OUR REMARKABLE SOLDIERS (AND MARINES, AND SAILORS AND AIRMEN)

Over the last couple of days I have seen and read some heart-rending stories about wounded military personnel recovering back here in the States. Last night it was a story about veterans facing the hard work of rehabilitation at Walter Reed that was featured on NBC Nightly News. Last week the HBO program Inside the NFL did a story on a group of wounded soldiers who were treated to a football game by the NFL. In each case the soldiers themselves were interviewed about their personal stories and allowed to reflect on the hand that life has dealt them. To hear these men and women talk was humbling, indeed.

One horribly burned Marine in the HBO piece talked about how glad he was to be alive. A female soldier whose left hand was blown off by an RPG talked about how she and her comrades agreed that she was lucky to go home and see the NFL season unfold this year. In the NBC piece a young Navy Corpsman described how he saved his own life by applying a tourniquet after his leg was blown off. A female Army soldier was shown working to rehabilitate her legs which had been shredded by shrapnel. In all of the interviews shown there was a remarkable lack of bitterness. In fact, the NBC piece remarked on that fact, making it a central part of the story.

I have also seen some print stories on the subject, including a recent piece in the Washington Post. The Post story (sorry, no link, it is a registration required site and I don't have a registration), excerpts of which I've read on other websites, focuses in on how the Army is working to keep wounded soldiers in the service. A few weeks ago The NFL Today on CBS featured a group of Army soldiers, one of whom had been seriously wounded, losing part of a leg, and he spoke about his desire to return to his unit. Apparently, the Army is responding to a demand from within the ranks, as well as the need to retain valuable personnel.

It is a remarkable change from what one might have expected, using the experiences of past wars as a guide, especially Vietnam. I think it is due to the fact that ours is a volunteer military. These people know when they sign up (as I did when I served in the late 1980s) that they are risking the possibility they will be called upon to serve in combat. They take the risk willingly. Therefore, when they are wounded in action, the enter into their rehabilitation less susceptible to bitterness. In my mind it is yet another reason we should keep the all-volunteer force. As long as we have courageous young men and women like those featured in the pieces I have referred to, and in the military as a whole, the U.S. will remain a formidable foe against any enemies.