OPINION & EDITORIAL
Americans owe veterans respect, homage
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by Jeremy Wick
Thursday, November 8, 2007
In honor of Veterans Day this coming Sunday, it is necessary to remember the many brave men and women who have fought to preserve our freedoms, and the many more who have since passed on. No matter where you go in this great nation, it's hard to find a place that doesn't show its support for veterans, come each Nov. 11. This is because heroism is universally accepted as a selfless virtue, and every veteran — no matter how decorated — is a hero.
To bear witness to the phenomenon of Americans' appreciation for a person's military service, I bring to attention a story about a fallen soldier from McFarland. Josh Brennan, a 22-year-old who aspired to follow his father into law enforcement, was killed in action during a firefight in Afghanistan this past week. As his body was brought back to his hometown to be laid to rest, much of the area, including a large portion of the McFarland High School student body, came to honor someone they'd never met. They lined the streets of McFarland as a 100-plus car procession accompanied Mr. Brennan's body to its final resting place. This is a local example of how a seemingly trivial event can profoundly impact society.
Another example of the selfless nature of military heroism is the story of Lt. Michael P. Murphy, a Navy Seal who was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor, America's highest award for a member of the armed forces. A Washington Post article describes Lt. Murphy as an honors graduate from Penn State who passed up law school to become a Navy Seal. Seven short years after leaving college, Lt. Murphy was the leader of a four-man Seal team dispatched to the Hindu Kush Mountains to pursue a militia leader friendly to the Taliban.
After being spotted and attacked on three fronts by more than 50 enemy fighters and with his communications man wounded in the ensuing fight, Lt. Murphy deliberately exposed himself in order to make a distress call. During the call, he was shot twice in the back and dropped the radio but calmly picked it up and ended the call by saying, "Thank you." After more than two hours of intense fighting, Lt. Murphy and two of the remaining team members were dead, and the fourth Seal narrowly escaped death or capture after being blown off a cliff and cared for by a local tribe. This lone survivor, Petty Officer Marcus Luttrell, later authored a gripping account of the fight aptly titled "Lone Survivor."
This account of selfless heroism on foreign soil is but one of many stories that date back to the early heroes who gave their lives to rescue captured sailors from Mediterranean pirates in the first years of the 19th century. Their story is forever memorialized in the opening line of the Marines' Hymn that goes, "From the halls of Montezuma to the shores of Tripoli."
Here in Madison, it is easy to be complacent and forget these stories. It is understandable with the many issues that confront society on a daily basis, but it is never forgivable. This weekend, it isn't yet known whether the city of Madison will host Veterans Day festivities. In fact, a search for news articles containing "Madison" and "Veterans Day" contains only a story about the Madison chapter of Veterans for Peace "mourning the dead" from the current conflict in the Middle East. Not even these local veterans can commemorate the entirety of our fallen, but have to make a political statement on a day of apolitical remembrance.
Whether we are hawks or doves, liberals or conservatives, Veterans Day is not about war, but about the citizen-soldiers who carry our flag into battle regardless of their feelings or reservations. It is about honoring their selfless bravery in the face of our enemies. It is for this reason that for the remainder of this week, between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m., the College Republicans will be raising money on Library Mall for the local Vets' Center. And finally, please remember that freedom isn't free, but paid for and protected by the blood, sweat and tears of America's armed forces.
Jeremy Wick (jwick@wisc.edu) is a senior majoring in history and economics and is a member of the College Republicans Executive Board.
Anonymous (November 8, 2007 @ 9:26am):
"...freedom isn't free, but paid for and protected by the blood, sweat and tears of America's armed forces."
And don't forget those defense contractors who get filthy rich while selling us the lie that we are actually fighting for our freedom when we're really fighting and dying so they can make a buck.
Of course, it usually take a few years for most people to wise up and see the truth.
Anonymous (November 8, 2007 @ 9:27am):
"Freedom isn't free
It costs folks like you and me
And if we don't all chip in
We'll never pay that bill
Freedom isn't free
No, there's a hefty fuckin' fee.
