Lest We Forget

What I'm about to write is probably sacrilegious in 21st century America. I'm wondering why we honor veterans of today's army with the same - if not greater - fervor than we honor veterans of earlier armies. The difference is in how these veterans came to serve in the military. Before 1973 just about everyone was eligible for the draft. True, some were able to evade the draft, but, in general, most of the people with whom I grew up knew that there was a chance of their being drafted; earlier generations knew that they could be conscripted. When I was a kid, all of my male cousins were drafted into WWII and the windows of several homes displayed the fact that a Gold Star Mother lived there; she had lost a son who in all likelihood had been drafted into the military.

But today's All-Volunteer military is just that. People willingly serve in the military. It is the job they have chosen. Yes, some may have had little choice if they wanted a job, but they were not forced to serve. Other than the degree of danger, do soldiers provide more of a public service than firemen, policemen, teachers, doctors or anyone else who just does his or her job as well as they can? I don't think so. Yet, today you may go to a parade which honors the military; you'll read an op-ed or hear a pundit praise the servicemen and servicewomen. When, except when a catastrophe occurs, will you hear or see anything about the good job the guy down the street - the doctor, teacher, fireman, etc. - has done?