by Kerry Thomas
July 10, 2008
At a recent
meeting of the Northland Pines school
board, the question of whether or not to include veterans memorials in any
official school memorial(s) was considered.
School board
members indicated they had only received comments from two community
members. Both of these people voiced
opposition to the inclusion of veterana memorials. From what I’ve read of these comments, they appear to oppose
veterans memorials because they oppose the military. Period.
Those opposed to
veterans memorials voiced the usual pacifist arguments. War is wrong. We should teach our children about peace, not war. And (perhaps my favorite) we shouldn’t
“indoctrinate our children with propaganda.”
The Northland
Pines school board took no action at that meeting. The district is still formulating a policy for all memorials. And they’re asking for community inpout.
I’ve sent the
following message to the school board members.
If you agree, please take five minutes to call, write or email the Northland Pines school board
members and let them know your thoughts:
I wholeheartedly
support, and strongly encourage, the inclusion of veterans memorial(s) in any
plan for student and faculty memorials in the Northland Pines school district.
Veterans
memorials honor the service rendered by the individual veteran. Such memorials do not, by their mere
presence, endorse or protest the military or any military action.
Whether you
agree of disagree with any particular military action, or the political
ramifications thereof, the men and women who serve in our nation’s armed forces
have a job to do. They follow orders
without pausing first to consider their political consequences.
Exclusion of
veterans from memorials designed to honor their achievements simply because of
a political bias does a severe disservice to veterans. Doing so shows disrespect for veterans and
dishonors their service.
Consider for a
moment, if you were to honor Northland Pines alumni for outstanding
achievements in any career endeavor, would you withhold such honors simply
because an alumni’s career happened to be a military career? Just as you would honor a scientist, a
doctor, a teacher, a political leader, a successful entrepreneur, an athlete,
an entertainer, or any of a number of other career choices, a veteran should
likewise be considered for bestowment of honors for outstanding achievements.
If you exclude
veterans memorials, in an effort to shield students from the armed forces,
would you also eliminate scholarships memorializing a veteran?
It may be
cliché, but it’s true. Freedom is never
free. The men and women who choose to
serve America, who put themselves in harm’s way, who safeguard our Freedoms,
and who sometimes pay the ultimate sacrifice to ensure our Freedoms, deserve,
probably more so than any others, to have their service recognized and honored.
Veterans
memorials honor the veterans who served and sacrificed for our Freedoms. Whatever your view of the military,
recognize and remember that service.
Honor our veterans.
Again, if you
agree, please take five minutes to call, write or email the Northland Pines school board
members and let them know your thoughts.
Unlike many omniscient elected officials, the school board is not
clairvoyant.
They need to
hear from you today.
Kerry Thomas
NPHS Class of
1983