Editorial

If you get the chance today, you might want to thank a veteran.

But chances are, you may not remember.

You see, we Americans sure love our holidays.

There’s a day for our country’s birth, a day to give thanks, a day to

honor those who labor in our fields and factories, a day to honor a great

civil rights leader, a day to honor presidents both great and

not-so-great and a day to honor those who died in the line of duty.

But a funny thing happened on our way to making holidays.

We do have a day to honor our war veterans, it just seems to have been

forgotten.

We have forgotten those who chose to fight for our principles, our

values and our way of life. Those who took on foreign armies and navies,

who skulked through jungles and sandy deserts, answering the call and

living to tell about it.

So even though today is Veterans Day, you would hardly know it.

There are no parades, no fireworks, no three-day weekends, no family

barbecues.

Aside from banks, schools and public offices being closed, the fanfare

surrounding this day is pretty faint.

That’s probably to be expected.

War is not a pretty topic to celebrate. While we love to hear the

stories of our victories abroad, when the topic veers to the casualities

that come with it, well, we’d rather save that story for another time.

But the casualties of war are a real part of our veterans’ memories.

They must live those stories every day. Stories that are vivid reminders

that freedom comes with a price.

So we’d like to take this time to remind everyone that Veterans Day

should be bestowed with the special reverence that is attributed to other

holidays we celebrate.

And we’d like to say to all of those veterans who never hesitated when

duty called:

Thank you.