Education Residency at Parkland Memorial Hospital I was astounded to hear my pastor make a comment which I think was one of the most heartless that I have ever heard said from a pulpit. The church was a large and trendy Evangelical-Charismatic Church which I had attended throughout seminary and had ordained my in October 1991. The Pastor was recounting an incident where one of our members had been critically ill in hospital and had not been visited by him. After the parishioner was released from hospital he asked the pastor: “How sick do I have to be for you to visit me in the hospital?” The pastor told us his response: “Sir, you don’t want to b e that sick.” The congregation laughed at the pastor’s story and he went on to talk about how he and other senior pastors should not be doing that kind of work because it “distracted them from bigger Kingdom tasks.” You see according to the pastor the care of sick parishioners did not contribute to the “growth” of the church and thus was a “distraction and better left to others.” The comment struck a raw nerve now that I was dealing with the suffering and death every day of people who had been abandoned by the churches and pastors. I lost all respect for him as a man and pastor during that sermon. The words of my Philosophy of Religion Professor at Southwestern Baptist Seminary Dr. Yandall Woodfin said: “You have not done Christian Theology until you have dealt with suffering and death.” This pastor had stopped doing Christian Theology in order to be an “Apostle” and CEO. He was “growing” the church and managing programs, but had for the most part stopped caring as in being a pastoral care giver.

Now this pastor is not alone and nor is the issue confined to Evangelical or Charismatic churches. The trend has has found its way across the denominational spectrum. Sometimes this is by design as is the case of the Mega-churches. Pastors of mega-churches are for all practical purposes CEOs of large organizations and have a multiplicity of specialized staff, but often which do little for pastoral care. Sometimes it is by default in cases such as the Roman Catholic Church. Here the ever worsening shortage of Priests is forcing the closure of smaller parishes and the increase of large parishes with a corresponding decrease in what Priests can do for their people. Even very good Priests cannot keep pace with the demand of both Sacramental needs as well as pastoral care. No matter if it is by design or default the result is similar. The least, the lost and the lonely those “lambs” that Jesus talks about who need care and feeding are shunted aside. In one case, that of the Catholic Church it is simply a lack of Priests, Deacons and Sisters to provide this care. The other is more troubling as the focus of the church is growth, sustaining numbers, programs and buildings. This requires that pastors spend their time with members who can supply the vast financial need that those plans require. I have seen this in numerous congregations across the spectrum, which sometimes as was the case at a church that I attended in Florida results in a financial meltdown and collapse of the congregation, many of whom gave up and went elsewhere when the extent of the scandal became known. Likewise the ripple effects that this caused in the denomination were like a Tsunami, it was disastrous and the church is still in recovery mode. Going back to my pastor back when I was in residency I got the feeling that had he been the shepherd in the Parable of the lost sheep (Luke 15) that he would have let it go as hunting for it might have distracted him from the others.

When I was in seminary there were quite a number of my fellow students who chafed about having to take courses on pastoral care. I remember friends and fellow students complaining that what they needed were more “practical courses” such as “church growth, evangelism and Sunday School program management.” Course such as Pastoral Care were seen as a bother and distraction. Not to mention academic courses such as Systematic Theology, Philosophy of Religion and Church History. One friend talked about his Master of Divinity only having a “shelf-life of 5 years” because what he learned would be outdated.

Well in a way he was right. His focus was on classes that dealt with programs and methods of church growth, programs and management. From that perspective his degree would rapidly be obsolescent as soon as the next trend in church growth came along and everyone jettisoned the last method in favor of the new. With the ubiquity of the Mega-church which unlike the Leisure Suit is not going away anytime soon. The rise of the “Superstar” Pastors such as Bill Hybels, Joel Osteen and Rick Warren and the proliferation of massive “Ministry Media” conglomerates and stand-alone television ministries are actually dangerous to the vitality and health of the Christian Church in the United States. They propagate methods which have the sole intent of getting people into church or giving to a ministry and keeping them there, doctrine, worship, sacraments or ordinances, and pastoral care of the least, lost and lonely be damned. The methods are pragmatic and impersonal. Numbers and crowds define expertise, credibility and worth. The bigger the church the better the church, it’s that simple.

Unlike others who pick these ministers apart for their theology or business practices my problem with what is happening is what happens to regular people in these large and often very impersonal churches. It is easy for people to get lost, forgotten and when they are going through difficulty abandoned when the church stops making a conscious effort to do real pastoral care and focus purely on the programs which lend to growth. Often the substitute for pastoral care is found in the home cell group, or care group or whatever cute name a church can pin on a meeting at a member’s house. The cell groups have a noble intention. They attempt to build community in an otherwise very impersonal organization. There are some really good things that can come out of healthy home groups as well as long lasting friendships. We have a couple from our time in San Antonio that is still a very real part of our lives, they showed us genuine love and care and we remain friends. Of course this couple had an advantage over most home group leaders; he was a Clinical Social Worker by trade who was heading off to seminary. Most home groups are not that fortunate. At the same time there are unhealthy groups which are led by people who are poorly trained and equipped to deal with broken people. The good group leaders recognize their limitations and try to get help for those who are really hurting. Others who do not know their limitations end up abusing these dear lambs of God. Often this is because sick, depressed or lonely people take too much time, are too needy, or that their problems don’t match up with their church theology. We know this from personal experience as my wife suffered from a number of ailments throughout seminary and we were going through tremendous health and financial difficulties and in some places we felt cast aside and like we did not matter. We were fortunate that some people did care and we did make it through, however it was not something that I would ever want to repeat. I have heard similar stories from hundreds of people that I have come across in my life and work over the years. Another thing some churches do is to either add a “Christian Counseling” program or refer members to “Christian Counseling” services instead of doing pastoral care. In a sense it is the outsourcing of one of the most vital missions entrusted to a church, the pastoral care of the flock of God.

I don’t care what you call it, but any church which has multiple services of several thousand or a major service of close to 20,000 as occurs at Osteen’s Lakewood Church is no longer focused on caring for people but sustaining their growth and market share. I remember reading Charisma Magazine back in the mid-1990s when I still read it regularly about a church in North Dallas that has a period of incredible church growth in which it grew from 1,200 members to well over 7,000. In the article the pastor touted the church programs which drew people to the church. What the dirty little secret which was not mentioned was that two exits south of this church a Mega-church of some 10,000 members imploded when the Pastor, one Bob Tilton got caught doing some pretty bad stuff. This church despite its claims of great programs simple picked up about 6,000 of these people because they were close by and a similar type of church.

All of this is dangerous as to its impact on people. One only has to look at the latest Barna Polls about what is going on in churches to see that these large churches are alienating people even as they grow. People come, but others either burn out trying to keep pace with the manic pace of programs proliferated by these churches or they get lost in the crowd and forgotten. I meet a least a person every day who is a displaced Christian, often hurt, lonely and broken, not only by what they have experienced in life, but by the cold emptiness that they feel when a church surrounded by thousands of people who don’t even know their name. Some churches do recognize that people have issues that need to be addressed and have in-house “Christian Counseling” programs or refer members to “Christian Counseling” services. I think that there certainly is a place for clinically trained therapists in the life of a church; however this is not really pastoral care, even when they use “Biblical” methods. In a sense it is the outsourcing by pastors of one of the most vital missions entrusted to a church, the pastoral care of the flock of God to others, in a sense, “hirelings.” Again my issue is not with the therapists or Christian counselors, but rather pastors who refuse to do pastoral care as part of their ministry.

