Letters to the Editor 05-24-2004
July 28, 2016 at 4:25 p.m.
By -
- World War II Memorial - Replies To 'Ashamed' - A President With Backbone - Appreciates Stories About World War II
World War II Memorial
Editor, Times-Union:Saturday, May 29th, marks the dedication of the National World War II Memorial in Washington, D.C. Almost 60 years to the day from D-Day (June 6, 1944), the nation will thank this "greatest generation." Over 16 million Americans served from 1941 to 1945. Over 405,000 Americans died to secure democracy. The freedoms that we take for granted today were paid FOR at a great price during those four years. Some have said to me, "Why did we take so long to build this memorial?" My answer is that it should have been done years ago; however, we should celebrate its completion and focus on the theme "a grateful nation remembers." The World War II Memorial is placed prominently in our capitol between the Washington Monument and the Lincoln Memorial. It serves as a reminder that this generation met the challenge of tyranny and hatred and united together both at home and on two theaters to crush fascism and imperialism. It is interesting when you talk to a World War II veteran how matter of fact they are about that time. "I went and did my job," is a common response. They make it sound like they were going to a 9-5 job when in reality many of them spent time on the edge of hell. Just try to call them a hero. Their response is always something like this, "The real heroes never came home." Over 810,000 mothers and fathers along with scores of family members suffered the ultimate price of liberty. For them there was an immediate understanding that freedom comes with a cost. This generation responded on a firm foundation during those days by looking to God, loving their country and serving when called. After the war they came home, went back to that 9-5 job and had lots of children. Those heroes were burned on their hearts as they built a nation that is the envy of the world. Now they are leaving us at an estimated number of 1,500 a day. For too many our gratitude has been late, however, we must thank the veterans who are still living and take time to reflect on their legacy. The stone and mortar of the edifice in Washington serves as a lasting tribute to a moment when America was at its best. It was a time when everyone sacrificed for the common good of the nation and the world. For those of us not living at that time we need to be grateful that they did. Take a moment to say thanks to a veteran. When you see the American flag waving in the breeze, remember it does so because of them. Our World War II veterans are heroes who did their job. My father, Carlton Locke Sr., from Marshalltown, Iowa, served in the 88th Division and almost lost his life. Only because of the grace of God am I here today. Many times before he passed away he reminded me about the heroes who never came home. "Don't ever forget them," he would say above a whisper as he quickly wiped the tears away. I haven't forgotten, Dad. The United States joins together in remembering as well. To all World War II veterans, both living and dead: there is nothing more to say than,"Thanks."
God Bless America.
Ken Locke
Warsaw, via e-mail
Replies To 'Ashamed'
Editor, Times-Union:I would like to reply to the letter "Ashamed" from Ms. Newton.
Ms. Newton, if you awoke in the middle of the night and smelled smoke, would you get up and check to see if your house was on fire, or would you lie there until you saw the flames? The WMD works on the same theory,even if our intelligence was weak at best, we had to know for sure, besides, unless you've been living under a rock somewhere,you and everyone else knew we would have to go back to Iraq and take their evil, murderous dictator out of power, that alone for me is a good enough reason.
As an American soldier, I look at the WMD threat like the police getting a 911 call, we had to go there and knock on their door and see if everyone was all right, after digging up a few thousand dead Iraqis, we found out that indeed we did have a problem. Ms. Newton, if you don't see the problem here, then perhaps you think we shouldn't have stopped Hitler either.
I leave next month for my second deployment in Afghanistan, it's a lot easier being away from my family, friends and the country I love, knowing I have the support of my fellow Americans.
I can't wait to be back home in Indiana.
Spec. Eric Koontz
3rd Special Forces Group,
Ft. Bragg, N.C.
via e-mail
A President With Backbone
Editor, Times-Union:In a recent letter Deanna Newton repeated the left-wing mantra, "The WMD was a lie from the very start." Several years ago, most major news outlets showed photos of dead Kurdish men, women, boys and girls strewn across the landscape of northern Iraq. There were small children, dead in the midst of their toys. If WMD is a lie, then we must assume that all of these innocent people died simultaneously from natural causes. I believe the truth is that they were victims of genocide via WMD via an evil tyrant.