And if you don't throw in your buck 'o five
Who will?"
Anyway--criticizing veterans (and I note here than you make no mention of being one) for mourning the casualties, on all sides, of the current war is entirely inappropriate. If anything, their remembrance is less political than yours: they mourn for loss of life without making their respect for the dead contingent on nationality.
Anonymous (November 8, 2007 @ 10:39am):
People sleep peaceably in their beds at night only because rough men stand ready to do violence on their behalf.
-- George Orwell
Dave Gorak (November 8, 2007 @ 10:54am):
I did not wear the uniform of the United States so people could walk into this country illegally, thumbing their noses at our laws and sovereignty, and then further insulting the American people by marching through our streets waving foreign flags and telling us that they are entitled to respect and dignity.
The best way to honor veterans is to oppose all legislation that mocks the values and principles for which they risked their lives to protect. This means calling for strict enforcement of our immigration laws and ending the foolish and stupid practice of giving illegal aliens drivers licenses, instate tuition and municipal ID cards.
They belong back in their own countries demanding of those governments what they have no right to demand of ours.
Dave Gorak
Executive director
Midwest Coalition to Reduce Immigration
LaValle, WI
www.immigrationreform.org
mcri@mwt.net
Anonymous (November 8, 2007 @ 11:22am):
"criticizing veterans (and I note here than you make no mention of being one)"
since when do you need to be a Vet to honor them? that kind of thinking is just messed up.
Anonymous (November 8, 2007 @ 1:22pm):
amen dave
Anonymous (November 8, 2007 @ 4:08pm):
you guys are ridiculous in your arguments. VFP in Madison along with IVAW are setting up the tombstone display to remind people of the costs of the current occupations and to also talk about the meaning of 11/11/11 and try and return the true meaning to the day, Peace.
Anonymous (November 8, 2007 @ 4:27pm):
freedom isn't free it costs a buck 'o five.
Anonymous (November 8, 2007 @ 5:14pm):
And yet again, people like Wick and the College Republicans turn a holiday into a patriotic pissing contest, to show everyone else that they are holier-than-thou and support the troops more. Whoever has the most yellow ribbons on their car at the end of the day wins.
Anonymous (November 9, 2007 @ 2:23pm):
My response to the editors:
Veterans Day = Armistice Day = No War
In yesterday's edition of this paper, the College Republicans claimed that Veterans For Peace was not commemorating the dead in all wars and simply making a political statement. In the mission of VFP we seek to end war as an instrument of foreign policy. This will to return Veterans Day to its original purpose of a day rededicating American society to the cause of peace. In its original creation following the end of the First World War, Armistice Day was designated on the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month as a time to not only remember those who perished in WWI but also to reflect on the peace in the world that followed that conflict.
We will have speakers who are veterans of Vietnam, Iraq, and peace-time service. Our organization has members from the Spanish Civil War against the fascists (Abraham Lincoln Brigade) and every U.S. war since then along with a member of the Israeli military during the Yom Kippur War. It staying true to our mission, we will be honoring all those who have perished in war and use tombstones to show the impact that the current conflicts have had on our citizen-soldiers. This is not much different from the U.S. flag presentation that was done on campus by the College Democrats and Republicans. These tombstones will also seek to increase public awareness of the costs of war, another of our mission statements.
Everyone, including the numerous veterans who are on this campus, is invited to come to Olbrich Park at 2pm on Sunday, November, 11th for the official ceremony. You are also invited to come to the park at any time following the ceremony on Sunday and Monday to walk among the tombstones to reflect and talk with VFP members about their experiences including why the elimination of war is so important to us. In the words of Dwight D. Eisenhower, we hope you will join our hands in the common purpose of dedication to the promotion of an enduring peace.
Todd Dennis is a U.S. Submarine Service veteran, a board member of the Clarence Kailin Chapter of Veterans For Peace and the WI State Coordinator of Iraq Veterans Against the War. Todd is a senior majoring in Mechanical Engineering.
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