Ultimately it is people that are important, even those who are not rich, powerful and who have problems that don’t fit nicely into theological boxes or paradigms promoted by church growth experts. It is high time that churches start reclaiming one of the most vital missions given by Jesus to his Disciples, to care for the least, the lost and the lonely. The onus for this falls on pastors who cannot simply outsource one of their primary missions as given by Jesus himself to others. If pastors do not set the example of being caring pastoral care givers, it will not matter that they are supposedly “empowering” laypeople to do ministry. Instead it sends another more ominous message, that if it is not important for the pastor, why should it be important to me? Every member of the church at some time goes through a crisis when their faith, family, health or vocation. Sometimes these are not isolated events but rather prolonged periods of anguish, as what Saint John of the Cross described as “the Dark Night of the Soul” where it seems that God has even abandoned the person. Unfortunately people in this situation are often abandoned by their church as things fail to improve. Despairing they become the lost sheep whose shepherd has abandoned. This is the hardest time for pastoral care, the times where we as pastors are called to stand with someone as Mary the Mother of Jesus did at the Cross, just simply being there though nothing else can be done.

Now do I understand that the demands of running a large church can be sometimes become such that pastors have difficulty making time for pastoral care? Of course I understand this, at the same time pastors, even those who function primarily as pastor-teacher/CEOs still have the responsibility of caring for people, not simply administering programs and preaching. Pastors need to set the example of care for people, real people, the regular Joes and Jane’s who populate their pews, by their books and give to their ministry, even if it is only in small ways, not just the super-givers or the wealthy and powerful. James’s “right strawly epistle” (Martin Luther’s words) has much to say about favoring the rich and powerful and neglecting the poor and seemingly insignificant people hanging about the peanut galleries of their large “Worship Centers.” Even if the pastor has limited time he or she must be about the flock, or they will forget what the needs of the flock really are and instead of the People of God, the lambs who Jesus says to care for they will simply be the consumers of a religious message who we have to keep coming back to keep the operation going.

My sermon is over and I do hope that there will be more “amen’s” than calls for burning me as a heretic.

Peace, Steve+

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Filed under Pastoral Care, philosophy, Religion

Tagged as bill hybels, bob tilton, catholic church, charisma magazine, christian counselors, chronic illness, church, church growth movement, dallas, depression, epsitle of james, home cell groups, hurting people, joel osteen, john 21, lakewood church, luke 15, Martin Luther, mary mother of God, mega-churches, parable of the lost sheep, parish consolidation and closures, parkland memorial hospital, Pastoral Care, pastoral hospital visitation, pastors, people of god, priest shortage, rick warren, right stawly epistle, southwestern baptist theological seminary, st john of the cross, suffering and death, the dark nght of the soul, yandall woodfin

August 3, 2009 · 11:32

Shameless Plug for the Abbey Normal Abbess

The Abess of the Abbey Normal, my wife Judy has posted an incredibly powerful article to her site entitled “You can’t always go home again, but sometimes you stumble upon something pretty close….” I was blwon away by it and found that I had some tears in my eyes. The link is here:

http://abbeynormalabbess.wordpress.com/2009/08/03/you-cant-always-go-home-again-but-sometimes-you-stumble-upon-something-pretty-close/

Peace, Steve+

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August 2, 2009 · 01:13

The Most Exciting Play in the Game- The Electricity of the Inside the Park Home Run

Jeff Fiorentino Connects in July against Charlotte

There is nothing in the world like a home run. From the crack of the bat there is a sudden silence and then, if you are the home team a deafening roar as the crowd reacts to the ball sailing over the fence. Now home runs like this happen every day in baseball, but the “in the Park” home run is something special. You don’t see many of them. Thus when they occur, the effect on the team and the crowd is electrifying. I saw my first inside the park home run tonight as Jeff Fiorentino of the Norfolk Tides hit a tailing line drive to left field which eluded Syracuse Sky Chief’s Left Fielder Jorge Padilla. The ball then went to the wall where it was picked up by Padilla . Fiorentino raced around the bases nearly overtaking Tides Second Baseman Justin Turner and easily beating the relay in to catcher Jhonatan Solano. Fiorentino also scored a run in the first and singled in a run and later scored what turned out to be the winning run in the 8^th giving him 2 hits, 4 RBIs and 3 runs scored and took his average up to .330 on the year moving into third in the International League. The Tides won the game against the Chiefs 8-6. The highlights of the game including Fiorentino’s home run are here:

http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/media/player/mp_tpl.jsp?w=http%3A//mfile.akamai.com/14668/wmv/mlb.download.akamai.com/14668/2009/aaa/nor/video/080109_syrnor_august1.wmv&type=v_free&_mp=1

In the park homers are rare and most of the ones hit in baseball history came during the 19^th Century Era or the “Dead Ball Era” between 1901 and 1919 during which ballpark outfields were much deeper and more spacious than today’s parks meaning that if a ball got by an outfielder there was a good chance that a batter could get around the base paths and score. In the modern era Hank Aaron had only one. A few players have hit them, but they are so rare as to be called “the most exciting play in baseball.” Just to give an example of players in the “500 Club” who have hit inside the park homers, Babe Ruth has ten, Willie Mays six, Barry Bonds and Ken Griffey Junior three each, Sammy Sosa two while Harmon Killebrew and Hank Aaron each have one. Other players to have hit them in recent years include Emilio Bonafacio who hit one on opening day, Howie Kendrick of the Angels who hit one on May 9^th and Carl Crawford hit one in Tampa Bay on July 20^th. Only one has been hit in an All-Star game and that by Ichiro Suzuki in 2007 at AT&T Park in San Francisco. Roberto Clemente has the only “walk off” inside the park grand slam. The last by a Norfolk player was in 2005 by Anderson Hernandez.

Here is a video link to Tigers Curtis Granderson’s 2005 inside the park homer against the Yankees: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TcRaYNtbANA

As I said this was the first inside the park home run that I have ever seen and it was simply an amazing thing of beauty to watch. Patently the Deity Herself ensured I got to see one of these just as I had seen a no-hitter back in 1975. I had been up talking with Elliott the Usher about strategy, players and baseball trivia when Jeff Fiorentino came up to the plate in the bottom of the 6th. I told Elliott that I had to go down to get a picture so I went down by my seat and crouched down in a good catchers stance to stay low and balance myself behind the screen at home plate as I always do when talking my shots. The first pitch was a ball so I readied myself for the next. When Fiorentino hit the ball I knew it would drop for a hit, when it got by Padilla I knew that it was extra bases and when I looked up and saw how fast Jeff was running I knew this was something special. I went back up to Elliott the Usher and we did our high five. We had a scare in the 7^th when the Sky Chiefs score two that were charged to starter David Pauley, but somehow, despite losing the lead I knew that the Tides would come back. In the 8^th they did. Blake Davis had an infield single and advanced to second on a throwing error by shortstop Ian Desmond. He advanced to third on a passed ball. Fiorentino came up again and singled to drive in Davis to tie the score. With Brandon Snyder at the plate Chiefs pitcher Jack Spradlin attempted to pick off Fiorentino but threw wide of the base, Fiorentino alertly advanced all the way to third. Snyder then doubled to score Fiorentino to give the Tides the lead. Melvin Dorta hit a sacrifice fly to right field scoring Snyder. Alberto Castillo came in to close the game sealing the Norfolk win. Sunday evening Radhames Liz (0-2, 6.00) will make his first start for Norfolk since being promoted from Double-A Bowie where he had been sent down to work on control issues in June. Liz has the distinction of being the only current Minor Leaguer to be in the Major League Baseball 100 mph club having done so when called up by the Orioles in 2008. It should be an interesting game.

