At the conclusion of an election season brimming with general dissatisfaction over the Iraq War, it is only appropriate that we spent Saturday reverencing all those brave Americans who serve their country during wartime. After all, we can safely say, without exaggeration, the freedom we enjoy today stems from the sacrifices of yesterday's heroes.
While some would claim the cost of freedom is incalculable, we believe it is a simple equation based on the number of headstones in the United States' national cemeteries. Though the equation is plain, it denotes a debt we will never be able to repay.
Often, we associate Veterans Day with elderly men dressed in worn-out uniforms and decorated with medals that don't shine like they once did. Each passing year, the heroes of yesterday are leaving us at an alarming rate. A Scripps Howard News Service reported only a dozen WWI veterans are still alive today - all well over 100 years old - and about 1,000 WWII veterans pass away each day.
No doubt these courageous men who fought in WWI and WWII deserve our sincerest gratitude. They responded to our nation's call in the world's darkest hour. They fought honorably and returned home to a hero's welcome. But the sacrifices of the veterans of today's war are no less honorable, despite the political derision surrounding the rightness of our involvement in Iraq.
No matter what our position is on the current administration's policies in Iraq, we must prudently discern between our criticisms of an administration's failings and the efforts of individual soldiers. They did not choose to lead our nation into war, they simply responded to the call of service like those before them.
These men and women willingly leave their friends and families to sacrifices months, years and sometimes even their lives, to uphold the ideas and principles that make our country great. They deserve no less than our respect and admiration all year long - not just on Memorial Day and Veterans Day.