For Memorial Day, Google Earth launched a special project.  I have not yet experienced it; since I think I will need quantities of Scotch to get through it and doing that first thing in the morning is discouraged.  I also have not been able to make it work even tho’ all the downloads and such are done.  I saw a bit of it on the Man’s computer and felt a mighty thirst come upon me.  Maybe by the weekend, I will get myself to go through this. (Edit: finally got it to work.  It is devastatingly effective.  You click on an icon and see a photo and information; you can go to the site of the death in Iraq or Afghanistan, or to the home town of the fallen troop. When you go to the site of the death and see a spiral shape display with icons of helmets on weapons showing deaths over the time of the war…it makes something come unwound in your head.)

But what it is, you see, is a map that opens with figures of the fallen as little icons.  You click on one and fly visually to where on the google earth map where that person lived and find the details of their death.    Since I am a computer moron and can’t even speak tech to my Tech God son to get this right, forgive the clumsy instructions:

Go here: http://www.mapthefallen.org/

You will need Google earth, of course, and a couple fancy specialized downloads.  But it is a world tour of loss, far beyond the American dead alone.

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