Peace, Steve+

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Tagged as 100 mph club, 2007 all star game, 500 Club, alberto castillo, babe ruth, barry bonds, blake davis, brandon snyder, Carl Crawford, david pauley, Dead Ball Era, elliott the usher, Emilio Bonafacio, hank aaron, harmon killebrew, Howie Kendrick, Ian Desmond, Ichiro Suzuki, inside the park home runs, jeff fiorentino, Jhonatan Solano, Jorge Padilla, justin turner, ken griffey jr, melvin dorta, norfolk tides, Radhames Liz, Roberto Clemente, sammy sosa, syracuse sky chiefs, willie mays

August 1, 2009 · 13:32

Blowouts…The Days (or years) you want to forget…But Need to Learn From

not a happy camper How I feel after a blowout

It’s no fun to get blown out in any game or life. Losing sucks no matter how you try to cushion it by saying, “well we almost won” or “gee if only we had…” or “they got lucky, we should have won.” Blowouts on the other hand leave you little to console yourself with. You lose and you lose badly. In baseball this usually means that the other team has shredded your pitching staff and that your defense stinks as fielders make fielding and throwing errors, your pitcher throws wild pitches with men on 3^rd and your offense dries up like a West Texas lawn in July. This happened to the Tides Thursday afternoon as they were ripped by Indianapolis 11-3 and it wasn’t that close. Starter Andy Mitchell who entered the game at 9-2 gave up 8 runs in 4 innings work. The Tides hitters didn’t come through after a series of comebacks the previous three games. This happens in the Major Leagues as well. Back on July 22^nd the Athletics beat the Twins 16-1; the 18^th the Braves beat the Mets 11-0 and back on the 6^th the Phillies beat the Reds 22-1. Being on the receiving end of such a whacking is painful. The key is what you do with it. As teams, organizations and individuals everyone will get beaten up once in a while and it takes character and strength to get back out the next day and give it your best when the temptation is to give in to go through the motions and just hope to make it through.

Blowouts in life can come in many ways, health, finances, work situations and relationships. Sometimes they are our own doing and the results of our choices. The times I have had the most problems have often been self inflicted because I couldn’t keep my trap shut when I should have either shut up or found a safe place to vent. In my years in the military and watching baseball I have seen a lot of this. Likewise there are people who live on the edge and consistently do things that are known to be illegal or unethical within their organization or sport and eventually get caught. Unfortunately these are not usually the untalented and unmotivated people whose contribution to their team or work environment is to suck up band width and perfectly good oxygen that others could be using to better effect. The sad thing is that those who push the envelope are often the most talented who have natural ability as well as well as an almost pathological need to be the best. One only has to take a look at Pete Rose who though his “sins” were not on the playing field, was things that no Manager should ever do. His attitude about getting caught was an arrogant display of idiocy which disrespected the game that he contributed so much to and soiled his name and reputation. I hope that he will find redemption in baseball, but the onus is on him to make things right. Likewise with the myriad of players from the steroid era whose names and reputations are ruined by playing this kind of game. I am fortunate in that my outbursts did not cost me my career. There are some I am sure that think little of me because of some of the things I have blown up about over the years and if I could do them over I would do them differently. But I can’t go back and change them now; they are a part of the tangled tapestry of my life just above the Mendoza Line.

Tuesday night I had the overnight duty and because we were short staffed due to injuries and people being out the duty pager went off incessantly throughout the day. It was like a day at Parkland without every call being a code, death or trauma. By noon I felt like a pitcher who was having every batter get a hit, every time I turned around I was rushing off somewhere else. It is funny when you have a feeling about how a day is going to go. By noon I knew that this day would be long and painful, just like a game where the opposition scores early and often. By early evening I was tired, but the hits kept coming and by now almost all were cases out of my comfort zone.

I am by nature a Critical Care, Trauma and Emergency Medicine type of Chaplain. I am just wired that way. I will never be a shrink. I have people all the time ask me or even suggest to me that I get a degree in Counseling or even a Doctorate in Psychology. Now I do think that I would be a good diagnostician, but I couldn’t handle what my friends who are shrinks have to deal with on a daily basis, give me carnage and traumatic tragedy any day of the week, but not persistent pitter-patter of psychological problems.

Now by shrinks I mean Psychiatrists, Psychologists, Therapists, Clinical Social Workers and Psychiatric Nurses. I use the term “Shrink” loosely but with great respect and I do not hesitate to consult with them or refer people to them. I don’t know how they live in that world. The maelstrom of mentally mangled humanity that my friends deal with on a daily basis would have me in a rubber room. Thus when I see patients on medical floors I always read their chart and history because if I am going to go in and visit a patient I prefer to know that they are Borderline, Bi-Polar, Schizophrenic, Paranoid, Clinically Depressed, delusional, suicidal or spermicidal before they suck me into their hellish helix of hopelessness. Knowing these things allows me to stay in my lane, offer appropriate support and actually care for them within my limitations because I do actually have a lot of compassion for the mentally ill or those suffering from even temporary emotional problems. Heck I have PTSD and some amount of anxiety so Elmer the shrink has his work cut out. How can I not feel some amount of compassion for those who have even worse situations? Now there are those who may have some of these conditions who are also maniacally manipulative or pathologically putrid who are not only mentally ill but somewhat or even majorly malevolent. These folks get to me, I have little compassion for people who even if they have issues are simply rotten people who get off on inflicting pain, emotional, spiritual or physical on those around them, to include their shrinks.

Tuesday night my blowout continued as person after person presented not only needing to see a shrink but wanting to deal with God and all they got was me. I was beginning to have some words with the Deity Herself about this but was quickly reminded that she loved them too. Thus my approach was pastoral, supportive and compassionate working within my limitations to ensure that they got the care that they needed without mucking it up for the ER staff or the shrinks. So of course I was dealing with delusional Paranoid Schizophrenics and Borderline cases all night long. By the time I trudged up to the on call room a little after 0400 I was exhausted. My ICU pals were getting a good laugh at my expense and at least I could see the humor in it all. The alarm rang far too early and when I made my duty turnover I felt like a starting pitcher who had been run over inning after inning for the entire start. I hadn’t had a night quite like that since my residency at Parkland. After the turnover I met with my Department Head for a few minutes and he simply said “Steven, go home.” Even my normal “I can’t leave I have work to do” way of doing life had to agree. I knew that I was a spent round.

Coming back after getting run over can be difficult and my next day at work I was rested and had a busy but not terribly stressful day and I was back in my element. No runs, no hits and no errors and no Paranoid Schizophrenics left on base.

How teams come back is interesting. After the drubbing that the Tides took on Thursday they jumped out to an early 4-0 lead against Indianapolis. Starter Troy Patton gave up two runs and in the 6^th Dennis Safrate came on in relief. Sarfate is down on a rehab assignment for the Orioles and got hit hard by the Indians. The Indians sent 12 men to the plate and scored 9 runs in the 6^th off of Sarfate and Russ Wolfe. Down 5 runs and looking at another beating the Tides found it within themselves to score 5 runs to tie the game in the bottom of the 7^th. Robby Hammock led off the bottom of the 8^th with a double, moved to third on a Carlos Rojas sacrifice bunt and was driven in by a Joey Gathright single for the go ahead and ultimately the winning run. Josh Perrualt got the win pitching 2.1 innings of scoreless relief retiring 7 of the 8 batters that he faced. Jeff Fiorentino had 2 hits an RBI and score 2 runs, Joey Gathright had three hits and the game winning RBI and Victor Diz had 2 doubles and 3 RBIs to help the Tides to victory.

