"National forgetting doesn’t bode well for the future." #MemorialDay

Remember the Fallen, and Their Cause

Memorial Day pays tribute to those who gave their lives for their country—but we should know more about why.

Tim Rice

May 24, 2019

"Of the 16 million Americans who fought in World War II, just under 500,000 remained alive in 2018. World War II veterans are dying at a rate of 350 per day. The last surviving World War II vet will likely die sometime in 2044.

Before that happens, we owe these soldiers a display of national gratitude—but a holiday commemorating World War II will be even more important when they’re gone. Tomorrow’s children will be born into a country that has forgotten the legacy of the war, and not just because those who fought it are no longer with us. The idea of the “Greatest Generation” has gone from honorific to punchline. Today, we’re quick to criticize America’s wartime decisions, whether the firebombing of Dresden or the decision to drop atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Even the photo of the sailor and nurse, once the jubilant symbol of a triumphant nation, is viewed by some as a depiction of sexual assault.

National forgetting doesn’t bode well for the future. Today, too many Americans deride any opposing viewpoint as beyond the pale. Political opponents are casually smeared as “Nazis.” We fail to take seriously the evils of twentieth-century fascism, in part because we no longer acknowledge the moral rectitude of the Allies. We’re less equipped now to defeat fascism in its resurgent cultural manifestations.

Those living in the Eastern European countries that bore the brunt of Hitler’s murderous campaigns understand this well. Their countries still mark the end of World War II with pageantry and parades. Nothing less than the fate of the world hung in the balance during those six long years. Had things gone the other way, humanity would have taken an unimaginably dark turn. That is well worth celebrating, now and forever."