We have many overused words these days, but the one that annoys me the most is the word, “Hero.” Everywhere you turn is another hero, a hero here, a hero there, when will it ever stop? We’ve totally destroyed the word, “Hero,” since it now really doesn’t mean anything anymore. The second definition of this overused word is,
A person noted for feats of courage or nobility of purpose, especially one who has risked or sacrificed his or her life: soldiers and nurses who were heroes in an unpopular war.
So, a hero is a person who has risked or even sacrificed their life while exhibiting “feats of courage” or “nobility of purpose.” Seems to me that this word, “Hero,” then, wouldn’t apply to every serviceman during a war, since many servicemen spend their tours of duty in places other than where the war is being waged. Many men I knew, during the war in Viet Nam, had cushy assignments in the Air Force and Navy, and they spent much of their time in Europe or on the Mediterranean. Were these men heroes simply because they were in the service? I don’t think so, and I don’t think every serviceman is a hero today either.
My definition or portrait of a hero, or heroes, is the image, which I can still see in my head, of FDNY firemen racing up the stairwells in the World Trade Centers, as terrified citizens rushed to get to safety. I remember seeing their faces as they climbed those stairs: there was an expression of fear, shock and determination to carry on and save lives in their faces. An expression that conveyed the knowledge that this might be their last few moments of life, and that they might never see their loved ones again. These brave men were risking their lives for others, and they truly had a noble purpose for putting themselves in harm’s way!
I see John McCain, almost everyday, refer to a veteran as a hero. It doesn’t matter to McCain whether this particular vet saved a life or hid while the battle raged on. He’s a hero, to McCain, simply because he had been in uniform. This, in my estimation, is an insult and grave injustice to those, like the 9/11 heroes, who have, in truth and reality, risked and lost their lives for others!
My maternal grandfather was in World War I, and he would not discuss anything about the war with anyone, except what little he confided to my grandmother. My uncle had been a navigator on a B-17, during World War II, and, like my grandfather, he wouldn’t talk about his experiences, except for what he shared with my aunt. What I know about their war experiences comes from my mother who was given the information by her mother and my aunt.
My grandfather was in his twenties when he went to war, and he saw his best friend get cut in half by an explosion in “No-man’s land.” My uncle’s aircraft was shot down over the English Channel, and he was wounded in the shoulder. My uncle’s best friend couldn’t swim and was wounded also, so my uncle kept him afloat for hours, until my uncle finally passed out from loss of blood. When he came to, his friend had drowned and was floating right by him. Is it any wonder why my two relatives didn’t talk or brag about their war experiences, unlike many others! They both hated war, and they didn’t go around waving the flag, during Korea and Viet Nam, and screaming, “America, love it or leave it!” No, they had enough sense, as well as personal experience, to know that war should always be the very last option.
McCain, on the other hand, makes me sick to my stomach with his constant and manipulative use of his POW status. McCain, isn’t worthy to polish my grandfather’s and uncle’s boots!
Unlike my grandfather and uncle, we, as a society, have yet to learn that war is something to be avoided and at all cost. War isn’t something to be glorified or droned on about, as those flag-waving, John Wayne fanatics believe it is! If being a patriot means treating US wars like college football games, “RAH! RAH!,” then count me as unpatriotic!
My uncle was a hero, and so were thousands of others, but we should be careful using the word, “Hero,” since overuse or misuse of it will only dishonor the true heroes in our world!
DB Williams
http://www.theoutsiderview.net/
http://www.seekingyaweh.com/
Rawhide Burial Site