Coming back takes work, no matter what you do. My life, especially the time in seminary until the time I entered the Navy was like a player or team who had a decade of tough seasons. When I came in the Navy I was able to turn things around. For the most part I avoid the things that got me in trouble in those years and I have become a lot more skilled at getting through the bumps that I still face. Fighting back after my post Iraq PTSD collapse has been difficult but things are getting better and my life is coming back into balance. Things that were impossible for me to deal with even a few months ago are starting to become manageable. I am coming back and I think that is the key. Blowouts are no fun and personally I don’t like them, but I am starting to find the takeaways that I need in order to come back. Isn’t that the point?

Anyway, tonight the Tides start a 4 game series against the Syracuse Sky Chiefs the AAA affiliate of the Washington Nationals who have a 55-49 record and are in 2^nd place in the International League North. The Tides are now 3 and ½ games out of 1^st in the South Division and a game behind Gwinnett for the Wild Card.

Peace, Steve+

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Tagged as atlanta braves, bi-polar, blow outs, borderline personality disorder, carlos rojas, cincinnati reds, clincally depressed, dennis sarfate, elmer the shrink, harbor park, indianapolis indians, jeff fiorentino, joey gathright, josh perrault, mendoza line, mental illness, minnesota twins, new york mets, norfolk tides, oakland athletics, paranoid, parkland memorial hospital, Pete Rose, philadelphia phillies, psychiatry, psychology, PTSD, robby hammock, russ wolfe, schizophrenic, spermicidal, steriod era, suicidal, victor diaz

July 31, 2009 · 14:55

Going to War: Planes, Pit Stops, Patriots and Pubs… the Flight to Kuwait

WWII Troopship USS Cape San Juan 1943

Going to war now days is certainly different than it was a generation or two back. Back in World War II and Korea the primary manner in which troops deployed to and returned from war was on a troopship. Troopships in the Second World War ranged in size from the great British Ocean Liners the Queen Elizabeth and Queen Mary down to small and often ancient passenger ships. As the war went on the United States adapted a number of ship designs to serve as troop transports as well as built ships specifically designed to transport troops to combat. There was one thing that all of these ships from the might Queen’s to the lowliest tramp steamer had in common was that they were really crowded. Every in of space that could be made to fit a bunk was used. The Queens, which in peacetime might carry 1500-2000 passengers routinely carried up to 15,000 troops. Talk about cramped quarters, these ships made the steerage passengers on the Titanic look like executive class travelers. The smaller the ship the worse the ride and many times soldiers would spend their entire voyage seasick.

qeen mary troops Troops on RMS Queen Mary

Well times have changed. We still have ships that carry troops, amphibious ships that can hit from both sides of the plate which carry the Marine Corps Expeditionary Units on their deployments. However, it is seldom that much more than a MEU is ever carried to a war zone. In the Gulf War and Build up from OIF a good number of Marines were brought over that way, however many of these in the Gulf War never went ashore and were kept at sea to keep the Iraqis thinking that they would be used in an amphibious operation. The bulk of the troops who have deployed since Vietnam have done so by air, either military aircraft operated by the Air Force such as C-130s, C-141’s, C-5A Galaxy’s and C-17 Globemaster’s or alternatively civilian contract aircraft mostly run by non-scheduled airlines which specialize in just this sort of thing. Airlines such as World Airways, North American Airlines, Miami Air, and the now defunct ATA have been the primary carriers of troops dating back to Vietnam while other commercial airlines also do charter work. When large numbers of aircraft the DOD activates the CRAF, the Civilian Reserve Air Fleet, which is composed of aircraft from the major airlines used on an emergency basis.

world airways dc10 World Airways DC-10

The military and chartered aircraft are the closest things now in the world of transportation to the old troopships. On military aircraft troops often fly with cargo in large cavern like fuselages on seats that can be reconfigured to about any way imaginable. The -17 is the luxury bird of the military air fleet, but certainly not a paragon of comfort when fully load with troops and gear. Of course the military aircraft were designed for utility and maximum use of passenger and cargo space. The charter aircraft are a different matter. Most of the aircraft used regularly by the charter carriers for deployments are older DC-10s, B-757s and occasionally a B-767 or L-1011. With rare exception these aircraft are configured to get the most passengers on the aircraft, comfort is not terribly important. There is no such thing in these aircraft as a true “First Class or Business Class section, merely front of the aircraft or back. The seats are the same and as far as leg room there is no such thing as “Economy Plus.” Simply put we are in steerage almost any time we get on one of these aircraft.

We loaded our gear onto waiting trucks at Fort Jackson and boarded military operated “Blue Bird” buses like you send your kids to school on. Unlike your kid’s bus these are white and driven by soldiers that are in some kind of transient status or Army civilians. The air conditioning on a hot and humid southern day is asthmatic at best, especially when the busses are full of troops who are much bigger than the kids these buses are designed to carry. I guess it could be worse; we could be traveling in the old un-air conditioned cattle cars. When we got to the airport we did not go to the commercial side, but rather to the private side. Our aircraft, a white World Airways DC-10 sat on the strip in front of the tiny and woefully undersized terminal where most of us ended up waiting in the open and un air conditioned hanger, our Desert Uniforms sticking to our bodies in the sultry South Carolina summer. We formed up, the baggage trucks arrived with our sea bags and we were organized into teams to load the aircraft. You guessed it, no airline staff to do this, just us. Now since there were a couple of hundred of us finding enough people to do the work was not much of a problem. Nelson and I both volunteered and with the others we stripped off our tops and in our brown t-shirts we organized for the task. The small guys like me and Nelson got to go up into the belly of the aircraft where we waited for guys on the ground to send the bags up the conveyor. Bag after bag they came, most were the tradition sea bag or duffel bag, but others like Nelson and my bags were oddly shaped and some were even large cases issued by individual’s units. Weapons cases were also loaded, each weapon locked inside a lowest bidder plastic case that certainly would not last more than a few trips across the pond. As we loaded the aircraft a rain shower passed by, the humidity was atrocious and the heat did not subside very much. Eventually Nelson looked at me and asked, “Boss you alright?” I assured him that I was and we kept loading the aircraft until there were no more bags to load, shoving bags and stacking them so that nearly every inch of space was taken in the baggage compartment.

One done loading we mustered again. The pilots arrived and began their inspection of the aircraft. At this point we were informed that there was a mechanical problem and that we would have to wait. A couple of more hours waiting around the terminal we finally began to board the aircraft. Finally we got underway and found that we had to make another stop. We had to land at Pope Air Force Base in order to pick up an Army Transportation unit heading into theater. The flight up was short and we expected that after a short delay we would again be in the air. We were wrong. We de-boarded the plane to allow it to be fueled. As we waited in the terminal, once again a rather Spartan affair we found that the crew had exceeded their allowed flight or work hours and that we would have to remain overnight. Unfortunately the contracting staff at the Air Mobility Command had not anticipated this situation and we were stuck. We had already been up most of the day and there were no sleep facilities in this terminal except wooden benches and concrete floors. With our gear loaded aboard the plane and unavailable it looked like things would not go well. Vending machines were quickly emptied and like any sailors marooned anywhere we made the best of things. Sailors broke out decks of cards, DVD video players, made phone calls home or found places to try to sleep on the benches or against terminal walls.

