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History Repeating
Itself
John Lenottte, American Legion
(04/04/07)
 History Keeps Repeating Itself
The axiom “History repeats itself”
continues to hold true today as much as it ever has in
the past. We all see the news daily about the debates in
the halls of Congress and protests by citizens and
students. And now we continue to have funding legislation
for the troops being passed with pork barrel amendments
and even worse, a timeline for the troops to leave Iraq.
We can debate forever whether or not we should have gone
into Iraq. The fact is that we did and now we have to
help the Iraqi people stabilize their country or we will
have larger problems later on. This is so very much a
reminder of what we went through during the Vietnam War.
Yes, the protests were larger and the number of deaths
were much higher. But we are heading down the same path.
We are not letting the commanders and their troops do
their job. We don’t see much in the news about some
of the good things that are getting accomplished in
building the infrastructure. Now we want to broadcast to
our troops that whatever sacrifices they make, it does
not really matter. The enemy will just wait us out until
the troops leave and then create more havoc. They
probably watch the news channels more closely than most
of us do.
They studied what happened in Vietnam and figure that
enough bad frontpage news will make the public begin to
doubt and falter, that politicians will take over and, in
the long run, that victory will be theirs. Except this is
a very different conflict in that there is no regard for
human life from the enemy and they have vowed to destroy
us and our way of living. If you doubt me, think back to
the events of September 11. It is hard to maintain the
same intense passion for our country. But this is going
to be what it takes or surely we will be struck again. I,
like my fellow veterans, do not like war. It was not easy
to see our own generation (mine was Vietnam) lose so many
friends and family members.
And now it is our sons and daughters who carry on the
fight. A much more difficult position when it is our own
children in harm’s way. Thank goodness we did learn
some lessons and have shown incredible support for the
troops. We cannot let them down now. To do so is to give
in to the enemy and create more disaster for not only our
children, but for their children as well. In speaking
with both active duty military members and their
families, they need and want our support. They cannot do
it alone. Remember, they are on the front lines defending
us and the freedoms we enjoy. Keep them in your prayers
to come home safely.
As a follow up to my article last month, we continue to
see the problems in government health facilities, both
mili-tary and the Veterans Administration. This is
something the American Legion and other veterans’
groups have been pointing out for years. The only way we
will get a positive, long-term solution is to let our
congressional delegates know how we feel. And remember to
let them know the Veterans Administration should have
mandatory funding in the budget. We have sent this latest
generation to do battle for our way of life. They need
our support, our respect and the best that modern
medicine can provide for those who need it. Remember this
as we look ahead to the fall elections.
John Lenotte, the American Legion District 8/Essex County
Commander and Post 4 Haverhill Adjutant. You can
Email him at JohnLDistrict8@verizon.net
*Send your questions comments to ValleyPatriot@aol.com
The March 2007 Edition
of the Valley Patriot
The Valley Patriot is a Monthly
Publication.
All Contents (C) 2007, Valley Patriot, Inc.
We publish 12,000 newspapers and distribute in Andover,
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Salisbury Beach, and Lowell.
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