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Page 5
Boys last tears shout his suffering
Paramedics in Beirut war zone survive unforgettable routine mission
GEORGE
NASR
S ami was crying. Small tears were
rolling down his cheeks, pouring
out of his covered eyes. Or was it
my imagination?
“Are you sure?” I shouted
“Yep! Extensive brain damage.”
The operator replied.
I stopped listening to the faceless
voice emanating from the intercom.
All I could do was stare down at that
face covered with bandages, and look the stream of tears
running down his ravaged cheeks ...
During General Aoun’s hopeless “Liberation War” —
whenever the regular morning bombing ended — the first
aid teams of the Lebanese Red Cross would get busy. Sector
102, my unit, was in charge of all paramedical rescue
missions in one of the four sectors of Beirut. Every morning
houses, hospitals, schools and churches were dancing to the
deadly tune of “Stalin’s Organs,” the Syrian army’s rocket
launchers. Every day, the bleeding streets of the wounded
city would echo the howl of our ambulance sirens. Every
time, people would stare with a mixture of fear and hope at
our ghoulish Red Cross wmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm
uniforms, glad to see that we
were not coming for them. Not
this time. Every horror would
'That boy is brain dead.
You guys came for nothing.
He's dead.'
'Are you sure?' I
pleaded. 'But he's
crying!'
How can a
dead boy be
crying?
just be a part of our daily
routine.
In the morning of that day,
Team 4 was dispatched to
what remained a house in the
Berjawi neighborhood; an
unexpected guest had dropped
in on a family at lunch. The
“grad” rocket blew up the
kitchen, the father and the
mother, uniting them in a
magma of body parts and
rubble. Their son, Sami, was
lucky not to be part of this
sordid recipe from hell, but was
badly wounded. The first-aiders
patched him up and evacuated
him to Hotel Dieu de France
(HDF), a hospital in Beirut, where what remained of Sami
was placed in intensive care.
In the afternoon, HDF called the Sector. Sami was in a
deep coma, and his condition was worsening. They needed a
CAT scan conducted in order to assess brain damage, but
had no machine operational.
“Team 2! Quasimodo — mission chief! Nogua — driver!
Hassibo — sicouniste!” Scoubidoo shouted. “Transport from
HDF to Hospital St. Charles for a CAT scan and back, lotsa
candies [shelling] on the road, so be careful! Allah maa’kon
chabeb.”
Routine mission. Call the team, put on a helmet and flak
jacket. Jump in ambulance. Hook up VHP scanner. Turn on
siren — Cool! Report departure. Sound of sniper fire —
Pray. Nogua is driving like a maniac — pray more. Report
Arrival at HDF — Thank God. Go to
pick up patient.
Robert, a cheerful resident greeted
us at the door of the emergency room
“Ahlan, George! You’re the freaks
taking the CAT scan kid?”
He pointed at some mummy on a
stretcher “Here he is ... Stable
condition, the severed arm and leg
should not bleed, nor should his face.
He’s in a coma, and shouldn’t make any trouble. Assist
respiration. Bye, chabeb!”
Put patient in ambulance. Set his oxygen. Report
departure from HDF — Pray. Keep pumping. Life signs OK.
Bombs getting louder, but no explosions visible. Glad Nogua
is driving like a maniac — Pray more. Report arrival at H.
St. Charles. There is a god for freaks. CAT scan room. Wear
protective clothing. Keep pumping and monitor life signs
while the room basks in radiation from the scanner.
The machine hums. Behind the window, I could see the
operator pushing buttons, and monitors lighting up one by
one, displaying different slices of Sami’s brain. “That boy is
brain dead,” a voice echoes in
the scanner room. “You guys
came for nothing. He’s dead.”
That’s when I heard Sami
crying. A brief, faint sound.
“Are you sure?” I pleaded. “But
he’s crying!” I hear that cry
again. Did I hurt him? No, he’s
dead! How can a dead boy be
crying?
“Yep! Extensive brain
damage!” The operator replied.
“Anyway, he can’t make a
sound with that tube down his
throat.”
“How about those tears?” I
pleaded.
“Oh, that! Just a natural
reaction.”
I stared at that beautiful,
horrible face, imploring it with
my eyes to sound louder.
A natural reaction.
“Let’s go, Quasimodo,” said Nogua. “We can’t perform
miracles.”
Yes! A miracle! A sign!
Something!
In my heart, I begged Sami to shout to the world his
suffering. I begged God! I begged whoever was up there...
But only the insistent humming of the machine would reply.
God wouldn’t undo what man committed.
