HEROES
Growing up in the last half of the 20th century, it was not
uncommon to hear people bemoan the lack of ‘real heroes’ in our
society. In the first decade of this new century, that has changed. John
Wayne has been quoted as saying, “Courage is being scared to death and
saddling up anyway.” So many of our brave young men and women have
saddled up and headed out to places like Iraq and Afghanistan. They
headed out not knowing what might lie ahead but they had been trained by
the best. They had the best equipment and they had the backing of the
best our society has to offer.
Recently, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, President and CEO Thomas J. Donohue wrote a letter that was published in The Weekly Standard’s November 21 issue. He reported that over 1 million U.S. veterans are unemployed. “A staggering 27% of young veterans age 18 to 24 are unemployed.” As the U.S. military leaves Iraq, thousands more will separate from the service and the unemployment numbers could skyrocket. Currently there are no tax incentives for small business owners to hire a veteran. There aren’t any federal dollars available to these businesses to take a chance on hiring a vet. And yet, it is probably one of the best moves a business owner can make. Need someone disciplined? Need someone with a realistic view of the world, highly trained by the best, with more than the average applicant’s experience in working as a team member? Then, your best choice is a veteran.
Today is December 7th. Former President Franklin Roosevelt called this “…a day which shall live in infamy.” A great many vets have come and gone in the 70 years since that day. A great many heroes have given everything they had for this country. Now, it is our turn to be on the front line of a war against an enemy our parents or grandparents would be shocked to know exists. America was not ready for the terrorist type of guerilla warfare of Vietnam. Yet today, we have an enemy that straps bomb to children or sets roadside IED’s to kill indiscriminately. Whether you are former military now working in law enforcement, or current either active duty or Reservist or Guard, your role is one that we should remember. More than a particular day, we must remember the names and the faces of the vets; those who died and those who lived. Above all, American should be thankful for their sacrifice.
So, here we are. Seventy years since that fateful day when Japan struck in a multi-front assault against the United States and Great Britain. We are still fighting to keep our citizenry safe and yes, may we remember all the vets who were killed in Iran, Afghanistan or somewhere in between. We should be so very thankful for all the heroes America has seen across all those years. They were everyday people, like you. They were patriots. They probably were, as the ‘Duke’ said, “scared to death, but saddling up anyway.” May God bless all our heroes, our veterans. May you, if you are a business owner, have the ability to say “yes” to a veteran today that is looking for work. May God bless America.
Recently, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, President and CEO Thomas J. Donohue wrote a letter that was published in The Weekly Standard’s November 21 issue. He reported that over 1 million U.S. veterans are unemployed. “A staggering 27% of young veterans age 18 to 24 are unemployed.” As the U.S. military leaves Iraq, thousands more will separate from the service and the unemployment numbers could skyrocket. Currently there are no tax incentives for small business owners to hire a veteran. There aren’t any federal dollars available to these businesses to take a chance on hiring a vet. And yet, it is probably one of the best moves a business owner can make. Need someone disciplined? Need someone with a realistic view of the world, highly trained by the best, with more than the average applicant’s experience in working as a team member? Then, your best choice is a veteran.
Today is December 7th. Former President Franklin Roosevelt called this “…a day which shall live in infamy.” A great many vets have come and gone in the 70 years since that day. A great many heroes have given everything they had for this country. Now, it is our turn to be on the front line of a war against an enemy our parents or grandparents would be shocked to know exists. America was not ready for the terrorist type of guerilla warfare of Vietnam. Yet today, we have an enemy that straps bomb to children or sets roadside IED’s to kill indiscriminately. Whether you are former military now working in law enforcement, or current either active duty or Reservist or Guard, your role is one that we should remember. More than a particular day, we must remember the names and the faces of the vets; those who died and those who lived. Above all, American should be thankful for their sacrifice.
So, here we are. Seventy years since that fateful day when Japan struck in a multi-front assault against the United States and Great Britain. We are still fighting to keep our citizenry safe and yes, may we remember all the vets who were killed in Iran, Afghanistan or somewhere in between. We should be so very thankful for all the heroes America has seen across all those years. They were everyday people, like you. They were patriots. They probably were, as the ‘Duke’ said, “scared to death, but saddling up anyway.” May God bless all our heroes, our veterans. May you, if you are a business owner, have the ability to say “yes” to a veteran today that is looking for work. May God bless America.
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