ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1997, Roanoke Times
DATE: Wednesday, April 23, 1997 TAG: 9704230011
SECTION: EDITORIAL PAGE: A-10 EDITION: METRO
TYPE: LETTERS
Suffering the mental scars of war
YOUR MARCH 30 Horizon section article (``Horrors of World War II returning to haunt veterans'') on the sudden onslaught of nightmares and other psychological problems of older veterans of World War II was timely and accurate.
The Department of Veterans Affairs has done extensive research on post-traumatic stress disorder. Unfortunately, for World War II veterans, results of this research and its therapeutic application have only recently become available.
Many of us suffered for decades with nightmares, claustrophobia, panic attacks and loud-noise phobias, as well as with undiagnosed, disabling and mysterious disorders - not knowing they were related to our war experiences.
Your article could possibly be misleading in one important aspect. The VA research indicates that the time the combatant was under stress is the most important factor in producing PTSD. Suffering veterans could be led to believe that unless they saw their buddy's head blown off or saw dismembered bodies, their suffering is still a mystery.
I saw dismembered bodies, but other stresses of four years at sea were greater in terms of psychological consequences. For me, it was constant tension and responsibility; going eight months without spending a night ashore; the possibility of making a mistake that would run the ship into a minefield; collisions and fire aboard ships in convoy; failing to properly communicate with spotters on shore who needed our guns to save their lives; sleepless days; living in quarters more crowded than any prison; seeing sister ships bombed, torpedoed and sunk by the enemy; and the pervasive, but subconscious, abhorrence of being in the business of killing.
May all World War II veterans with strange symptoms described in your article take heed and seek help.
ROBERT WOODDALL
SALEM
Gordon's contributions have been many
I SUGGEST that Don Terp, candidate for the Roanoke County Board of Supervisors, direct his interest to what he can do to support the citizens of Roanoke County instead of trying to make an issue of the residence of Dr. Deanna Gordon, superintendent of Roanoke County Schools (April 4 news article, ``Roanoke County officials' residence may be election issue'').
Gordon has dedicated 36 years to serving Roanoke County, and has made a positive impact on the students and the county school system.
She and her husband donate a considerable amount of money each year for a scholarship to a student at the Roanoke County Career Center. They also donate to their church, United Way of Roanoke Valley, the American Red Cross, Explore Park, the Roanoke Symphony, the Art Museum of Western Virginia and the Arts Council of the Blue Ridge.
I admire and respect public officials who are positive, and who direct their attention to what they can do to help their fellow citizens.
BOB PATTERSON
VINTON
Thank goodness kids are reading
FOR PITY'S sake, Ian Duncan's logic gives me Goosebumps (March 20 commentary, ``Books might be giving your kids more than just Goosebumps'').
For hundreds of years, the Grimms' fairy tales have evoked childhood fears, with the tales' idiotic, even wicked, parents, siblings and neighbors, and with settings in surrealistic and fantastic events. And what about the ``Chronicles of Narnia,'' ``The Snow Queen'' or ``The Wizard of Oz''?
At least in the age of television's couch-potato kids, some are actually reading. I say more power to the librarian. R.L. Stine may be keeping her employed!
Duncan needs to think about his novel ideas a little more before he unleashes his theories on modern children's literature.
CATHERINE T. BENSON
FINCASTLE
Don't blame fog; blame drivers
I READ the article (March 23 Extra section, ``Altitude and Attitude'') about the Afton Mountain and Fancy Gap fog problem, and didn't see the obvious conclusion: These multiple-vehicle chain-reaction accidents are the drivers' fault, not the fog's.
The proper speed to drive on any road is determined by conditions, not the white sign with the black numbers on it. The principle is simple: Don't drive faster than you can see. Adding more lights to warn of the fog will not help. If you cannot see more than a few feet in front of your car, that should tell you all you need to know.
The greatest danger in fog, as dense as the fog that sometimes shrouds Afton Mountain and Fancy Gap, is being run into from behind by someone who is - quite literally - driving blind. The best thing you can do is make the back end of your car as visible as possible. Fog lights on the front of your car will not help; normal headlights are enough to enable others to see the front of your car.
Since cars available in America do not normally come with a (red) fog light on the rear as they do in Europe, the best thing would be to drive with your emergency flashers on. After all, isn't driving in zero-visibility conditions an emergency?
Weather, in and of itself, doesn't cause accidents. They are caused by a lack of skill and experience, and failure to adjust driving to changing conditions.
BRIAN SUTHERLAND
BLACKSBURG
Give more positive views on Clinton
YOUR CONTINUAL bashing of President Clinton is a disgrace. After all, he is our elected officer and deserves support.
We all make mistakes - even you - and this is one of them. It's obvious that you don't like the Clintons, but do you need to remind us of that every day? Surely, you could find something good to say, maybe once a week.
Clinton's stand for the poor and elderly is to be commended.
You must be well-heeled Republicans who are afraid of higher taxes on your big salaries. Where is your compassion?
Let's see more, at least some, reports of good deeds in our community and the world.
DOROTHY BACK
ROANOKE
Let the child keep the pet pig
ROANOKE City Council members are blind to the important issues of Roanoke residents.
They bought the Quints for the fire department, even though neither firefighters nor the citizens wanted them.
But something as simple as letting a 14-year-old child with attention deficit disorder keep a pet he earned for doing well in school- and it will not cost the city $900,000 - will not happen (March 26 news article, ``City would make pet a ham on the lam''). Why? Because it isn't a dog or cat, or even a sheep or goat.
This is stupid. Pot-bellied pigs are very clean and do not bark.
City Council members do not care about our community. They only care about what they want.
Our school system pushes children through school, even if tasks at hand are not learned. So we as parents have to give them something to work for. What if it's a pot-bellied pig?
City Council needs to spend more time catching drug dealers and educating for our future.
PAT EARLS
ROANOKE
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