Thorlifter
Captain
I read this in the June 2008 issue of The American Legion and just had to share. It's a letter a veteran wrote to the editor.
After reading remarks in Vet Voice regarding "The Strongest Generation" (February), I was struck by a thought that many of your readers might not have considered.
The "greatest generation" is owed a debt we can never repay, but that generation is not unique. We owe a debt of gratitude to every man and woman who has ever worn the uniform of our country.
I wonder how the Doughboys of World War I felt about World War II and its warriors. Doughboys lived and died in the trenches, thousands at a time. They lived with the fear of being gassed night and day. Medical treatment was poorer in quality and the casualty rate higher. Could they have thought the "greatest generation" had it easier?
Did survivors of the Civil War think the same of veterans of the first world war? After all, they never had to fight the enemy standing straight up, facing the volley of a thousand muskets. And without the benefit of any real medical tratment, the bone saw may have been their worst fear.
I wonder how our Vietnam War and Korean War veterans regard their younger brothers and sisters, who have since taken the fight to our enemies on foreign battlefields?
Technology has made warfare different for each succeeding generation. We must remind ourselves that it is the grunt with his weapon who bears the brunt of any battle, and brings home scars both physical and emotional. There can be no such thing as, "My war was better than your war."
-Paul Dudkowski, Katy, Texas.
I thought this was well said.
After reading remarks in Vet Voice regarding "The Strongest Generation" (February), I was struck by a thought that many of your readers might not have considered.
The "greatest generation" is owed a debt we can never repay, but that generation is not unique. We owe a debt of gratitude to every man and woman who has ever worn the uniform of our country.
I wonder how the Doughboys of World War I felt about World War II and its warriors. Doughboys lived and died in the trenches, thousands at a time. They lived with the fear of being gassed night and day. Medical treatment was poorer in quality and the casualty rate higher. Could they have thought the "greatest generation" had it easier?
Did survivors of the Civil War think the same of veterans of the first world war? After all, they never had to fight the enemy standing straight up, facing the volley of a thousand muskets. And without the benefit of any real medical tratment, the bone saw may have been their worst fear.
I wonder how our Vietnam War and Korean War veterans regard their younger brothers and sisters, who have since taken the fight to our enemies on foreign battlefields?
Technology has made warfare different for each succeeding generation. We must remind ourselves that it is the grunt with his weapon who bears the brunt of any battle, and brings home scars both physical and emotional. There can be no such thing as, "My war was better than your war."
-Paul Dudkowski, Katy, Texas.
I thought this was well said.