At first it didn’t look like we would be getting any assistance from the Air Force. However, we were fortunate to have as our senior officer and Officer in Charge a Navy Captain who was a jet fighter pilot and wasn’t going to let “his” sailors let overnight in such conditions while still in the United States. After a while our Captain secured box lunches and pillows. He then continued to push and eventually some contracting weenie was rustled out of his waterbed and got us rooms at a Hampton Inn somewhere in Fayetteville. As the hands on the dial of my watch worked their way past midnight the ubiquitous Blue Bird buses pulled up to the terminal. A few people elected to stay behind and for some unknown reason the Air force required some of our sailors to watch the aircraft. Mind you they could only watch it. Our weapons were stowed in the belly of the aircraft. The irony was that the airfield a Pope is secured by USAF Air Police and probably one of the most secure places in the area. The Captain lost that argument and a number of sailors volunteered to remain along with sailors who had somehow made themselves comfortable and didn’t want to move. In my younger days I would have been with them, but I had tried to sleep on those same benches when I went to Jordan earlier in the year I knew that I couldn’t hang with them.

The rest of us mustered again, accountability checks were made and we loaded ourselves on the buses. T rip took about 15 minutes and we were deposited at the hotel. It was about 0130 by this time. The hotel staff was great. Since like our toiletries like most everything else we owned were safely secured in the belly of our aircraft we were now tired, hungry again and pretty stinky. The hotel night manager opened up his stocks and gave us toothpaste, tooth brushes and shavers. He also gave away snacks. I think I got a muffin out the deal. We stood in line and since there were a lot more of us than rooms we were assigned 4 to a room and at 0200. My roommates were four youngish junior officers. There were two beds and a cot in the room, and since none of us wanted to share a full size bed, something I think was a good idea not to do, two got the beds, one got the cot and the third grabbed all the extra linen and a comforter and lay down on the floor. The young guys deferred to my age when I volunteered for the floor, they told me that “because you are a lot older than us sir you get a bed.” I felt like applying for the AARP at that moment but I took a bed which felt really good as I sunk into it and passed out.

We had to be up early to head back to the airfield, the time in bed was too short but better than I had hoped and the shower was great. I felt almost human and was glad that I had packed a clean undershirt socks and briefs in my backpack. We got back to the terminal and box lunch breakfasts were on hand. We still had about 4 hours before the flight and it was Sunday morning so Chaplain Fauntleroy and Chaplain Rodriquez and I arranged to conduct two services. Kyle and Dave did a more Evangelical style service while I celebrated a short field Eucharist. We did this outside the terminal, the weather was not too bad, and probably half of the sailors as well as a good number of the soldiers who had joined us participated. Since there was no Catholic Priest my service was better attended than I thought it would be as in such times I usually pick up a few Episcopalians, Anglicans and Lutherans and maybe a stray Catholic. In these settings I do not interrogate the people that show up as to their background, I do ask that if they are not baptized Christians not to partake of the Eucharist, but figure that God and His grace in the Sacrament will do what needs to be done. I learned this from a Missouri Synod Lutheran Chaplain in Germany supporting the Bosnia operation. Since the Missouri Synod practices “closed communion” meaning that you have to be Missouri Synod to take communion in their church I asked what he did in field settings or chapels where it was not a denominational service. He told me, with great wisdom “Steve, you have to trust that God’s grace in the Sacrament will do His work.” That was an epiphany and I have never forgotten it.

The services concluded we again mustered and finally were able to board the aircraft. We had a stop at Portland Maine to refuel the aircraft in preparation for the trans-Atlantic flight. Now this is a highlight for any serviceman or women being deployed or returning home. The folks in Portland, veterans groups like the VFW, American Legion, Fleet Reserve and Marine Corps League have banded together to meet flights as they come in. They have been given a space in the terminal in which they have computers, cell phones, land line phones and calling cards for troops. They also hand out small “goodie” bags with snacks and home baked cookies. These folks and their counterparts at the former Pease Air Force Base are amazing. It is an example of small town America at its best. Some are World War II vets, others from Korea, Vietnam and Desert Storm. They are still others who have never served but feel an obligation to help. They span the political, religious and ethnic spectrum of the country. After they personally greeted each of us as we entered the terminal, they had a small ceremony and thanked us for our service. Many engaged us in conversation and their hospitality was simply amazing. The Maine Troop Greeters have greeted over 800,000 troops from over 4000 flights in the past six years. They are Patriots in their own right and what they did for us was amazing. I felt a wave of emotion go across my and my eyes get a bit moist as these wonderful people, young and old greeted us, shook our hands and blessed us. It is something that until you experience it you cannot comprehend and I wish that the men and women who served in Vietnam had been greeted like this. It makes you feel that you are not completely alone.

maine troop greeters 1

maine troop greeters 3 Maine Troop Greeters

Eventually I decided to wander the terminal to see what was available. I saw a small pub which featured the local micro-brew ale which our good Captain permitted us to have since we were still in the Continental United States. I had a sandwich and chips as well as two pints of this local Amber Ale which would be my last drink until the Marine Corps Birthday in Ramadi. The brew was quite good and if I saw it again I would probably buy some. We were then called back to the aircraft. Our flight to Germany was uneventful and we landed deep in the night in Leipzig where a small area had been set up for refreshments, souvenirs, television, games and internet access. We were not allowed any alcohol at this stop as we were now under an 8 hour flight to Kuwait. Our stop completed we got back on the aircraft for the flight to Kuwait which awaited us with temperatures of 120-135 degrees. Something that I wonder how the Deity Herself allows unless it is to give us a chance to preview hell.

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July 29, 2009 · 22:31

Breaking Slumps and Losing Streaks

Fiorentino HR against Colon Jeff Fiorentino, seen here Hitting a Home Run off Bartolo Colon has Come up Big for the Norfolk Tides in 2009

The Norfolk Tides came home Tuesday after their worst road trip of the season in which they fell behind both the Durham Bulls and Gwinett Braves. When things are not going well for a team, organization or individual it seems that events almost conspire against them. It was that way for the Tides, errors and bad decisions at the plate, on the base paths and the field plagued them over the road trip. The problems continued on Tuesday where the Tides lost their 9^th of the last 10 games. Now it was not that the team was bad, they made some great comebacks but fell short each time sometimes in heartbreaking ways.

Tonight after getting out to an early lead the Tides were behind 5-2 in the bottom of the 7^th. Elliott the Usher and I as well as Barry the Scorekeeper wondered what was happening. It seemed that there was no energy on the team. Unfortunately when a team, organization, military unit or individual gets on a losing streak it is hard to get motivated, especially when you come close but come up short. I remember being told in my Pastoral Care Residency that I had to stop believing that things were going to be difficult or that I would always come up short. My supervisor told me that I had the power to actually envision a positive future and make things happen to see it come into being. Now I have always been a fighter and even a survivor, but being a survivor doesn’t necessarily make you a winner.

The Tides picked up 2 in the 7^th as Robby Hammock led off with a hit and Tides hitters Blake Davis, Joey Gathright and Jeff Fiorentino brought the runs across with key hits. Brandon Snyder singled to drive in Victor Diaz and tie the game the game in the 8^th. Tides reliever Alberto Castillo came in at the top of the 9^th and shut down the Indians after getting into a jam after giving up a hit and an error by 3^rd Baseman Brandon Snyder.

