Thank you, it’s a privilege to be here and to speak to you this evening, especially to such a distinguished group of veterans, leaders of business and active and reserve soldiers, sailors, airmen and marines.
I would just like to take a few moments and share with you some of my thoughts as soldier who was once deployed oversees in a combat zone, and now works at communicating both the Herculean job our military is doing, and reminding people of the hardship the families endure while their loved one is deployed in places that could be eight times zones away from here. In particular, I want to thank Reserve Aid and all the great work they do at supporting our soldiers and their families. In just a few years since their inception, they have made a clear difference in the lives of the service members who are forward deployed and fighting for our country.
At this time, I would like to recognize those who are currently serving in uniform. It is your courage, determination and sense of patriotism which is the backbone of our country and it’s your service in this time of conflict that we are grateful for. In its heart of hearts, this nation knows how much it has depended on you in the past, and depends upon you today. While the number who serves is often small, the contribution made by you is enormous, and is a testament to the true American sprit. I would like to ask all those who are serving today to please stand so we can honor and acknowledge your service.
Well, ladies and gentlemen, I have a simple thought for you, and I believe every public speaker should have one clear point, and you are about to hear mine.
But before I do that, I would like you to know that my model of public speaker is the late Conrad Hilton, the hotel magnate who, late in his life, appeared on The Tonight Show, with Johnny Carson. Mr. Carson said “Mr. Hilton, you are a giant of American industry, a legend in your time, you've built hotels all over the world - Turn to that camera over there, look your fellow countrymen in the eye and tell them the one thing, based on your life's work, that you would like your fellow countrymen to know." Like any soldier in his chosen profession, Conrad Hilton turned to the camera, looked America in the eye and said, "Please, put the shower curtain inside the tub."
So here is my simple point - the parents of the last solider to die in Iraq, or to die in combat for our country, have not yet been born. The world will always be a dangerous place, and it’s why we can never become complacent with our will to protect and defend this great country, our shared American culture, and what it all stands for.
When I was a small boy watching the Vietnam War on the nightly news, I asked my father what it was going to be like when the time came for me to go to war, and would I be going to Vietnam. My father, who served in the Navy - the submarine service, during the time of the Korean war, said to me – “When you are grown up, there will be no more wars, and you surely won’t be going to Vietnam.”
Unfortunately, my father was only half right – thankfully the war in Vietnam was over by the time I entered the 8th grade, and 5 short years later while Jimmy Carter was President, I chose to accept a nomination to the military academy and entered into the class of 1983 at West Point.
There were two significant events which have affected my entire adult life during the fall of my plebe or freshman year at the academy – the first was the visit of Pope John Paul to Yankee Stadium, which constituted the first time I left the academy since my arrival at West Point. The second occurred in November of 1979 with the taking of 62 U.S Diplomats and citizens hostage at the embassy in Tehran. Little did I realize then that one event was to be the tipping point which would change American military and foreign policy for the next generation and, considering events from the past 4 years, probably for many generations to come.
As I was new to the active duty military force as a Lieutenant in the 1980’s, I watched as the Army’s leadership rebuilt and retooled what was an Army gutted in the 1970’s at the conclusion of the Vietnam War. I had the benefit of working both for and with Vietnam veterans, whose love for their country and service in my view has only recently been appreciated by the American public. It’s on the back of the Vietnam veteran, who returned from the war with out the parades and the adulation of the nation, that we longer blame soldiers for fighting the wars they fight.
It’s because of the Vietnam Veteran, America still hates the war, but we now love our soldiers, sailors, airmen and Marines. At this time I would like to ask all of you in the audience who served in our military during the Vietnam conflict to please stand up, and once again, let us welcome you home and thank you for your contribution to the history of our great nation.
Getting back to my father’s prediction of no war in my life time, by the mid 1980’s I was serving on the division staff of 1st Armored Division in the southern region of what was then West Germany, where it sure seemed like we would be going to war with 1st Czech People’s Army, located just over the boarder by a town called Hof. Back then we used words like “GDP”, which meant General Defense Plan and OPLAN 33001, which was the actual plan for the defense of Western Germany at the time. We trained hard for a ground war in Europe which never happened, and when we came home from work one day to find the citizens of Germany standing on the Berlin Wall, I knew then our mission in Europe was complete and we would soon be returning home. I have to admit I thought of my dad’s prediction again, and perhaps the powerful military which was rebuilt during the 1980’s would now provide the deterrence to keep all enemies actually foreign and not domestic. It was a short time after that when Iraq invades Kuwait, Operation Desert Shield becomes Operation Desert Storm, and my father’s prediction of no war in my lifetime would not come to be.
But, by having become a student of the military art by this time in my life, I always knew the likelihood of being involved in an armed conflict during what I expected to be a 20 year military career was high. I have long ago forgiven my father’s unbridled optimism regarding what might happen to his son and accepted the unfortunate circumstance that conflict amongst nations is a harsh reality for the future. All the more reason why we have to be reminded that the world remains a dangerous place, always has been, always will be.
Today you may have noticed, there are similar predictions of eternal peace made by people other then my dad. And against those who are making predictions, some people must stand and say that great nations are always living in the war years or the inter-war years. Now, I know the American people generally tend to say, "Well, so far, so good...so far, so good." "We're getting along just fine." "Don't really need much of a military anymore, don't need weapons systems ... so far, so good."