In 1938 British Prime minister Neville Chamberlain chose to appease an evil tyrant and ignore his practice of genocide. The next prime minister was a leader with some backbone: Winston Churchill chose to defeat the evil tyrant.
It seems that Ms. Newton embraces the failed Chamberlain approach to national defense. Thank God we have a president with some backbone, who embraces the Churchill approach to national defense.
Brad Green
Warsaw
via e-mail
Appreciates Stories About World War II
Editor, Times-Union:We want to express our appreciation for the stories that have been appearing about the experiences of local men during WWII. I was only 11 when Pearl Harbor was attacked and remember our family all gathered around the radio to hear the terrible news. We had been following the European conflict, but that hadn't hit us as hard as the Pearl Harbor event. Many of our local boys would leave almost as soon as they graduated from high school and several of them did not return. We lived in Larwill beside the railroad track and would watch the "troop trains" go by. My siblings and I would lean on our fence and wave to them as they hung out the windows and returned our waves. We children were very aware of the "War Effort" and helped gather scrap metal, milkweed pods for life vests, etc., and we were very aware of the shortage of sugar, rubber products, gasoline and many other things that we used on a daily basis. Ration stamps were an everyday part of our lives for those years. We did without many things, but did it gladly. We raised "victory gardens" and saw our parents and older siblings give blood for the war effort. The present generation needs to know what took place then and the experiences of our servicemen and women. Will you be putting these stories in a book for our community to buy? It might also be interesting to hear the stories of the wives and families of the servicemen and what took place on the homefront. Thank you again for publishing these accounts. We look forward to more.
Karen & Vera Clark
Warsaw
via e-mail
[[In-content Ad]]
Latest News
E-Editions
- World War II Memorial - Replies To 'Ashamed' - A President With Backbone - Appreciates Stories About World War II
World War II Memorial
Editor, Times-Union:Saturday, May 29th, marks the dedication of the National World War II Memorial in Washington, D.C. Almost 60 years to the day from D-Day (June 6, 1944), the nation will thank this "greatest generation." Over 16 million Americans served from 1941 to 1945. Over 405,000 Americans died to secure democracy. The freedoms that we take for granted today were paid FOR at a great price during those four years. Some have said to me, "Why did we take so long to build this memorial?" My answer is that it should have been done years ago; however, we should celebrate its completion and focus on the theme "a grateful nation remembers." The World War II Memorial is placed prominently in our capitol between the Washington Monument and the Lincoln Memorial. It serves as a reminder that this generation met the challenge of tyranny and hatred and united together both at home and on two theaters to crush fascism and imperialism. It is interesting when you talk to a World War II veteran how matter of fact they are about that time. "I went and did my job," is a common response. They make it sound like they were going to a 9-5 job when in reality many of them spent time on the edge of hell. Just try to call them a hero. Their response is always something like this, "The real heroes never came home." Over 810,000 mothers and fathers along with scores of family members suffered the ultimate price of liberty. For them there was an immediate understanding that freedom comes with a cost. This generation responded on a firm foundation during those days by looking to God, loving their country and serving when called. After the war they came home, went back to that 9-5 job and had lots of children. Those heroes were burned on their hearts as they built a nation that is the envy of the world. Now they are leaving us at an estimated number of 1,500 a day. For too many our gratitude has been late, however, we must thank the veterans who are still living and take time to reflect on their legacy. The stone and mortar of the edifice in Washington serves as a lasting tribute to a moment when America was at its best. It was a time when everyone sacrificed for the common good of the nation and the world. For those of us not living at that time we need to be grateful that they did. Take a moment to say thanks to a veteran. When you see the American flag waving in the breeze, remember it does so because of them. Our World War II veterans are heroes who did their job. My father, Carlton Locke Sr., from Marshalltown, Iowa, served in the 88th Division and almost lost his life. Only because of the grace of God am I here today. Many times before he passed away he reminded me about the heroes who never came home. "Don't ever forget them," he would say above a whisper as he quickly wiped the tears away. I haven't forgotten, Dad. The United States joins together in remembering as well. To all World War II veterans, both living and dead: there is nothing more to say than,"Thanks."
