Lots of my commentary on here is in the form of rants of some form or another. My good friend Greymagius served and his niece elected to serve her country. I wish her well.

My experience with a veteran was my grandfather, Jesse T. Beard. He was from a small town called Hardinsburg, Ky. He joined the Army Air Corp before WWII started. He served in 8th Air Force, 458th Bomber Group, 752nd Bomber Squadron in a B-24J Liberator. His group was called the Sac Time Kids. The survival rate for this type of service was about 50%. I believe they generally flew about 25 missions, I know he flew at least 35.

In all the years I had with him, he never talked about any of it really. He'd talk about the buddies he knew and stayed close too his entire life. When we lost him back in 2000, a crew member of his, Bobby Giles, drove several hundred miles on a moment's notice. He was both a bombardier and a gunnery sergeant. Gunners also had high casualty rates.

I was thankful he survived. He was great to grow up around. The "Greatest Generation" is starting to thin. Most are in their 80s or older. These are the people who made our country strong, who built it with their bare hands through a depression and war. If anyone knows one of these folks, say hi. Tell them you appreciate them carrying the load for us. Veterans do that. They fought to make sure we survive. As my friend mentioned, there are problems with the war, but the problems are not with the soldiers. They do what many could not or would not do. They are heroes, No question. We need to make sure we respect them, honor them and let them know we support them, even if we don't support the war.

posted by Stithmeister @ 11:17 PM
 
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