There are certainly varying viewpoints about the war, but one thing is for sure: The men and women who are fighting for us deserve to be respected and certainly there are many who have been disabled or severely injured who need all our support and assistance.
So, here is a big SHOUT OUT for all of you who served on this Veterans Day and do what you do.
We all show patriotism differently, but we can all do something good for a Veteran today and every day for that matter! Don’t be afraid to carry out even the simplest act of “thanks” for fear that your neighbor or some reporter for the Times is lurking in the shrubs to call you a crazy nationalist or accuse you of supporting a corrupt government.
Many of you will honor your brothers and sisters in arms in different ways…from working to increase public awareness of the cost of war or to end the arms race. Or maybe it’s a patriotic symbol of putting out a flag to demonstrate that you’re paying attention.
This year stirs more memories for me than others have because it seems like Iraq is the war that will never end. For comparisons:
WWI – 1 year, 7 months and 5 days
WWII – 3 years, 8 months and 26 days
Iraq – 4 years, 7 months and counting
**Vietnam War was certainly longer (1965 – 1975), and you could debate that we were involved as early as 1959.
Today I plan to say hello to a vet and thank them for their service. At the same time I plan to re-join the conversation vs. avoid debate because of my own ambivalence.
I’m a patriot and proud to be part of this country so, servicemen and women THANK YOU.
MacRant 
