Monday, May 25 ^th, is Memorial Day. For the majority of Americans, it is simply the informal start to summer – barbecues, beaches and celebrations. But it should be for all of us a day of solemn remembrance.
At the close of 2014, the longest war in U.S. history came to an end when the U.S. ceased all combat operations in Afghanistan. The United States continues to have 11,000 troops in Afghanistan providing support to the Afghan Army and police. The United States is also continuing anti-terrorism operations. More than 2,300 service members lost their lives in the Afghan War. Many of those who served in the Afghan war also served in the Iraq War. The Iraq War claimed the lives of almost 4,500 service members. The Department of Defense reports that more than 52,000 service members were wounded in action in the two conflicts, but the Veterans Affairs Department reports that close to one million disability claims have been filed by veterans of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. The human cost of these two wars has been enormous and there is ample evidence that the Department of Veterans Affairs is simply not equipped to deal with all those who are in need of on-going physical or mental health treatment.
All of the members of the armed forces who died in our nation’s wars died in our name. Each of us, therefore, has a personal responsibility to insure that our political leaders do not commit American forces to combat without grave and sufficient cause. They must also have clear objectives in place that allow us to see how the war will end. We owe this to the men and women who serve in our name. The vast majority of American military personnel served with honor and distinction in Iraq and Afghanistan in spite of the often inept management of these wars by civilian leaders. As a nation, we owe them a deep debt of gratitude.
As Catholic Christians, we must remember that all of our recent Popes have been of one mind in declaring, “War, never again!”