How to Dissapear Completely

You can no more win a war than you can win an earthquake.
-Janet Rankin

Tonight I forgot.
I got held up in some over-budgeted cinematic spectacle, and i forgot. For 2 hours and 24 minutes i had no idea that there was anything else currently occurring in the world other than boy-loses-girl, boy-gets-girl-back. It was all, and i loved it.
I cant believe, read can, that as a person i have completely forgotten that there are still daily deaths adding to our countries blood stain in Iraq. A close childhood friend is currently serving, and i forgot completely. Its not just that i did for the aforementioned 144 minutes, but pretty much every second save for about 30 the last time i saw him at home. I feel disappointed in myself and fear that i'm not alone. It is very easy in my mind to focus on the 352 million other things going on in the average life, but i wonder why the fact that my friend is currently risking his life for some unknown (and this is in no way an attempt to get political, as most know, i dont give two fucks generally, but by "unknown" i seek to express the TRUTH that if you honestly think you know why we are currently at war on multiple fronts, regardless of what Bill O'Reilly/John Stewart etc etc, may have told you, you are an ignorant paramecium. The government lies to protect itself, its citizens and we have always been okay with it. Without this deceit, we as a population would know the atrocities and true motivations behind our foreign decisions and would more than likely quit all jobs to weigh in and follow the multitude of fucked up campaigns that are being won and lost on a daily basis...) war is not a higher cognitive priority. It took me looking through the pictures on his Myspace of a 18 year old man suited in (hopefully affective) body armor and affixed with a govt issue M-16. This is the same kid i used to wrestle, staining the be-jesus out of my jeans while doing so, and send home crying because he was a scrawny punk with a lion's heart.
Some of my fondest memories involve him, and yet i forget.
Not tonight. I miss you friend and hope that your efforts afford the people of the regions you safeguard the same popcorn and celluloid freedoms that we take for granted on a second to second basis.
Something Thoughtful,
Ian