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Today's Movie - "Born on the Fourth of July"

Info on Ron Kovic:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ron_Kovic
Interview:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RaY6uK0vtGs
Info on the movie:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Born_on_the_Fourth_of_July
Lesson Plans/Projects relating to themes dealt with in this movie:
http://www.unhcr.org/cgi-bin/texis/vtx/template?page=home&src=static/teaching-tools/tchcived/12-14lp.htm

Resource List (Teaching about the Vietnam War)
http://www.rethinkingschools.org/war/ideas/vres.shtml
Statistics - Vietnam War:
http://www.vhfcn.org/stat.html
Related News Stories:
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/04/01/nyregion/01veterans.html?_r=1&scp=4&sq=war+veterans+services&st=nyt&oref=slogin
N.Y. Times Lesson - Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder and Returning Veterans:
http://www.nytimes.com/learning/teachers/lessons/20030311tuesday.html?searchpv=learning_lessons
N.Y. Times Lesson - Battling Memories of Vietnam:
http://www.nytimes.com/learning/teachers/lessons/20010430monday.html?searchpv=learning_lessons
N.Y. Times Lesson - Why it is still difficult to talk about Vietnam:
http://www.nytimes.com/learning/teachers/lessons/20000424monday.html?searchpv=learning_lessons
Time Magazine Article:
http://www.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,1811858,00.html?imw=Y
Answer the questions below in the comments section: (Spend some time looking at the resources above to help you answer these questions.)

1. What were the psychological ramifications for Vietnam veterans who were either treated as criminals or were virtually ignored (public apathy in general and/or poor or neglectful treatment by the V.A. for some) unlike veterans from other wars who were embraced by the country?

2. How did this type of treatment transform Ron Kovic's perception of the war?

3. Look for news stories focusing on the psychological effects of war. Look for news stories pertaining to the current war in Iraq. Read one of the stories you found. Relate what you learned from this story to what you learned about the psychological effects of war after watching "Born on the Fourth of July."

Examples of news stories (you may use one of these):
Neglectful treatment at Walter Reed:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/02/17/AR2007021701172.html
Video (Walter Reed)
http://media.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/mmedia/player/player2.swf?whichMode=normal&justify=center&playad=yes&mediatype=stream&postdir=nation&postvideo=021707-1v&cuesfile=none&autoplay=yes&starttime=0&endtime=0&largerver=none&image=none&playlistxml=none
Walter Reed and Beyond (Links to slideshows, resources, archives, etc. This link included information on P.T.S.D., and other mental health disorders affecting veterans.)
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/nation/walter-reed/index.html
Wikipedia (Walter Reed Neglect Scandal)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Walter_Reed_Army_Medical_Center_neglect_scandal
NPR coverage of Walter Reed, etc. (read or listen to stories):
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=7725283
A Veteran's View of Walter Reed (read or listen to story):
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=7584958
Military diagnosing more cases of P.T.S.D.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/05/27/AR2008052701512.html?nav=rss_health
NPR (Dealing with P.T.S.D. after war) Listen to story:
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=88678418
Virtual Reality for Returning Vets:
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=90619213&ft=1&f=1007
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Comments

broadbentW said…
1. First of all, just dealing with their new injuries, wounds, or things they've seen have already scarred them and will haunt them for the rest of their lives. This gave them a new path. They fought for their country, they put their lives on the line to protect everyone else at home. Then to find out when you come back injured and they won't even help you or make you wait long periods of time is disgusting. I think soldiers from that war making their stands have made it so veterans from todays wars will be helped. They just want what is right and people should respect that.
June 16, 2008 at 10:13 AM
broadbentW said…
2. This changed his outlook on the war because he never thought it could be so bad. After everything he just saw and did..there is no looking back or feeling like you've once felt. It literally changes your look on everything. Especially after his new injury that he has to live with the rest of his life. He didn't know what to do and he wanted to give up, but he didn't, he finally found his calling to tell about his experience and take everyone in and tell how bad it is. He fought the best battle there is.
June 16, 2008 at 10:17 AM
ChrisU.S. said…
1. What were the psychological ramifications for Vietnam veterans who were either treated as criminals or were virtually ignored (public apathy in general and/or poor or neglectful treatment by the V.A. for some) unlike veterans from other wars who were embraced by the country? I believe that it scarred them emotionally to know that veterans were treated so poorly after all they went through in the war, and perhaps angry that they weren’t being admired like the soldiers they had grown up around.
2. How did this type of treatment transform Ron Kovic's perception of the war? Ron seemed to display the latter, so much so that I thought it bordered on the paranoia that everyone hated him for being a soldier. He began (in the movie, I don’t know about real life) disrespecting parents, venting at people, even trying to start a fight even knowing he’d probably not win.
3. Look for news stories focusing on the psychological effects of war. Look for news stories pertaining to the current war in Iraq. Read one of the stories you found. Relate what you learned from this story to what you learned about the psychological effects of war after watching "Born on the Fourth of July." I’m writing mine on an article about helping soldiers coming back from Iraq, who are suffering from PTSD (Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder), using virtual reality. It starts out talking about a man who said that the Gulf War never happened and how it inspired the movie The Matrix, and then starts into the real story. A psychologist called Skip Rizzo had been experimenting on getting the soldiers past their trauma using a virtual reality machine, easing them into the situation that caused said trauma. After a while, he adds in sounds (and experimenting with smells) to help the situation seem more real until the victim of PTSD doesn’t get “Incapacitated” by the thought anymore.

