Veterans Day
Veterans Day dawns this year with many parts of the world at war. We can see the horror of armed conflict all too vividly. It spurs us again to share our gratitude for members of the United States Armed Forces on this day of commemoration and celebration for their service.
We recognize the courage and sacrifice of the professional soldiers, sailors, airmen, and marines trained to engage in battle, while also acknowledging the profound suffering endured by civilians who are not.
Last year, we shared a post in the wake of the midterm elections, which delivered impressive and significant victories for democracy, progress, and the rule of law. This week’s elections also provided signs of hope, but the peril posed by those seeking to undermine our constitutional republic persists — especially amid the prospect of another Trump presidential campaign.
With this in mind, we want to share our sentiments from last Veterans Day, looking backward with solemn appreciation and forward with a stalwart belief in hope, and steadiness.
There is a potent symbolism in how Veterans Day falls so soon after Election Day. In this short succession of the calendar, we can see a definition of the American experiment — the peaceful exercise of our constitutional government and the need to protect our precarious freedoms from the forces that would destroy them.
In the wake of a midterm election that seems to have steadied our national future in a time of great danger from within our country, we can now turn to honoring those who have stood sentry around the globe, at great peril and sacrifice, to ensure the continuation of our nation’s peace and prosperity.
It is fitting that Veterans Day grew out of Armistice Day. This is the 11th day of the 11th month, commemorating the end of what was originally called The Great War and then World War I, because another global conflict soon followed. The fate of a warrior is to prepare for war but hope for peace.
We, as a nation, recognize the necessity of having armed forces to ensure the safety and security of the homefront and the larger world, but we should always hope these forces face battle only as a last resort. Our history tells of particular tragedy — in places like Vietnam and Iraq — when we entered into conflict we should have, could have avoided.
The service and sacrifice of our men and women in uniform is not limited to active warfare. It can be found in the myriad manifestations of duty required by those who have taken the oath to serve. It can be found in long deployments and missed time with loved ones. It can be found in physical and emotional exertion. And it can be found in the strain of always preparing for the possibility of war.
Our military also has been a driver of social change. It desegregated before the country did. And it has offered a path of opportunity for many who desperately needed it, including those from immigrant and marginalized groups. But like the society it reflects, the American military is not immune from the divisions seen in the nation at large. Our political and military leaders must be diligent in rooting out racism, sexism, bigotry, homophobia, and the extremism that has been on the rise in recent years.
We have seen evidence that the MAGA mindset has taken root to some degree in our military and among some of those who served. Many who stormed the Capitol on January 6 were veterans. And the ranks of groups like the Proud Boys reportedly have many veterans, as well. These people embody the antithesis of those who wore the uniform before them. Our brave veterans defeated the Nazis, Imperial Japan, and the forces of violent autocracy more generally. They protected us from Soviet aggression. They stood guard against a world that despised our diversity and our freedoms. This is the legacy we honor today.
Our veterans have been the authors of many of the key inflection points in our nation’s history. They have ushered us from danger to hope, from strife to peace, and from division to unity. As we struggle to find our footing in an era of disorientation and peril, let us express our gratitude to those whose steadfastness and courage allow us to continue on our journey toward a more perfect union.
To all of you who have served, we thank you. Steady.
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Noble sentiments, well expressed. Thanks, Dan and Elliott. Now if only Tommy Tuberville could understand the responsibility that we bear toward our troops and carry it out. He is unworthy of the men and women who serve, and unworthy of the seat he holds in the Senate.
As a veteran, US Army 1969-71, I am proud to have served. As one who swore an oath to defend our constitution from its enemies, foreign or domestic, I continue to honor my oath even as I pass my 77th birthday. I have lived a free life in the greatest nation the world has ever seen. I believe in us, what we stand for, our values and goals. Yes, we’ve made our mistakes. Hopefully we’ve learned from them. I am violently opposed to the MAGA narrative that tears apart all our Founding Fathers so skillfully constructed. I worry about those whose vision is blinded by this cancer and the man who’s goal is to destroy our constitutional republic and with it everything we hold to be self evident. Now, we have the ballot to keep these fools away from power. Let’s pray the ballot will be enough. If not, then we will need to smite them with the bullet. Happy Veterans Day to all my former comrades in arms! God Bless America!