“We need to bring him back to HDF before the shelling
intensifies,” Hassibo yelled. “H Flash is under shelling, the
hospital is burning. 102 may be assigned to the evacuation.”
Another routine mission.
The Battalion
Editorial Board
Mark Evans, Editor in chief
William Harrison, Managing editor
Jay Robbins, Opinion Editor
Editorials ac
in The Battalion reflect
appearing 1
the views of the editorial board. They do not
necessarily reflect the opinions of other
Battalion staff members, the Texas A’&M
student body, regents, administration, faculty
or staff.
Columns, guest columns, cartoons and
letters express the opinions of the authors, !
Contact the opinion editor for information
on submitting guest columns. T V ’
vasts ill.K -«a
Board of Regents
Texas A&M System students deserve voice
George Nasr is a graduate civil engineering student
There is a need for better communi
cation between students and the Board
of Regents. Having student leaders in
formally meet with regents and ad
ministrators is no longer enough. A
student regent seated on the Board
would bridge that gap and be in a posi
tion to inform both students and
regents about high-level
decisions.
The Texas A&M
student body must
voice its support
for a student re
gent if the plan
is to succeed.
Texas A&M
President Ray
Bowen, Board
of Regents
Chair Mary
Nan West,
Student Body
President
Brooke Leslie
and A&M Regents
Bill Clayton, T
Michael O’Connor
and M. Guadalupe L
Rangel all have expressed
willingness to discuss a student
regent position.
Gov. Ann Richards also supports the
movement to provide a student regent at
every state university in Texas.
A student regent with speaking, at
tendance and voting rights equal to any
regent member would truly provide
representation for the students of the
Texas A&M University System. There
would be much less second-guessing of
the students’ needs or concerns.
Unfortunately the present proposals
for creating a student regent limit the
office severely. The student regent
would Pot speak, unless scheduled on
the agenda, or attend closed-session
Board meetings.
Despite these constrictions, the stu
dent regent office outlined in the
current plans would greatly
enhance the students’
input into choices that
affect the entire
University and
System. The of
fice would estab
lish a perma- .
nent liaison be
tween the
Board and the
part of the
University
System that its
policies affect
the most.
Some critics of
the student regent
idea, who claim.
that other groups!
might use a precedent of,
students on the Board to
demand representation, ignore;
the fact that students’ interests and
concerns are unique. As West said,;
“Frankly, that’s what [the regents] are
here for. We’re here for the students.” -
For the good of its diverse members,
the student body of the A&M System has
a responsibility to improve relations with,
the Board of Regents. Likewise, the
Board has an obligation to include a stu
dent regent in its ranks to provide a'
voice for those groups.
Marriage represents more than just living with someone
JOSEF
ELCHANAN
Columnist
A paralyzed Buddhist
monk used to advise all
those who passed by:
“Get yourself a wife right
away! It was my lot to be a
scholar, and I have been single
since my youth. I had a great
many disciples and followers,
but after I became paralyzed
and crippled, these people no
longer care about me ... I feel
that if I had a wife and children I might not have
come to such a bitter pass.” - from a story called
“The Monk Who Encouraged Marriage” in “Sand
and Pebbles”
Since I’m unmarried, this story bothers me,
moreso because many of my friends are beginning
the long trek toward supposed mutual love,
respect and fulfillment. Beyond love, or in
cooperation with it, are some central questions:
what is marriage, how does it relate to us and
what has happened to this ancient coupling?
A religious interpretation seemed highly
appropriate for this subject, since religion has
strong ties to the marriage institution. The
Episcopal church, according to the Rev. Mary
Greene, promotes “a covenant relationship
between two people and God, a three-way
commitment or relationship ... Marriage is one of
the most primary ways God tries to transform our
lives, for the spouse is an instrument of
transformation.”
Father Michael J. Sis, pastor of St. Mary’s
Catholic Parish and Student Center, explained
that, “The Catholic view of marriage is that it is a
sacrament, an action of God, not just a human
action. It must be properly prepared for,” and
that, “The presentation of the couple is much
more important than the ceremony.” He believes
that couples should be prepared for all parts of
the marriage trial, including financial difficulties
and their spouse’s relatives.
According to Rabbi Peter Tarlow of the Hillel
Jewish organization, Judaism takes the stance
that marriage is a “moral or ethical contract
between two people, a Kiddushin, or sanctification
of marriage,” Judaism values the marriage in
relation to the surrounding
community and toward the
future of the Jewish people.