Link to source of #3: http://thelede.blogs.nytimes.com/2007/03/08/the-iraq-war-is-not-taking-place/?scp=4&sq=ptsd%20iraq&st=cse
June 16, 2008 at 10:21 AM
polk us said…
the chamges that he had was tha the would have flash backs to the war and when the cars would back fire he would flinch as if the was being shot at
June 16, 2008 at 10:21 AM
polk us said…
the 2 one he felt that everyone hated him for going to war he flet like he was no one or nothing at all
June 16, 2008 at 10:28 AM
polk us said…
3 ? ive learned that some of the hospitals have really bad conditions where they have to stay to recover they have mice mold celing is falling down that is really bad
June 16, 2008 at 10:37 AM
broadbentW said…
3. I read one of the articles on PTSD (Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder). I learned that the number of people suffering from it jumped up 50 percent in the past year. Most of these soldiers have gone on repeated tours or have been over there for long periods of time. The most that were diagnosed with PTSD were from the Army, they had a totat of 28,365 cases, 10,000 of them were in the past year! The second highest was the Marine Corps, they had 5,581 cases and 2,114 of those cases have been in the past year also. The Air Force and Navy had less than 1,000 cases. 30 percent of the soldiers deployed are likely to suffer from PTSD, but the majority of them can improve or recover if they get early and appropriate treatment. It is a sad thing to happen and it can change a lot of people. I feel bad for those that suffer from it every day and have to have those memories play over and over in their head and not being able to let go.
June 16, 2008 at 10:42 AM
Social Studies Toolbox said…
PolkU.S. - Which site did you look at for information about Walter Reed? Were you able to find photographs or video of the conditions at Walter Reed?

How did these conditions compare with what you saw in the movie "Born on the Fourth of July."
June 16, 2008 at 11:57 AM
Social Studies Toolbox said…
broadbentw - good job answering questions 1-3. You've satisfied one of your project requirements.
June 16, 2008 at 11:59 AM
Social Studies Toolbox said…
chrisu.s.- Good job answering questions 1-3. You've satisfied one of your project requirments.
June 16, 2008 at 12:01 PM
dimmer said…
i thought that the movie portrayed the way some vetreans vied the war and ecpacial the wounded soldiers. it also shows that our country wasn't behind us in the war and it brought the moral of the soldiers down which inturn affected the way they accted over
June 17, 2008 at 10:58 AM
gruber w said…
? number one. its very hard for the vietnam veterns to deal with everything that happend to them while they were at war and to not have the support of the people in there home towns was heartbreaking.

? number two. I think he changed alot because of when he got hurt he was treated terribly at the hospital and he felt that he should have been respected because he was a vietnam vetern!

? number three. Alot of men after the war couldn't sleep so they got addicted to pills. some had terrible nightmares and would go days without sleeping. And ALOT of them became alcholics. basically almost everyone had a hard time after the war.
June 20, 2008 at 11:55 AM
Social Studies Toolbox said…
gruber w - good. This satisfies another project requirement.

Did you get a chance to look at last week's Time Magazine. Time did a piece on the psychological toll the War in Iraq is having on some soldiers. The cover of the magazine is quite provocative. It is a picture of Prozac - half of the pill is camouflage.
June 20, 2008 at 12:11 PM
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