Sometimes the key to breaking a losing streak is in how one player can raise help lift the team. Following the promotion of Matt Wieters, Nolan Reimold and Oscar Salazar to the Orioles and the loss of Scott Moore, Jolbert Cabrerra to season ending injuries and temporary absences to injury of Justin Turner and Joey Gathright, it was Jeff Fiorentino that stepped up. He now stands near the top of the International League in hitting with a .315 batting average and has been a clutch player offensively and defensively. Tonight Jeff went four for four with a walk, drove in a run in the 7^th. Hecame to bat with one out in the 9^th to single to drive Justin Turner in for the winning run. It broke the losing streak and hopefully will begin a rebound for the Tides. Since the Tides have played well the bulk of the season even allowing for significant numbers of call ups and injuries it is well possible that they will turn things around. It was significant that other Tides were involved in the comeback and that instead of giving in to going through the motions they came together to win. The team still has a lot of heart and character and still can only continue to get better.

May we all do the same, with a little help from the Deity Herself.

On a side note, Tides pitcher Chris Tillman had his first Major League start in Baltimore against Kansas City. He had a no decision but the Orioles won the game 7-3. Former Tides relievers Matt Albers came in in the 5th to hold the Royals and Jim Johnson got the save. Baltimore continues to get great performance out of the pitchers called up from Norfolk this year.

Peace, Steve+

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Tagged as alberto castillo, baltimore Orioles, barry the scorekeeper, brandon snyder, chris tillman, durham bulls, elliott the usher, gwinnett braves, indianapolis indians, international league, jeff fiorentino, jim johnson, joey gathright, jolbert Cabrera, justin turner, matt albers, matt wieters, nolan Reimold, norfolk tides, oscar salazar, robby hammock, scott moore, victor diaz

July 27, 2009 · 20:45

Going to War: Ministry amid Training

Two years ago my group of Individual Augmentees was leaving Ft Jackson South Carolina on the way to Kuwait, which was our final training site before going on to our assignments in Iraq, Afghanistan, Kuwait and other locations in the CENTCOM Area of Operations. In the two weeks prior to our departure we received training in a number of areas, especially weapons which I was exempted from as a Chaplain, though I did fire the crew served weapons for the fun of it. I wasn’t always a chaplain and have a hard time not enjoying a Mk 19 Automatic Grenade Launcher, M-240 series machine gun or the classic .50 caliber Machine Gun. Since I used to call in 155mm Artillery fire these are little guns, but still fun to play with. When you are chaplain and are exempted from actual training it does not mean that it is time to go to the Food Court at the Post Exchange to chow down on Pizza and Ice Cream. Ministry abounds if you want to go hang out. One of the fun things about hanging out with Navy guys unfamiliar with small arms is to watch them trying to clean them and get them past an Army armorer in an Arms Room. To see the looks of shock as my fellow sailors brought back their M-16s and M-9s for more cleaning. They had not yet learned the dirty little secret that a good armorer can find things dirty on a weapon that you didn’t even know existed. It was at this point with me calmly pointing out tricks of the trade that a physician who I had gotten to know looked at me and said: “Chaplain, you were in the Army weren’t you?” He looked at me as several others who had just had their weapons rejected stopped what they were doing and waited for my response.

I was kind; I acknowledged that indeed I had served in the Army and that I was not always a Chaplain. I then looked at the physician and said “Give me the weapon.” I took it from him, broke it down and gave a quick lecture on how to clean a weapon of the M-16 series. The dirty secret on these things is that you almost never get your weapon through the inspector on the first try. There are more places for carbon to hide on an M-16 than places you can find Waldo. Thus a good inspector knowing that he has a bunch of novices coming through simply rejects every weapon. I think that it builds character. I showed those around me all the little places where carbon was hiding on this officer’s weapon and how to get it clean to pass inspection. Knowing such things gives you additional “street cred” as a chaplain as you go off to war. It shows that you care about what your guys have to do enough to teach them. This is really vital when your Navy or Air force guys are training with the Army. It opened doors to ministry with these men and women. So if any of my deploying friends need some pointers on the care and feeding of an M-16 let me know.

Additionally, ministry seems to happen when you stay engaged with people. I was blessed that two additional chaplains, Commander Kyle Fauntleroy and Command Dave Rodriguez who were heading off to manage the “Warrior Transition” program in Kuwait. Together we figured out how best to care for our sailors including how we did services as well as counseling. We had a pretty good amount of business. It seems that life and tragedy happens even in training. We had a young hospital corpsman who was diagnosed with Leukemia during our first week there. Both the Navy chain of command and Army trainers expected us, in between and after training to make sure that she and her family were cared for. Other sailors found out that their husbands, wives or significant others were cheating on them. Still others were hurt in training accidents and could not deploy. In every case one or more of us took care of the sailor in question. It was a community of individuals that for a brief two weeks began to gel together despite the fact that when the training was completed we would go separate directions, some for more training at other bases and others directly to the Middle East.

Apart from the young woman with Leukemia the most notable thing that I got to do was baptize a young Navy Reserve Intelligence Officer who had been raised in the Episcopal Church but who’s parents had forgotten to have him baptized…oops. The subject came up when he became engaged to a Catholic girl. He needed to prove that he was a baptized Christian, only problem when he went to his parish they could find no record. So he inquired of his parents when he learned of the “oops we should have done that” situation. I like to baptize people, they way we do it you don’t have to wear hip-waders or make up anything because it is all in the Prayer Book so it’s not that hard. So I did it on our last Sunday morning with his fiancé present. It was really cool. The young officer had the bunk next to me in the barracks so we had gotten to know each other during conversations as we checked or put together equipment, packed gear, washed clothes or went to chow. He was very smart and friends as well as unassuming. When asked what he did in civilian life he simply said that he worked intelligence and foreign policy in DC. I figured as most would infer that the young man was with the CIA or DIA or some other outfit. We saw each other a couple of times as Nelson and I traveled about Al Anbar Province the last time in the Wal-Mart sized chow hall number three at Al Asad as we waited for a flight out west. After I returned and was having my PTSD meltdown I found that the young man was then Senator Barak Obama’s senior National security adviser. We had stayed in touch in the following months but finding out this was a surprise. We have remained in touch and he now serves as Chief of Staff for the National Security Council. I think it’s cool that he is up there working with General Jones on the NSC. He’s a good man who despite his high position remains active in the Naval Reserve. He is doing well in his marriage and remains in contact with guys like me. It makes me even more prayerful for him as he advises the NSC and President. It was one of those moments when I knew that the Deity Herself had placed me in a person’s life that due to his office needs prayer more than we can imagine.

Ministry of all types continued to happen our entire time at Fort Jackson, we dealt with family deaths, birth notifications and medical emergencies. We counseled, prayed and assisted sailors in need and looked out for each other. Nelson was engaged not only receiving training but also giving it having run something like 400 convoys in Afghanistan. He ended up as one of the honor graduates and won a leadership award from the Army staff. It is really great to have an assistant of Nelson’s caliber when you go to war. As we got ready to leave Ft Jackson my young friend went off for more specific training at another base with many of the other Intelligence Officers and specialists. Nelson and I packed up our gear, stacked it and helped load trucks which would take us to our flight.

