On Nov. 11 we will celebrate Veterans Day, a tribute to those who have fought for the United States and, indirectly, for the world. To be certain, our veterans have earned our collective admiration, appreciation and recognition. They have been and will always be our heroes.
But what is so special about our soldiers? The easy answer is that as a result of their efforts, we have been allowed to live prosperous and free lives, and the quality of the lives of every generation of Americans has surpassed the one that preceded it. However, that would be simplistic because it does not consider who our soldiers are and the sacrifices they have made to make that possible. Moreover, it neglects to address the extremely positive effects on the world that have resulted from their efforts.
Throughout history, soldiers have marched for their countries. Many have been raised from birth to be soldiers and have carried out their work with cruelty and a lack of consideration for the people and nations in which they have fought. Simply put, they were trained to take. That has not been true for the United States. Our soldiers have been raised to be civilians: farmers, factory workers, doctors, lawyers, etc. The fact that they have shown themselves to be among the fiercest fighters the world has known is a testament to their adaptability, intelligence and humanity. They have always been able to leave their work, fight a war and come home to resume their work. They raised their families and played a major role in the growth of our country, and, yes, the growth of the countries they defeated. In short, they have been trained to give.
At great risk to them, American soldiers have avoided the killing of civilians when possible and have aided civilians in war zones with food, medicine and reconstruction aid as soon as it was possible to do so. One only has to review the huge amounts of money we are spending today in an effort to help the people of Iraq and Afghanistan and our successful efforts to rebuild Japan and Germany after World War II. American soldiers were fully aware of the unspeakable horrors inflicted by both those countries on their enemies, soldier and civilian alike. Think about it … American soldiers who witnessed some of the horrors of those regimes actually helped their former enemies when those atrocities were still fresh in their minds. Has any other army of the world been as magnanimous?
Finally, one has to recognize the conditions under which they have fought. Few realize that sailors in the day of the sail spent day and night in wet uniforms. The wooden ships of the past were simply not capable of keeping them dry. At Valley Forge our soldiers froze and starved, lacking clothing, food and shelter. During the Civil War, the modern arms of the day completely outdistanced the medical treatments, leaving many with the choice of amputation or death when a limb was injured. A bullet to the belly was almost always a death sentence, a death that came after extreme pain and suffering. During the 20th century, our soldiers endured extreme heat, cold, disease from insects, lack of sufficient food and water when fighting and unspeakable treatment by the enemy when captured. Yet when the wars ended, they returned home without complaint, went back to their jobs and families and set about the work of building a better world.
Yes, our debt to our veterans is beyond our ability to repay. We can pay the interest on the debt by thanking them when possible, supporting the various programs and institutions that provide them with aid when it is needed and by properly educating our students with respect to the history of the American armed forces in our schools. On Veterans Day, we should all pause and consider what the world would be like today if there were no American veterans.
Bob Tagliente East Brunswick