Well, "So far, so good" is not a sensible way to conduct your life as a nation. We are a nation that has to be constantly reminded of what George Orwell said, "We sleep safe in our beds because rough men stand ready in the night to visit violence on those who would do us harm."
I want to read you something. This is a story told by a foreign diplomat who was in his own country overseas, and he had the occasion to visit the United States Embassy in the capital of his country. This is the story he tells:
“I arrived a quarter to six, after official office hours, and was met by the Marine on guard at the entrance to the Chancery. He asked me if I would mind waiting while he lowered the two American flags at the embassy. What I witnessed over the next ten minutes so impressed me. The Marine was dressed in a uniform, which was spotless and neat, he walked with a measured tread from the entrance of the Chancery to the stainless steel flagpole before the Embassy and, almost reverently, lowered the flag to the level of his reach where he began to fold it in a military fashion.
He then released the flag from the clasp attached to it, stepped back from the pole, and made an about face and carried the flag between his hands, one above, one below, and placed it securely on a stand before the Chancery. He then marched over to the second flagpole and repeated the same lonesome ceremony.
After completing his task, he apologized to me for the delay out of pure courtesy. Nothing less than incapacity would have prevented him from completing that task, the simplicity of which made the might, the power and the glory of the United States of America stand forth in a way that a mighty wave of a military aircraft or the passage of a super carrier, or a parade of then thousand men and women, could never have made manifest.”
I thought this passage describes so well the commitment of those in uniform have towards our country. We should all hope to visit one of our embassies in a far away place and to see a Marine fold our flag and turn to a stranger and say, "I am sorry for the delay, sir. I had to honor my country."
Even though we have been actively engaged in combat for the last four years, one could argue that the country is not even at war. Oh, make no mistake about it, the military is at war, but have we done all we can as a country to give our forces better odds against an enemy which doesn’t wear a uniform, doesn’t value life, and is driven purely by a barbaric ideology? Once again, our military is out in front of what must be a change in mindset of the American public regarding the importance of this struggle and why this is a war of wills which will transcend the battlefield for many years to come.
We have legitimate concerns as the armed services have become smaller and the tempo of operations has increased. Have we put a strain on military men and women, and their families, not to mention their equipment, which will cause it to break? Bearing a heavy burden are our reserve forces, which can no longer be described as “weekend warriors” – these men and women are true citizen soldiers, who have put their lives on hold during a time of need.
Unfortunately, the news for supporting veterans returning from war is not promising – just last week a report from the GAO says the Army and the Veterans Affairs Department just can’t get their act together on caring for wounded troops and getting vets the disability pay they are owed. Too many wounded troops are still without the care they need.
So we are grateful for organizations like Reserve Aid, who have the agility to fill in the gaps while the service departments get their acts together. A solider in need doesn’t understand or care why the Defense and Veterans Affairs departments still haven’t found a way to share medical records; all they know is they are met with red tape at every turn. They just need to put food on the table or buy basic necessities to keep the family going. You have seen and heard some incredible stories about the great things Reserve Aid has done for soldiers, Reserve solders in particular, who are often making a large financial sacrifice in the service of their country.
I will leave you with some thoughts of a solider who was deployed away from home during the holidays. It was Christmas Eve of 1990 and I was with my unit in a remote desert location close to a town called Hafar al Batin in central Saudi Arabia. Alpha Battery, 3rd Battalion 17th Field Artillery was forward deployed from our home base in Ansbach, Germany, in support of Operation Desert Shield. As its commander, I had the responsibility of preparing the men of A Battery for the potential offensive operation to remove the Iraqi Army from Kuwait, and we were doing all those things units do when they know they are going to war. Having studied military history, I had often read accounts of war time during the holidays, especially Christmas – stories from the Battle of the Bulge, from the pacific theater, Korea, and Vietnam. I have to admit I took a quiet pause that evening and thought what a great privilege it was for me to have that same experience as all those soldiers who came before me who served and were away from their families during the holidays. While we were not actively engaged in combat but knowing the gravity of our situation, I felt a tremendous bond with many of the soldiers I had read stories about who had served overseas in similar times. I remember looking up at the sky that night, and for some reason, it just looked different. I felt the presence of all the soldiers who had been away from their family on Christmas Eve looking down on us that night, lighting up the sky – I felt their strength of enduring the hardship at a time of the year which is more closely associated with being with our family and friends at home. But for that Christmas Eve, I was with my family – my soldier’s were my family, and while our thoughts would drift back home, we all knew we were there to do a mission, which meant heading north into Iraq and into battle in the very near future.
What I also remember about that Christmas Eve was the outpouring of support we had from people we never met, from children we had never seen, and from groups who appeared like angels on our shoulders to make the experience of living in the desert more tolerable. We couldn’t’ actually keep up with it –the cards, letters, care packages – you name it, we had it. The hard to get creature comfort items we took for granted for months prior were beginning to appear in my battery’s location. We received care packages that Christmas eve from The New York Giants, St Margaret’s School in Pearl River, and the Daughters of the American Revolution- again, just people reaching out to us in a time of need. It was the support we received then which made a difference, and it’s the support given by Reserve Aid today which makes all the difference in the world to the soldier and marine on the ground who loves their county, loves their family, and just wants to do their duty and come home.
So, thank you for allowing me to share some thoughts with you tonight, and for all your support of this great cause and to Reserve Aid, and please join me when I say may God Bless our wonderful fighting force serving in harms way this evening.
