Photographing Fallen troops

The March 16th Time Magazine had a brief history of photographing fallen troops because of the Pentagon's lifting of ban on taking pictures of the coffins of slain American soldiers if their families agree to allow it.

The first actual photographs of Americans killed at war were taken in the Civil War by photographers such as Matthew Brady and Timothy O'Sullivan. Such photos were censored in World War I and continued until World War II in 1943, when President Roosevelt reversed it with the belief that Americans were becoming unaware of the war's high cost and becoming complacent. I would have to wonder about that with all the stars in the windows and missing family members.

Vietnam was called the media's war, with TV bringing the scenes right into our living rooms. According to Time, this helped turn the public against the war. Aware of this, President H. W. Bush banned pictures during the Persian Gulf War, and that continued until now.

Personally, I am in favor of these pictures. People need to know war's rea; cost.

To Picture or Not. Hard Call.