Honored by salute to nation's veterans

I had the privilege of attending an event that honored the nation's veterans that was held at Neuqua Valley High School.

The faculty and students honored their alumni who are serving, as well as veterans from all conflicts from World War I through Iraqi Freedom. I was touched by the compassion and thoughtfulness the citizens of Neuqua showed to the veterans.

We sometimes wonder if our citizens appreciate the sacrifices that have been made to defend our freedoms and way of life.

That question was answered very positively at Neuqua Valley.

As a Vietnam veteran I know that I got the short end of the stick when I got home. Fortunately, most of us are over that. We just want to make sure no other generation that is defending our freedoms has to experience what we did. The celebration helped once again to continue the healing of our wounds.

The soldier takes an oath to defend the Constitution, which is the "Rule of Law.". That Rule of Law states that the president of the United States is the commander-in-chief. The soldier's oath states that he will obey the commander-in-chief. The soldier doesn't care about politics. The last person who wants to go to war is the soldier.

We veterans hope that the American people understand that sacred oath and continue to support and honor our military men and women as well as veterans from previous conflicts.

Mike Barbour

Naperville