I was on the 6 this morning, and at 51st street, a man got on the train, asking for donations for himself and his family. The man was like many panhandlers: homeless, somewhat old, hobbled, selling some sort of newspaper for a buck. But the man was also a Vietnam Vet, and he used his war experience to spice up his script asking for money on this Friday, the beginning of a long weekend.
He reminded his (mostly ignoring) public that there was much more to Memorial Day than an extra-long weekend, sales at the mall, or a barbecue. It used to mean something: recognition of the sacrifices that thousands of Americans have made over the years in defense of our country. Along with that recognition of the dead should also be the honor for the living, but as the man on the subway reminded us we fail to do so.
This has nothing to do with support of the war but rather respect for the selfless individuals who do what most of us would rather not.
A few things worth thinking about this weekend:
- According to the National Coalition for Homeless Veterans, one out of every three homeless men are veterans. 200,00 veterans are on the street on any given night, and more than 400,000 veterans will experience homelessness over the course of a year. Those numbers are staggering,
- No soldier deserves the neglect exposed at Walter Reed Hospital as exposed by The Washington Post last February.
- No soldier should feel like s/he as no choice left but to kill his/herself, as has been the case with more than 1000 troops, a fact swept under the rug by the current administration and most of the mainstream media.
- The fact that one in eight soldiers coming back from Iraq suffers from PTSD--and that fewer than half of them seek treatment for it--should astound and upset us.
Enjoy the weekend. But don't forget the people who can't.
