To me remembering is the easy part. We honour our veterans of all wars by voting, participating in our communities, contributing to a true standard of human values to those around us.
Those who served, died and were wounded were generally not prepared militarily and psychologically for war---"adolescents" in many respects. The war was largely fought by the US Army with 17, 18, 19-year-olds.
I don't think of their sacrifices as stolen years. They shared a belief in a common purpose (how many of us do today?) and that they represented the best country in the world. Their sacrifices gave us more than they could have imagined.
Sacrifice is giving up something for the sake of something higher. They did that. They were barely men doing bravely a man's job. These things we tend to forget. They fought a truly professional army and won.
Of the millions the US sent overseas, only 14 per cent were infantrymen. They took more than 70 per cent of battle casualties among overseas troops. See "The Boys' Crusade" by the distinguished US soldier and academic Paul Fussell.
Last edited by King Brown; 12-07-2011 at 05:30 PM..
|
Threaded Mode