Flat Daddies

Ashton Gardner, 6, of Ellsworth, Me., with a cutout of his father, Troy, who is stationed in Iraq. Linda Coan O'Kresik for The New York Times

I found this through Shakespeare's Sister, and even I'm just amazed by it. This is pretty disgusting. From The New York Times:

The Maine National Guard is giving life-size from-the-waist-up pictures of soldiers to the families of deployed guard members. Guard officials and families say the cutouts, known as Flat Daddies or Flat Soldiers, connect families with a relative who is thousands of miles away. The Flat Daddies are toted everywhere from soccer practice to coffee shops to weddings.

“The response has been unbelievable,” said Sgt. First Class Barbara Claudel, director of the Maine National Guard’s family unit. “The families just miss people so much when they’re gone that they try to bring their soldier everywhere.”

The Maine National Guard has given out more than 200 Flat Soldiers since January. While other guard units are recommending Flat Soldiers, and families around the country are using them, officials here say Maine’s National Guard is the only one giving one to each family that asks.

I can understand the families latching on to these Flat Daddies--they miss their husbands and fathers who have been sent to Iraq and Afghanistan for two, three, or even four tours of duty there. But as Shakespeare's Sister asked, "What if Flat Daddy (or Flat Mommy, or Flat Big Brother) comes back in a box? What if Flat Daddy comes back with both of his legs missing, looking far too much like that truncated cut-out? These cheap cardboard cut-outs are never going to take the place of the real family member who may end up dying, become physically maimed, or even bring back the psychological and emotional scars of the war to their families. The longer this war continues on, the more American casualties will increase....

And the more Flat Daddies will be tucked away in closets, in sorrow.

Time to bring the troops home.