World War II veteran Rosie Martina waves while riding in a truck during the Kenilworth Civic Association’s 51st Annual Independence Day Parade on Monday, July 3, 2023 in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. Martina is celebrating his 100th birthday this month. Facebook Twitter WhatsApp SMS Email Print Copy article link Save Editor’s note: A version of the following editorial has appeared on previous Veterans Days in this newspaper.
America is built on representative government and capitalism, two institutions that recognize how fickle humans can be. The marketplace of ideas we call politics and the marketplace of products we call free enterprise both assume that people are pliable creatures, likely to change their minds in a hurry. We honor choice as a national birthright.
But the country’s freedom is protected by men and women who give up a world of choices so that we can continue to have ours. They are the Americans who serve in our military, a call that doesn’t indulge inconstancy or caprice. They deserve our honor this Veterans Day — and every Veterans Day.
One cannot easily opt out once a commitment to military service is made. And when the battle is joined, we ask brave men and women to risk their lives to defend this nation’s interests. It’s not a sacrifice that can properly be undertaken on a whim, shaped by the latest poll numbers or focus groups.
That’s why those long rows of white tombstones at our nation’s military cemeteries are such a resonant part of the A.
