[Richard]

I'm not sure all these events are an a + b = c sort of equation, and offer the following thoughts for consideration:

1. It is Detroit.

2. Brass - and other metals such as aluminum and copper - are in high demand by smelters and thefts of such metals are increasing. The brass rifle and helmet were probably the easiest parts of the monument to remove, and I would be looking for them at local scrap metal dealers. I know of instances where thieves are going into empty, foreclosed, or abandoned buildings and stripping them of wiring, appliances, copper plumbing, aluminum siding, etc. It's happened here to some of the most expensive homes in the DFW area - and I ran into this same type problem throughout the third world in its need to protect its infrastructure (power/telephone lines, etc) from such theft.

Thieves strike gold in beaten-down US homes
http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/...ow/2917933.cms

3. The PSU video doesn't bother me too much - actually, I thought it was pretty well done - as it shows a more generally escalating issue being dealt with across the spectrum of colleges and universities today...a younger or less experienced instructor learning to effectively deal with a more 'grade aggressive' student who is used to (a) bartering with teachers for grades, who (2) comes across as being more aggessive or combative than they may realize, who (3) may be used to generally higher grades, who (4) are either reluctant to or not used to seeking outside advice or help for completing assignments, and (5) who have yet to learn what the expectations are for those entering the often nebulous and less concrete alternate universe of higher education.

IMO - historically, a number of vets have always had various problems when reentering the general society, and a number of people - who have no life experiences close to those the vet may have had - struggle with trying to understand, empathize with, or support them. One of the best literary pieces dealing with this issue is Hemingway's short story, Soldier's Home. I used this with students as a point of departure for discussing some of war's effects, and recommend it for all.

Soldier's Home

Krebs went to the war in 1917 from a Methodist college in Kansas. There is a picture of him with his fraternity brothers all in the same collar. He came back from the war in 1919, after he had been in the Rhineland as a part of the post-war occupying forces. There, a picture was taken of him, a fellow corporal, and two German ladies. When Krebs returns, no one celebrates. He comes back after most everyone else, so he misses the hysteria. He also cannot get anyone to listen to his stories. Everyone has heard too many gruesome stories to care. To get people to listen, he has lied twice. But he is disgusted by that so he has stopped talking about the war. Even his lies bore people, anyway.

During this time, Krebs is sleeping late and hanging around all day. He is a hero to his younger sisters and to his mother. She sometimes asks about the war, but she gets bored. The town has not changed in his absence except that some of the girls have become women. Krebs likes to watch them, but he does not want to be a part of their lives. He does not want to get involved in the politics or the lying involved in a courtship. Krebs does not want any consequences. The Army had taught him that he did not need a girl, even though many men claimed that they could not live without one. Krebs likes the looks of the girls, but does not want to have to talk. That was one nice thing about the French and German girls: not so much talking. Krebs had not wanted to come home, but he had. Now, he watches girls walk by and thinks that they are made out of a nice pattern. He starts reading a book about the war, about all of the battles he was in. He is finally learning about the war.

Krebs' mother tells him that he can take the car out at night. Krebs goes downstairs for breakfast and starts to read the paper. His mother tells him not to muss it. His sister, Helen Krebs, tells him that she will be pitching in an indoor baseball game that day. She asks if he'll come. Their mother shoos her away and tells Krebs that he should think about finding a job. She tells him that she prays for him and the temptations that he must have faced. But, she says, he must find a job. After all, she says, the other boys his age are getting jobs and wives. She asks if he loves her. He says no, meaning that he cannot love anyone. She is only hurt, so Krebs tells her that he did not mean it. Krebs tells her that he will try to be good. She asks him to kneel with her and pray. She prays, but he cannot. He leaves, thinking that he will get a job in Kansas City and get out of the house without too many more confrontations. He only wants to have his life go smoothly, which it is not. He goes to watch Helen play baseball.

Commentary

This story, the first about Krebs, attempts to reveal the profundity of the shock of re-entry into one's old life. Krebs wants everything to be simple. The world seems so complex. Young women look modern and everyone is involved in political relationships with everyone else. Krebs wants a simple life where he can relax and avoid talking (and lying) about the war. Krebs also seems truly incapable of complexity. He feels that he cannot love anymore and that he cannot pray. Krebs's soul has been removed by the war. Now, the most interesting book is one about the war that can explain what he was doing. He wishes that the book had more maps because he wants to pinpoint his experiences. Metaphorically, Krebs also wants guidance to understand his war experience.

http://www.sparknotes.com/lit/inourtime/section27.rhtml

As for the original topic of this thread - guess I'll just wait and see if this, indeed, becomes a larger issue than it appears to be to me.

Richard's $.02