God Bless America.
Ken Locke
Warsaw, via e-mail
Replies To 'Ashamed'
Editor, Times-Union:I would like to reply to the letter "Ashamed" from Ms. Newton.
Ms. Newton, if you awoke in the middle of the night and smelled smoke, would you get up and check to see if your house was on fire, or would you lie there until you saw the flames? The WMD works on the same theory,even if our intelligence was weak at best, we had to know for sure, besides, unless you've been living under a rock somewhere,you and everyone else knew we would have to go back to Iraq and take their evil, murderous dictator out of power, that alone for me is a good enough reason.
As an American soldier, I look at the WMD threat like the police getting a 911 call, we had to go there and knock on their door and see if everyone was all right, after digging up a few thousand dead Iraqis, we found out that indeed we did have a problem. Ms. Newton, if you don't see the problem here, then perhaps you think we shouldn't have stopped Hitler either.
I leave next month for my second deployment in Afghanistan, it's a lot easier being away from my family, friends and the country I love, knowing I have the support of my fellow Americans.
I can't wait to be back home in Indiana.
Spec. Eric Koontz
3rd Special Forces Group,
Ft. Bragg, N.C.
via e-mail
A President With Backbone
Editor, Times-Union:In a recent letter Deanna Newton repeated the left-wing mantra, "The WMD was a lie from the very start." Several years ago, most major news outlets showed photos of dead Kurdish men, women, boys and girls strewn across the landscape of northern Iraq. There were small children, dead in the midst of their toys. If WMD is a lie, then we must assume that all of these innocent people died simultaneously from natural causes. I believe the truth is that they were victims of genocide via WMD via an evil tyrant.
In 1938 British Prime minister Neville Chamberlain chose to appease an evil tyrant and ignore his practice of genocide. The next prime minister was a leader with some backbone: Winston Churchill chose to defeat the evil tyrant.
It seems that Ms. Newton embraces the failed Chamberlain approach to national defense. Thank God we have a president with some backbone, who embraces the Churchill approach to national defense.
Brad Green
Warsaw
via e-mail
Appreciates Stories About World War II
Editor, Times-Union:We want to express our appreciation for the stories that have been appearing about the experiences of local men during WWII. I was only 11 when Pearl Harbor was attacked and remember our family all gathered around the radio to hear the terrible news. We had been following the European conflict, but that hadn't hit us as hard as the Pearl Harbor event. Many of our local boys would leave almost as soon as they graduated from high school and several of them did not return. We lived in Larwill beside the railroad track and would watch the "troop trains" go by. My siblings and I would lean on our fence and wave to them as they hung out the windows and returned our waves. We children were very aware of the "War Effort" and helped gather scrap metal, milkweed pods for life vests, etc., and we were very aware of the shortage of sugar, rubber products, gasoline and many other things that we used on a daily basis. Ration stamps were an everyday part of our lives for those years. We did without many things, but did it gladly. We raised "victory gardens" and saw our parents and older siblings give blood for the war effort. The present generation needs to know what took place then and the experiences of our servicemen and women. Will you be putting these stories in a book for our community to buy? It might also be interesting to hear the stories of the wives and families of the servicemen and what took place on the homefront. Thank you again for publishing these accounts. We look forward to more.
Karen & Vera Clark
Warsaw
via e-mail
[[In-content Ad]]
Have a news tip? Email [email protected] or Call/Text 360-922-3092