Happy Veterans Day

Happy Veterans Day! Today, I want to thank the folks in my family who did their part to keep our country free and safe. War, no matter what the cause, is ugly business, so I am genuinely thankful to those who were forced to be a part of it.*

Grandpa Harris was enlisted in the U.S. Army and fought in World War II. He is registered with the National World War II Memorial site in Washington DC. You can read his profile here.

Grandpa Guier also fought in World War II, but he served in the U.S. Navy. You can see Grandpa Guier's World War II Memorial registry here.

Ed served in the U.S.M.C. in Vietnam as a radio operator. Shipboard, he made it through a hell of a big typhoon in the Gulf of Tonkin, which the next morning had buckled the ship's deck more than twelve inches.

My own Dad served in Vietnam in the U.S. Army as an Ordnance officer, stationed at Cameron Cam Ranh Bay. Dad then went on to a 20+ year career as an Army officer, retiring as a Lieutenant Colonel.

I can't forget my good buddy, Jim Alivs, who served in the Infantry in the first Gulf War. He scared the enemy with that face!

Thank you, vets!

*I use the term "forced" here not because these gentlemen were conscripts, but because nobody wishes to be a part of a war, and the events of history force themselves upon us.