140,000 attend dedication of World War II Memorial
Today, I'm going to take a respite from the partisan sturm und drang that is normally found in this space. Instead, I'm pausing to recognize those who have sacrificed their lives so that we may continue to lob verbal and written broadsides back and forth, for such is the stuff that democracy is made of.
WASHINGTON -- Ray Zuehlke was a teen when he left a farm in Flat, Texas, for the jungles of the Philippines and the smoking, radiated ruins of Hiroshima. Fred Machol of Seabrook, 87, was a counter-sabotage officer in Europe who saw railroad cars filled with desiccated bodies at the Dachau concentration camp.
The story of their generation was celebrated Saturday at the dedication of the National World War II Memorial. President Bush, actor Tom Hanks and former Sen. Bob Dole, who was wounded in combat in the war, thanked the veterans collectively for saving much of the world from fascism and terror.
"The years of World War II were a hard, heroic and gallant time in the life of our country. When it mattered most, an entire generation of Americans showed the finest qualities of our nation and of humanity," Bush said. "On this day, in their honor, we will raise the American flag over a monument that will stand as long as America itself."
Indeed. We, as well as future generations, owe a debt of gratitude to those veterans who fought for their country. Not all were fortunate to make it home.
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