Veterans Day is of course an appropriate time to recognise the courage, dedication and sacrifice of those who have served in the United States’ military. And the nation will do just that, with parades, speeches, flags and decorations.
To truly honor them, however, the country has to make a deeper and more meaningful commitment to providing the wounded with the best possible care and to ensuring that Americans are never sent to war unnecessarily. Too often our leaders have fallen down on both counts.
Durango’s Veterans Day parade starts at 11 a.m. The timing reflects the fact that until 1954 it was called Armistice Day in rememberance of the truce that ended combat in World War I at 11 a.m. on Nov. 11, 1918. (The treaty that formally ended the war was signed seven months later.)
Veterans Day now commerates the service of all U.S. veterans, as it should. The nation, however, owes them more.
The nature of war is continually evolving as weapons, tactics and situations change. So too is medical science and our understanding of the lasting effects of combat. All of that has altered what veterans need from the rest of us.
One irony is that many of the wounds and injuries that veterans now face were not as frequently a problem in the last century’s wars – because those wounded would not have survived the battlefield. But what medical science can do to save a life is not always enough to ensure that person truly heals. That can take lasting care, and an across-the-board effort to get veterans the help they need.
That will take an unbending commitment to more research and resources devoted to better understanding the concussive injuries that have become the signature wounds of Middle East wars. That also means developing a better grasp of the long-term ramifications of combat, most especially trauma in all of its manifestations.
That includes veterans’ families and what they go through. Veterans, most especially wounded ones, need the love and support of their friends and families. They may not get that if the families themselves are denied the help they need to cope with what their loved one has endured.
Truly honoring America’s veterans means much more than cheering for them on Nov. 11. It means not only recognizing their service, but understanding their loss. Our veterans have paid a price at their nation’s behest. It is only fair for the rest of us to bear some of that cost, even if only by way of properly funding services and treatment for vets in need.
At the same time, all Americans need to do better at holding our political leaders accountable. Presidents of both parties have found it far too easy to go to war. We can honor wounded vets especially by creating fewer of them.
