Plato warned us 2,500 years ago that “only the dead have seen the end of war.” We Americans like to think we are a peace-loving people. But the philosopher could have been speaking of our dead as much as any other. We have, in fact, sent our young men and women into the crucible of ten significant wars, and countless smaller engagements, in a mere 244 years. Today we honor those among us who wore the uniform and took the fight to the enemy in World War II, Korea, Viet Nam, the horn of Africa, the Middle East, the Balkans, Central America, and many other lesser known theaters of war. Veterans Day is not just a square on a calendar with a little American flag in the corner. It is a reminder to those of us who have never worn the uniform of the debt we owe those who walked the wall on our behalf.
It is up to us, then, to make sure that when these brave souls do return home to us, hang up the uniform, and get on with their lives that we look after them. And so today is a day for the nation to ask a question. Are we being true to our veterans?
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