Both had one good arm left

by David Grand
April 28, 2005

I'm referring to two U. S. senators, who although of opposite parties, shared the common bond of having suffered near-fatal wounds in WW 11: former senator and presidential candidate Bob Dole, and current Sen. Daniel Inouye of Hawaii. Dole's right arm and hand were left paralyzed after being felled by a mortar round or exploding shell in Italy in 1945; and Inouye, who'd lost his right arm a year earlier in Italy, when charging a German machine gun nest. He was one of the 3,000 (all-volunteer) Japanese-American unit from Hawaii, whose 442nd Regimental Combat Team became the most decorated unit of its size in U.S. military history.       

But as of January this year, Dole's left arm and hand are now also useless, after a medical emergency that nearly claimed his life. And as he says in his book, "One Soldier's Story, "with both arms out of commission, it's humiliating having to rely on others to dress and feed me, or unable to go to the bathroom without assistance."      

I had the pleasure of meeting him shortly after his wife Elizabeth Dole was appointed Secretary of the Dept. of Transportation in 1983 (where I was the Director of Security). I met him in the lobby and escorted him to his wife's office for lunch. And I remember him smiling as wide as a sunbeam and shaking my hand with his left one. Never have I been prouder to shake a person's hand.       

Another prominent, disabled senator was Georgia Sen. Max Cleland, who'd lost two legs and an arm to a grenade explosion in Vietnam. He'd been defeated in his reelection bid after being brutalized by Republicans during the 2002 campaign, who'd painted him as weak on defense for voting with the Democrats against Bush's proposed Homeland Security Department because of its provision limiting union rights. To quote what John Kerry said of him during his campaign: "I am motivated by the most craven moment I've ever seen in politics, when the Republican Party challenged his patriotism."       

He was but one of the over 10,000 amputees in that war, only 5,000 less than in WW 11. But by far and away, the Civil War was the worst of all, with 50,000 returning home as amputees, and thousands more having died as a result of losing limbs (often waiting 24 hours to be treated after their injuries).       Stonewall Jackson, who lost his left arm following the battle at Chancellorsville is a prime example. As General Lee said, poetically, in hearing of his death "I've lost my "right arm." (His arm is buried beneath a gravestone, reading "Arm of Stonewall Jackson," at what was the Lacy plantation close to Chancellorsville. Don't ask me for directions.      

Now, as of Jan. 31, the number of wounded who sustained limb amputations in Iraq and Afghanistan was 211; and strange as it may sound, that's 2.40 percent of those wounded, or twice that of the percentage of amputees in WW 1 (1.25), in WW 11 (1.20) and Korea (1.40). The lack of adequate body/vehicle armor are the chief reasons offered for that big disparity.       

But on the plus side, 90 percent of the 10,800 military men and women wounded in those two countries have survived, compared with 76 percent in Vietnam. That's due in large part to the Forward Surgical Teams-mobile medical units that follow troops to the front lines-providing medical care within minutes. (My son, Lt. Mark Grand being among 'em.)       

Small consolation as it may be to those who've lost limbs, they're benefiting from a new generation of high-tech prosthetics, improved surgical techniques and better medicines to reduce pain and minimize the infections that plagued veterans of previous wars. And many of them, in trying to put their lives back together, are skiing and snowboarding at breakneck speed (even in snow storms) down a mountain at the Breckenridge, Colo. Ski Resort, that'd challenge the strongest athlete.      

So, the next time you're complaining about you tired legs after climbing up so many steps to your seat in in a ballpark or football stadium; or applying Ben Gay to your aching arm muscles after raking the yard or shoveling the snow, thank your lucky stars that they're real, not artificial limbs.