As the only “career” soldier in my family I have had the honor of inheriting most of the awards, decorations, and military memorabilia ever given to the soldiers, sailors, and airmen of my family. It is really quite a collection because as I have mentioned before every generation of my family has served in the armed forces of our great nation since the Revolutionary War.
This past weekend I had some quiet time to spend looking through this collection that includes such things as documents signed by my ancestor who was an officer during the Revolutionary War, a copy of my great-great grandfathers Civil War military records and even the scratched and worn “dog tag” that was my grandfathers and worn in France during World War I and even my fathers wings from World War II. I started with the oldest and picked them up one by one turning them in my hand. And as I touched each one I found myself thinking about each soldier who wore, carried or was represented by each of the items. I found myself remembering my father’s stories of World War II and my grandfather’s stories of World War I and the stories he passed on to me about the Civil War that were told to him by his father and grandfather. I also remembering that not once did my father or grandfather ever tell stories of the death associated with war but seemed to always focus on the camaraderie and the patriotic reasons they or their fathers, brothers or uncles served their country. It seemed to me that it was always about the ideals that our country was founded on and the need that every citizen sacrifice for the preservation of those ideals. It was never about their individual heroism or personal sacrifice but always how brave their friend was and how much their friends sacrificed. It was always obvious that they not only loved their country and respected the ideals on which it was founded and built but they really cared about their fellow soldiers and citizens.
I found that as I touched each of these mementos of my families’ history and as I reflected on my family both those long departed and those still on this earth two things began to occur. First, deep in my soul, the memories of my families’ shared and common experiences were stirred and as they were I grew very, very sad; then as I dwelled on all of their individual sacrifices I grew very, very angry. I grew sad and angry not because they were gone or because they sacrificed or suffered. No, I have long since mourned their parting and basked with pride in their accomplishments. I grew sad and angry because unfortunately we have a government that has lost touch with the sacrifices of past generations and are shaming our nation with their arrogance, intolerance, and false pride. I became sad and angry because all that I and my family and millions of other Americans have sacrificed and fought for and believed in is being systematically destroyed by those who know no honor, those who have no integrity, those who have no compassion, and those who have no courage.
Honor, integrity, compassion and courage. Dwell for a moment on the definitions of these four powerful traits. Take just a moment to read and think about them and then ask yourself this simple question. Which member(s) of the Executive branch, the United States Senate, Congress, and Judiciary Branches of our government can I describe using any one or more of these words?
Honor – Principled uprightness of character; personal integrity.
Integrity – Steadfast adherence to a strict moral or ethical code.
Courage – The state or quality of mind or spirit that enables one to face danger, fear, or vicissitudes with self-possession, confidence, and resolution; bravery.
Compassion - Deep awareness of the suffering of another coupled with the wish to relieve it.
As of this writing 2,448 soldiers have been killed in Iraq. As of this writing 17,869 soldiers have been wounded in Iraq. As of this writing somewhere between 35,101 and 39,258 Iraqi’s have been killed in Iraq.
Five, Ten, Fifteen, Twenty years or more from now a son, daughter, mother, father, brother, sister, aunt, or uncle will be opening a box of military mementos. They will be taking the items out one by one and turning them in their hands. They will begin remembering the stories that their brother, sister, father, mother, grandfather or grandmother told them about World War II, Korea, Vietnam, the First Gulf War or the war in Iraq. What will their thoughts be? What will they feel and what will the country they live in look like and represent to the world? What will this generation have left them?
Those Are The Sergeant Majors Thoughts On That.
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yes, indeed, sergeant major. i too, come from a long line of service. i found a source of pride in tracing my place in the line through the rifle companies of WWII & I, a couple of china sailors, both sides of the civil war, mexico, 1812, the revolution. further than that i found my spiritual brothers in the hollow squares of wellington, the spanish tercios, all the way back to the phalanxes of zenophon, epaminandous, and leonidas. the code of standing with your brothers in the line is a powerful, and real emotion. these men never knew that. there were many men who served with honor and dignity, but their jobs were in the rear. most of them were that way. the ones who stuck in my craw were the guys who treated troops of the line like chumps. like we were fools for believing in codes, and honor, and well, our country. now, i am old. my wounds still hurt. i took my son to the moving memorial wall in san diego last week. for the first time, i told him the stories i know behind the names. i saw in his face, he believes in those "quaint" concepts of decency and honor. i did, at least, one thing right. i hope i am deserving of my comrade's sacrifice. rmc usn (ret)
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