What is a veteran

Dave Siciliano

Dave Siciliano

Final Approach
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Dave Siciliano
Seems some folks may have forgotten what a veteran is; thought this could be a reminder.


A veteran - whether active duty, retired, national guard or reserve - is someone who, at one point in his life, wrote a blank check made payable to

"The United States of America," for an amount of "up to and including my life."

That is honor, and there are way too many people in this country who no
longer understand it.

-- Author Unknown

Best,

Dave
 
Dave,

Thank you for passing on that simple, brutal truth.

John
 
That's a beautiful thought.

A very tiny few of those who wrote the check had insufficient funds, unfortunately.
 
I've been watching the Ken Burns series too. The story of the 16 year old from the Minnesota town who survived Bataan and the subsequent 3 years.....is a blank check. The black guy from Mobile, and Senator Inouye's stories, made me incensed that after their service, they returned to the same old stuff....back of the bus... The guys in the 442ng (corrected) brigade losing 75% of their men and still charging the guns in the Ardenne forest.....

sigh.
 
Last edited:
bbchien said:
The guys in the 444th brigade losing 75% of their men and still charging the guns in the Ardenne forest......
Click to expand...

BTW it was the 442nd not the 444th

And now you understand why I had to quit my lobbying job. It was over just such a situation. I was asked to keep the status quo and continue a behavior of discrimination similar to the what the blacks and the Japanese had to endure during WW2. I sat in the first Congressman's office as the call to push a class of people out of the service was made, I found it distasteful and quit less than an hour later. What kept running through my heads were those words of the men who argued against black fliers, integrated units, etc. All of those things happened and it made the military a better place and our country stronger.
 
"The War" is pretty well done. Been watching it too and I'm learning new things about WWII. It is a little disheartening to hear of an event like the one at Oakland the other day. Reminds me of a different time at Oakland, SFO, and Travis.
 
To me, it doesn't matter whether a person served in times of war, or peace, whether they were an infantryman or a REMF. They all wrote the same blank check, and are deserving of the same basic respect.

Now, on top of that honor, there is valor and merit, both recognized with individual and unit citations and accompanying medals and such.
 
TMetzinger said:
To me, it doesn't matter whether a person served in times of war, or peace, whether they were an infantryman or a REMF. They all wrote the same blank check, and are deserving of the same basic respect.

Now, on top of that honor, there is valor and merit, both recognized with individual and unit citations and accompanying medals and such.
Click to expand...

I dunno about REMFs :D

Although I sure as hell wish I had been one...

D Co, 5th Bn, 7th Cav, 1st Cav div, f*cked up in attack on LZ Buttons, near Song Be RVN, still gettin' beer money from the VA.
 
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