Memorial Day Tribute

[John Prezioso]

When is the Cost ÔÇ£Too HighÔÇØ?

This is a particularly tough Memorial Day for me personally, for several reasons. Theres the riot in Afghanistan, where apparently U.S. soldiers were forced to fire on a crowd of protesters. Theres the report of another U.S. fighting man dead in Iraq as I write this. Theres the investigation into the allegations that some marines went on a rampage, killing unarmed civilians. (One that Im praying is not true.) Here at home, I had to sit through another story of so-called Christians protesting at the funeral of an American serviceman killed in Iraq, saying his death and the deaths of all US troops in our war on terror are Gods punishment for America allowing gays to exist and live here. (It hurts to say it, but sometimes Im ashamed to say Im Christian). There is the constant and growing negativity in America to the wars overseas, which historically always equates to increased disrespect and anger towards the troops who fight in them, as if they have any say in what their orders will be. All this is in addition to the sadness I feel every Memorial Day, thinking about all of the heroes who gave their lives fighting for a country that, more and more each year, is losing its identity, its pride in national sovereignty, and its very soul through apathy, ignorance, and downright resentment from its own people.

All of which makes this Memorial Day all the more important. In keeping with my annual tradition of trying to say a few words in honor of AmericaÔÇÖs heroes, I thought IÔÇÖd address something IÔÇÖve been hearing over and over again in reference to the Iraq war;: something that was often said during the Vietnam War: The cost is too high. Whenever I hear that, it always makes me think: When is the cost NOT too high?

Most of us can agree that the invasion of Normandy in 1944 was a critical and vital operation in the campaign to stop the spread of fascism. In the grand scheme of things, the beach had to be taken, literally at all costs, in order for any allied offensive to even be remotely possible. So, what was the cost? Actual historical casualty numbers differ, but by all accounts, the US death toll was between 2500 and 4500 soldiers killed. Now, historians and students of history look at the overall tactical importance of the operation, and indeed how the sacrifice of such a small number of men positively affected the lives of hundreds of millions of people across the world, and come to the conclusion that while tragic, the deaths were necessary and ÔÇ£for a good causeÔÇØ. In an operation as important as this one, where the outcome and far-reaching ramifications are crystal clear to this day, itÔÇÖs easy to find comfort in the well known passage from the Good Book: ÔÇ£No greater love hath man than when he lay his life down for another.ÔÇØ

I myself have two separate, distinct, and ironically opposite ways of looking at the cost of war. On one hand, I view war as a numbers game, a game of gambles, losses and wins. It is in this way that I find myself viewing the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan MOST OF THE TIME. It is from this standpoint that I say seemingly callous things like: ÔÇ£In a tactical sense, disregarding the politics of the situation, I am of the opinion that 3000 American soldiers dead is a relatively low cost for what is, again in my opinion, is a long overdue and critically important campaign to take the fight to terrorists across the world; one in which believe that we are winning, and winning decisively.ÔÇØ Others here have different opinions, and I respect them, as who knows if history will ultimately prove me wrong or right?

Then there is the sobering and painful way that I view the cost of war. Maybe the war dead at Normandy did save the world from fascism, but those men were husbands, fathers, and sons. To the wives whose husband never came home, and to the little boys who never got to throw a ball around with their dads, the cost of taking what amounted to a few hundred yards of sand that day was definitely too high. To the pregnant widow of Lance Corporal Youngblood, (the corpsman of the Marines' Lima Company killed in Iraq last year for those of you who didnÔÇÖt watch the memorial day special on A&E) the cost of the war was equally too high. Both wars have similarities, and clearly both have differences (public opinion of the war being a notable one) but on Memorial Day, it is not oneÔÇÖs place to look at the howÔÇÖs, whyÔÇÖs, or whereÔÇÖs of the fallen.

Something I remember very clearly from my military service was when, usually right before a deployment, I would be approached by members of Greenpeace and other anti-war activists who wanted to tell me how I would be responsible for the deaths of millions if my ship were ever to fulfill the mission it was designed for. (I was stationed on a nuclear ballistic missile submarine). Whenever I heard that, I have to say, on some level it hurt. DidnÔÇÖt people understand that I was just a grunt? What orders ultimately came down from the top brass were no more in my hands than they were in their own? What I did for a living could have very well resulted in death, true, but why couldnÔÇÖt people realize that what I was doing was making a SACRIFICE by doing what I was doing; one that I believed that if things went well, would preserve the peace, not destroy it? I mention this now because of some of the ideas I have heard bandied about in the last few years with regards to the Iraq war. I caution all Americans to be ever wary of how you engage in your dissent if that is what you choose to do. Our soldiers in harmÔÇÖs way listen to what Americans say back home. They pay attention to the attitudes of ÔÇÿJoe EverymanÔÇÖ, and take a lot of what they say to heart. Think how it must feel to a soldier deployed in Baghdad away from his or her loved ones when they hear Americans saying that they are being used as pawns by their government, or how it must hurt to hear it said by some Americans that they are responsible for the slaughter of innocent people. Dissent to the war is not un-American, but be careful not to get caught up in the rhetoric that insults the very ones whom we should be thanking, or hurt the ones who have already committed to making the ultimate sacrifice to protect YOUR way of life. Morale is as important as guns and ammo to soldier, but for different reasons.

Today, on Memorial Day, every death is too much to bear. No dead soldier is rationalized away. I urge my fellow Americans to put aside the politics and honor not only the fallen, but the soldiers still living who may fall at any time, still trying to make their sacrifices and those of their comrades seem worthwhile to a country that seems to grow more apathetic, discontented, and accusing by the day. Let us honor the fallen, but let us also honor those still alive, who are in desperate need of our support and respect. Let us honor the wives, husbands, fathers, mothers, sons, and daughters who have suffered the greatest cost of war in the loss of their loved ones. Let us, if only for today, just be Americans. And let us, as Americans, honor those Americans soldiers, alive or dead, who have fought in many different countries, for many different causes, in may different wars. History will tell us if what we do today was wrong or right, as it has many times in our existence. But history will NEVER change the nobility and honor of our veterans throughout the history of our great nation.

Happy Memorial Day. Thank you from the bottom of my heart to all who served and still serve. And may you who have died fallen heroes every one, rest in peace in God's eternal embrace.

[Kevin Trotter]

Very well put, This is thier day and they deserve the gratitude of the entire nation