As for a sense of duty and
loyalty, Dr. Richard Maples
of First Baptist of Bryan, had
this to say of marriage: “It is
a, “Divine institution, created
by God himself, composed of
a husband and a wife who
commit to each other for life.
It is the most important institution in society and
should be maintained at all costs.”
Also relevant is The Church of Jesus Christ of
Latter Day Saints’ Bishop David Ellis’ statement
that, “The marriage and family is crucial, the
cornerstone of the church. For us, the the wedding
ceremony does not say ‘till death do us part,’ but
rather ‘for all eternity.’”
So, why is everybody so unhappy? Why do
approximately half of all marriages end in divorce?
Dr. Sarah Horsfall, a Texas A&M instructor on
marriage and the family, had quite a bit to say
concerning this problem. She explained that
couples and young adults do not have enough role
models. “[Our society] has privatized the family.
Our center of values, which are also privatized, ...
causes young people to be isolated. In the past, the
whole community had standards and expectations.
Children were raised not as much by their families
as they were by the whole community. They were
rigorously censored by their peers. Now, there is
not a community to go to, but only to professional
and scientific authorities. This forces young people
into their own world. Without the larger
community, [young people] learn only from their
own family experiences. Many families do not have
strong values due to many current problems, like
single-parent families, family break-ups, and the
lack of educated adults.”
Father Michael discussed similar findings. He
believes that there is “a vicious cycle where
dysfunctional families raise children who are less
capable of having healthy marriages, so then the
emotional or family problems of our generation
become a determinant to the success of later
generations. In many cases, young people must go
through some healing before they can go into a
healthy marriage.” He also stated that a marriage
must consist of “commitment and sacrifice.”
Dr. Maples took a stronger stance, stating that
divorce comes from “a modem movement to
selfishness and self-gratification,” and marriages
are “entered without commitment.”
It came as a surprise to me that these
statements, when placed together, form such a
cohesive whole. Religions across the spans of time
and locality continue to support marriage as the
backbone of their communities. Each group
promoted a certain combination of dedication and
understanding, a strong intolerance of family
violence and the desire to maintain a marriage
and build something for the future. Perhaps these
are the most important, most difficult and most
rewarding parts of two people sharing their lives
with one another.
mam
Josef Elchanan is a senior
business management major
HBBH
KINE 199 requirement
should remain in place
The May 30 article on the possibility
of the HIV/AIDS class being required of
all students listed an option to replace
one of the existing KINE 199 require
ments with the AIDS class. As a physi
cal educator, this concerns me. Reports
show that Americans need more physi
cal activity in their lives. KINE 199
classes allow the students to take class
es that not only condition them now,
but also give them skills to continue
participation throughout their lives.
While there is little doubt that AIDS
education is extremely important, a
possible solution to the problem already
exists. Starting in the fall of 1994, the
Health and Kinesiology Department is
offering a KINE 199 class called Health
and Fitness. This class combines half a
semester of lecture on current health
topics, which will include HIV/AIDS.An
important difference between this and
the suggested required class is that this
is an optional class. This will allow the
students interested in this area to be in
a class with others that are interested
in pursuing these topics. This will
greatly enhance the level of participa
tion and allow the course to be conduct
ed in a manner that will not alienate a
large number of the student population
who are already educated in the course
content.
Frank Thomas
College Station
Gun laws worsen crime
Elizabeth Preston wrote a very gener
alized column (June 1) that did not per
suade me to lay down my arms. She
alienated me and many others immedi
ately with an unnecessary racist, sexist
remark: “... takeover of America by white
European males.” Preston said, “The
claim that the Second Amendment to the
Constitution guarantees private citizens
the right to keep and bear arms is com
pletely unfounded. The writers of the
Constitution did not intend this right for
the private citizen, but for civilians in the
state militia.” Is this true?
James Madison: The Constitution pre
serves “the advantage of being armed,
which Americans possess over the people
of almost any other nation ... [where] the
governments are afraid to trust the peo
ple with arms.”
John Adams: “Arms in the hands of in
dividual citizens may be used at individ
ual discretion ... in private self-defense.”
Samuel Adams: “The Constitution
shall never be construed to prevent the
people of the United States who are
peaceable citizens from keeping their
own arms.”
Does gun control protect everyone? I
leave you with this thought: Thomas Jef
ferson once qupted the 18th century crim
inologist Casare Beccaria as saying,
“Laws which forbid the carrying of arms
... make things worse for the assaulted
and better for the assailants; they serve
rather to encourage than to prevent
homicides, for an unarmed man may be
attacked with greater confidence than an
armed man.
Darin W. Smith-
Class of‘95.
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