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Tagged as baptism, barak obama, cia, dia, fort jackson sc, general james jones, m-16 rifle, m-9 pistol, ministry, national security council, nelson lebron, PTSD, weapons cleaning, weapons training

July 26, 2009 · 23:59

The Forgotten Cold Warriors

Checkpoint Charlie in the Berlin Crisis

Note: As a follow up to this Article I posted “20 Years: The Fall of the Berlin Wall and the End of the Cold War” to this site. The link to that article is here:

https://padresteve.wordpress.com/2009/11/08/20-years-the-fall-of-the-berlin-wall-and-the-end-of-the-cold-war/

From the Berlin Blockade and until the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991 American, British, NATO and Asian Allies waged a Cold War against their Soviet and Warsaw Pact Countries, North Korea and at times China and Vietnam. The war was a world war, fought by the major powers, their alliances and proxies throughout the world. It was a world of gray areas where soldiers, sailors, airmen as well as Special Forces and intelligence agencies from both sides attempted to gain dominance over the world through political, military, economic, diplomatic and intelligence means and through use of surrogates. Sometimes the war turned hot as in Korea, Vietnam and for the Soviet Union Afghanistan.

The conflict found its way to almost every corner of the earth and the world lived on edge wondering if the superpowers and their allies would end up in a hot war. US and NATO Navies played a cat and mouse game with the Red Navy both under the sea and upon the waters. Sometimes this war turned deadly as US and Red Navy Submarines disappeared and were never heard from again amid circumstances like those of the USS Scorpion that are still debated. On the high seas US and NATO ships shadowed each other and occasionally played a game of chicken where ships collided attempting to gain advantage as they undertook surveillance missions or shadowed task forces. Spy ships from both sides plied the seas collecting any type of information on their opponent’s operations. In the air spy aircraft maintained a ready vigil with US SR-71s and U-2s flying missions over the Soviet Union. Soviet Bear and Backfire Bombers probed the airspace of the United States and Canada and NATO forces at sea who responded by sending up interceptors. In the closed confines of the Mediterranean the Navies sparred while a in the Middle East and North Africa both sides sought dominance through treaties with the surrounding nations who moved from Western to Soviet and Soviet to Western orbit as they deemed fit. Ideology and behavior of these client regimes was less important than having them in your camp, creating a surreal world of moral ambiguity in the shadow realm of alliances.

In divided Germany NATO and Warsaw Pact Forces faced off in a tense standoff along the inter-German Border and where millions of troops planned and trained for a hot war on the Fulda Gap and Northern German Plain which would include the use of Nuclear, Biological and Chemical weapons. West Berlin was an island surrounded by the Olive uniformed Red Army and Field Gray of the German Democratic Republic. A similar watch was maintained on the Korean DMZ. In Africa, Asia, South and Central America, the Indian Subcontinent and the Middle East forces of the major powers worked with allies and surrogates to gain advantage. The Soviets blockaded West Berlin while in response to the placement of Soviet missiles in Cuba the US imposed a naval blockade. The CIA sponsored a failed attempt by Cuban expatriates to land at the Bay of Pigs. The Soviets toppled governments and put down revolts in Hungary and Czechoslovakia while maintaining a system of Gulags at home. Even international sporting events became occasions where each side used propaganda to show itself off to the world as the ideal society. All of this occurring while the world lived under the constant threat of intentional or unintentional nuclear war. In missile silos and aboard Nuclear Ballistic Missile Submarines and manned bombers men stood by to push buttons and turn keys that could have ended the world as we know it.

763px-USS_Yorktown_collision Soviet Krivak Class Frigate Intentionally Colliding with USS Yorktown CG-48 in the Black Sea 1988

Casualties were taken, even in places where the war was not “hot.” Soldiers, Sailors, Marines, Airmen and Intelligence Service personnel undertook missions that are still classified the details of which they cannot reveal to this day. Some suffer from PTSD from their involvement in and guilt over missions that they cannot reveal. Men from both sides know that the weapons systems that they were involved with killed men on the other side in operations that will never be known. American Veterans of the Cold War have been ignored by the country. Russian Veterans have been forgotten as the Soviet Union crashed down on itself. Countries spanning the globe bear the scars of the “hot” Cold War waged on their soil. The results of the Cold War are still with us. The West celbrated the collapse of the Soviet Empire but failed to make the new Russia a full member of the new world causing resentment which still boils today influencing Russian policy toward the West.

I met a man recently in hospital who was one of these veterans. Tormented by the demons of operations he cannot reveal he suffers from physical and emotional wounds. He is not alone. There are many like him. I do not suffer from my Cold War Service. I served as a platoon leader, company executive officer and company commander in Germany in the mid-1980s. If a war had broken out along the Fulda Gap my Chrysler Corporation bailout Dodge M-886 Ambulances with no communications systems adorned with bright red “mobile registration points’ were to be involved with reconstituting units which were expected to take 90% casualties. We trained for chemical and biological warfare. The maps used in my NBC defense officer course showed the housing area in which I lived. We lived in a world of alerts where within two hours we had to be ready to head to war. A world where Soviet spies operated and recruited Americans and where the German Red Brigade Terrorists bombed housing areas, clubs and even the Main Frankfurt PX, where we were on our way to when Judy felt sick and we had to return home. Occasionally American Servicemen were murdered by Soviet Agents or Red Brigade Terrorists. This was life for those stationed in Germany as well as South Korea.

I have been in East Berlin and was surprised as hell to see the Berlin Wall come down. I have been to the Korean DMZ and the Northeast Gate of Guantanamo Bay Cuba. I call it the “Commie trifecta.” Without the Berlin Wall there are only two places where the US faces a Communist state directly. Yet my time in a “hot” war has been in Iraq, I remember the days of the Cold War from childhood through my early Army career.

Cold War Veterans are the last forgotten Veterans group in the United States or even Russia. Their sacrifices are not recognized. The US belatedly issued a Cold war Service certificate for its veterans, but vets have to deal with a system that makes it difficult to even obtain a piece of paper that says “thank you” which gives them no other benefit. The certificate is available to any person who worked for the Federal Government, including temporary holiday employees of the US Postal Service and does not mention military service. A Cold Service Medal was constantly fought by DOD during the last administration as too costly to support at this time. The Cold War Service Medal last appeared in the FY 2008 DOD spending bills but was cut. With the present demands on the military in the current wars and the fact that the cost of any award would come out of DOD’s budget it is unrealistic to expect this any time soon as it would cut into the funds needed to fight this war. At the same time these Veterans have no memorial and no status. While their war was not “hot” it was world wide, lasted 40 years with many casualties. Yes I agree it was not a hot war and that many who served in it were not in combat. At the same time the Cold War veterans helped give the world a chance at a new beginning in 1991, unfortunately that has been squandered by governments around the world including the US government, but that is not the fault of those who stood the watch. Someday they should be recognized.

Me on the East German Side of the Berlin Wall, November 1986

I have my medals from Iraq, the War on Terror and Korean Defense service. I do believe that those men who stood the watch and many times paid with their lives or health should be recognized. Other countries have done so. I wonder why a few dollars per medal cannot be spent on men and women who served on the front line of freedom for 40 years. At the same time I understand that the costs of any such Medal would be born by DOD which is strapped to fight the ongoing wars. I don’t think it realistic to have the money spent now, but maybe when the dust finally clears and these conflicts subside someone will take the time to remember these men and women.

The gentleman I saw recently never got a thank-you, never got a parade, and never was able to talk about the things that haunted him. I wonder just how many more are waiting for the chance to come in from the cold. If you know one of them, thank them for thier service and if they are one of those suffering from their service take care of them.

