Henry Rollins: The Column! Our America

By Henry Rollins Thu., Oct. 4 2012 at 3:30 AM

[Look for your weekly fix from the one and only Henry Rollins right here on West Coast Sound every Thursday, and come back tomorrow for the awesomely annotated playlist for his Saturday KCRW broadcast.]

Today: I am in Oklahoma City. Outside the tour bus, the wind is blowing nonstop, hair-dryer hot. Down the road is a large shopping mall. There was a shooting at the mall and a lot of the stores closed down. Victoria's Secret is still hanging in there.

Since we last got together, I have done shows in Boise; Helena, Mont.; Cheyenne, Wyo.; Denver; Santa Fe, N.M.; and, last night, Austin, Texas.

The shows have been going well and the audiences have been great. At one point, on our way to the Cheyenne show, our bus decided to die about 30 miles out of town. We were able to get a car to pick us up and get us to the venue, 17 minutes before showtime.

It was only after the show I noticed that some of the venue security guys were carrying sidearms. I asked the head guy, an ex-Marine, what was up with that and he said the venue requested their company because they were licensed to carry. I asked him if the people at the venue thought my safety was that much of a concern and he said yes.

As we were leaving to go to a hotel for the night (as our bus was now at a garage), the owner of a local record store said he would open the place up if we wanted to check it out. Moments later, we were there. Picked up great-condition copies of Weasels Ripped My Flesh and Apostrophe by Frank Zappa and a 1985 U.S. pressing of Kraftwerk's Autobahn, as well as a great-condition original pressing of Captain Beefheart's Trout Mask Replica, complete with insert. A previous owner had affixed a sticker to the front with his name and Social Security number on it. Those were different times.

Sometimes you can benefit from a relatively remote location, as the stock isn't as picked over.

In Austin last night after the show, there was a sad and very American moment. I was talking to people out by the bus and a man gave me a black rubber bracelet with his brother's name and the date he was killed in Afghanistan, 07-23-12. As he was telling me about his brother, a girl overheard and said she had lost her brother in Afghanistan as well. She started to cry. They hugged each other as the rest of us stood silently. More than an hour later, when I was sitting on the bus as we were pulling out of town, I looked at the bracelet and thought about the hard, raw awfulness of what they are going through.

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sowhatthefuss

@Picturesof good article, liked.

JennieVasquez topcommenter

2 Like

What Henry said about Veterans was spot on. I think that most of us know personally know someone who has returned from overseas and many are not coming back the same. Many, not all, keep their distance, isolate themselves, always say they are fine and that's it, they won't express any other thoughts, and in the worst cases self medicate with drugs, alcohol, or food. I notice the younger ones are the ones that really have a difficult time coping as they have not had other life experiences to prepare them for coping with what they are dealing with. Of the 3 people I know more my age that went, they have had some difficulties assimilating but previous coping skills get them back in the swing of things for the most part. Of the 2 former Explorer kids I know that went, both have come back with many issues including alcoholism, anger, and in inability to create goals and make plans for the future. Both are stuck somewhere in their minds and can't move forward without self sabotaging future plans. These kids were not like that before either. I've tried to talk to both of them but neither one is going to say a word to me. They just tell me everything is going great. All I want to do is comfort these kids but I can't and as a nation we can't because I and many others don't know what to do to make it better. I don't have the skills to help these kids out and they don't know how to ask for help or they don't know they need support in learning to live with the new reality of what they saw and the memories they will continue to live with. There are positive coping skills like talking in support groups and exercise but I think those skills are not stressed enough. I would love to see groups like the ones for Team Semper Fi and Wounded Warrior where injured members of the military use exercise and sports to rehabilitate created for all returning members of the military where through exercise, individuals can let off steam and talk and be around others who are dealing with similar issues in returning to daily life without feeling like they are in therapy or asking for help.

In addition,the story of the young man and the young lady who have lost loved ones was a picture into the reality of the friends and families left behind. You never get over something like that, you just don't. Hopefully the 2 young people will reconnect and be able to use each other to learn to cope. I see the heartache left behind most every year at a race I do. Normally this time of year, except this year the race was postponed, I run the Jared Landaker Memorial Run for Freedom in Big Bear. Seven service members were killed in a helicopter crash and Jared was from Big Bear. Every year I get up cursing the early time I need to get up to run the race and wondering why I'm doing this and every year the family and friends talk right before the run. It is just as raw and emotional for them every time and it doesn't get better with each passing year. Then Jared's dad reminds us every year that by running we are honoring the memories of those who died. That is when I remember why I'm there. It's a sad situation what is happening to many of our service members both KIA and those who come back. What the solution to help is, I have no idea but you do just want to give everyone a great big hug.

On a final note, I have made the mistake before as Henry of saying ex-Marine. An ex-Marine is like a unicorn, it don't exist. There are former Marines or as I like to say Marine Corp Alumni but once a Marine always a Marine.