Jessica Lynch is everywhere these days, but where's Shoshana Johnson?
Comparing the cases of these two female American prisoners of war makes some folks defensive and others blazing mad, for obvious reasons.
But that doesn't change the facts.
For many, what Lynch and Johnson represent is the troubling affirmation that, even in times of war, some Americans are deemed more worthy than others.
Let's review:
Both Pfc. Lynch and Spc. Johnson belonged to the same 507th Maintenance Company when they were captured by Iraqi troops.
Both were seriously injured during their ordeal.
Unlike Lynch, who was rendered unconscious and didn't fire a shot, Johnson fought with her captors.
Unlike Johnson, Lynch went on to become a big media star with a new TV movie that just aired and a book that hit the stores today, all kicked off by a high-profile interview with Diane Sawyer.
Johnson had her brief cup of coffee with fame - I saw her on Leno once - but has pretty much disappeared since, although a messy dispute over her disability pay might return her to the headlines.
Her family has asked Jesse Jackson for help in pressuring the Army to reconsider a decision to give Johnson - who was shot in both ankles in Iraq - just 30% of her disability pay, while Lynch received 80%.
According to the Philadelphia Inquirer, the disparity is due to different categories of disability decided by a military physical evaluation board.
Lynch was put on temporary disability, meaning she can stay in the Army for five years while being re-evaluated, while Johnson was given permanent disability due to the extent of her injuries.
Johnson plans to appeal the decision. This is about where the anger kicks in.
Many African-Americans - particularly black women - were already mad that the blond, blue-eyed Lynch became the poster girl for the Iraq war, based on so-called acts of heroism that never happened.
They are bound to be even madder upon learning about the difference in disability payments for the two women.
Other people get angry whenever someone even suggests Lynch was designated for stardom, not because of any actual accomplishments, but because of her so-called All-American looks and white skin.
In fact, the much-repeated description of Lynch's look is part of the problem; if blond and blue-eyed are the criteria for being "All-American," what about all the Americans in Iraq who don't possess any of that?
There's little to be gained by arguing whether Lynch would be a star if she were black, or if Johnson's fame would have lasted longer if she were white.
What's interesting is placing both cases side by side to see what actually happened.
When fair-housing groups want to test for discrimination, they send out perfectly matched pairs of potential home-buyers - one white couple, one black couple - to judge if the treatment is different.
This type of "testing" is legitimate and very instructive. And, just as with Lynch and Johnson, pretty hard to explain away.
Frankly, it's depressing to realize the men and women fighting this war overseas in a hostile land are simply not considered equal when they return to the United States.
It just serves to remind some people, once again, that fighting in the war in Iraq doesn't necessarily win the war for respect still being fought back home.