Peace, Steve+

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Filed under History, Loose thoughts and musings, Military, national security

Tagged as Army, backfire bomber, ballistic missile submarines, bear bomber, berlin blockade, berlin wall, checkpoint charlie, cold war, cold war service medal, cuban missile crisis, fulda gap, german democratic republic, icbm, korea, korean dmz, krivak class frigate, nato, nbc defense, nbc warfare, nuclear war, red brigade terrorists, red navy, soviet union, SR-71, U-2 spy plane, US Navy, uss yorktown cg-48, warsaw pact

July 25, 2009 · 23:46

Offensively Offending the Chronically Offended

We live in a country that has transformed itself into one of the thinnest skinned, easily offended and offendable bunch of folks in the world. It doesn’t seem to matter what political affiliation, religion, race, gender, socio-economic group or Dodger’s fan a person is now days they are bound to be offended at something. However, we now seem to live where almost everyone is offended at something and it matters not a whit what it may be, hell I even offend myself sometimes. There are some people who almost seem to live with a chip on their shoulder. They are the chronically offended who are quite often easily offensively offended. While most of the time trying not to give offense I have been known to offend the chronically offended, the merely offendable, and even the totally unaware with twisted or sarcastic comments and oddball humor which Judy tells me is not always as funny as I think it is. Nonetheless there are patently many people who are both chronically offended and very angry. I am assured by the Deity Herself that such is not a good and virtuous combination. Especially on those occasions when I am one of the guilty parties questioning the parentage and Oedipal tendencies of the idiots who move across four lanes of traffic without signaling on I-264. At times I wish this was Iraq in 2007 so my turret gunner or RP2 Lebron could shoot them. Thankfully my newly honed skills using the force that I developed in Iraq, which I am told is actually hyper vigilance, does allow me to sense and avoid these Kamikazes before I even see them.

I remember once when I was a civilian hospital chaplain and stopped by a grocery store to pick up some food to take to work. An older gentleman was going toward the sliding automated door and out of simple politeness I said “Sir, please, after you.” Hell, the way I walk, which is as those who see me rapidly racing down the long halls of our medical center without breaking into a jog can testify is pretty fast, it was a safety thing too. I could have run the gentleman down had I not stopped to let him through first. That would not have been cool. I could have seen the newspaper headline in that town:

LOCAL HOSPITAL AND ARMY RESERVE CHAPLAIN SLAMS ELDERLY MAN TO GROUND TRYING TO BEAT HIM THROUGH KROGER DOOR

That would not have been good. The man, instead of smiling and thanking me stops in front of the door, turns around and says: “Why are you calling me sir? Why are you disrespecting me?” He said it very loud, very sharply and I was wondering what the hell was going on. So I kind of defused the situation by using humor. I said, “Sir, I call everybody sir, even ma’ams.” The man cocked his head, gave me the most confused look that I could imagine shook his head and went through the door. I didn’t know that being polite and respectful could be taken as offensive and disrespectful. Maybe when some young guy does that to me someday I will understand. Of course only after whack him with my tazer from my motorized scooter because I think he is being disrespectful and watch him writhing in pain and twitching all over the place.

I knew a young Chaplain who was spouting off in a public forum once in a manner that did not offend me, but which I thought if certain other people read it could affect him and his career in a negative manner. This is no one that I have worked with past or present, only someone that I happen to know in passing. I was concerned for the young man, so I contacted him just to let him know to be careful. I was surprised at the venom with which he reacted to my comment which was only meant to help keep him out of potential trouble. No good deed goes unpunished. Maybe he will go to a self-help course, but then again, selves are very difficult to help.

Now I think everyone at some time has been offended by something or someone. Crap we are human; we can’t help but be, though I do find the Romulan that resides in me very appealing. However, to live my life is a perpetual state of offendedness is something that I refuse to do, even though I both give and take offense probably every day, especially during the morning or afternoon commute. Hell, judging by the number of people I have lost as friends on Facebook after I have written articles on this site I know I give offense, even when I don’t mean to. Mea Culpa, mea culpa, mea culpa, pray for me a sinner.

Our offendedness is not helped by the litigious nature of our society where lawsuits are as common as business suits. Someone gets offended and someone sues them. Then someone else gets offended and sues and pretty soon Anne Coulter and Keith Olberman are mud wrestling on Larry King Live, while the ladies on The View come to fisticuffs. Pretty soon offensensitivity reigns and it is like half the country are Frank and Estelle Costanza. What is bad about this is that people are now so spun up by the loudest and most shrill accusatory voices in the media and society that it is hard to turn off. Politics especially has become venom filled and hatred driven. A lot of our electorate is now so polarized and offended by anything anyone else says that there is almost a civil war going on. Albeit this is a without weapons marching armies and crashing cannon, but instead one waged with great energy on the airwaves and the internet. There is occasional talk of secession or armed revolt by one side or the other depending on who’s in power. Politicians and political parties are no longer opponents, they are mortal enemies. Often times interest groups within the various parties opt for a no-quarter approach to how they do business to advance their cause and push their parties further to the extreme. Caricatures and sound bites suffice for truth for many people regardless of them being on the left or right wing of the body politic. It is true at least as far as practice that the extremists in both major parties have more in common with each other than they do the middle where traditionally most Americans live.

Thus with a highly divided, hypersensitive and easily offended populace we are heading for big trouble unless people stop taking themselves so seriously and get about with finding a way to cooperate and make things work. I know that is important to remain principled, but there is also a duty to be civil and respectful even when critical of a person’s position or presentation.

I was reminded of this fact recently when I criticized a pastor’s non-theological remarks on this site. My criticism was unduly harsh and cynical in tone. When this was pointed out I modified the article to make the same point without purposely sky lining the individual in what could be seen in a disrespectful, uncharitable and even un-Christian fashion. I may be a passionate moderate but it is important for me to keep a sense of decorum in what otherwise could be an unseemly brawl. The criticism of how I handled the initial post was valid and sometimes I have to tell myself that restraint, respect and civility is a virtue, even if I think I am right. So please don’t take offense if you deem me offensive or if I have offended the chronically offendable. After all, restraint, respect and civility are one the one thing that separates us from the Cable News Media, prickly pundits and Talk Show Hosts.

Peace, Steve+

Post Script: A friend sent me an e-mail which made a point that I want to ensure that my readers understand. He reminded me that people “would really discern the difference between having a “bad day” response to a situation and those who, perpetuate the historical hatred both past and present of our nation….And then attempt to minimize actions/responses through humor or referring to others as “hypersensitive….this article missed the mark and seemingly inferred …a mocking of responses toward inequality and hatred.”

Of course I assured him that in no way was I at all minimize such actions or refer to those who have been the target of hatred, injustice and discrimination as “hyper-sensitive” or mock actual repsonses to inequity and hatred, regardless of who it is directed toward. That is something that I could never do. The post is a more humorous look at how divided our country has become and how in our dividedness everything is now offensive to someone. Peace, Steve+

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Filed under Loose thoughts and musings, philosophy, Political Commentary

Tagged as anne coulter, bloom county, chaplains, dodgers, facebook, frank and estelle costanza, i-264, iraq, kamikazes, keith olberman, larry king live, offensensitivity, opus, politicians, romulans, turret gunner

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Flooding! Flooding! Flooding! When Water pours from the Ceiling and Padre Steve Gets to Write a Sports Blog

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The Most Exciting Play in the Game- The Electricity of the Inside the Park Home Run

Blowouts…The Days (or years) you want to forget…But Need to Learn From

Going to War: Planes, Pit Stops, Patriots and Pubs… the Flight to Kuwait

Breaking Slumps and Losing Streaks

Going to War: Ministry amid Training

The Forgotten Cold Warriors

Offensively Offending the Chronically Offended

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