I shouldn't be surprised, yet the focus today on the tragic loss of former NFL Cardinals safety Pat Tillman has filled the airways. All of the attention doesn't say so much about Pat Tillman as it does about the American public and our mania with celebrity. One thing I'm sure of, from the stories about him, Tillman would be embarrassed by the attention.
This young man with a promising sports career left it all to serve his country in the war against terror, shunning the spotlight that surely was his for the anonymity of his unit and his Ranger team.
As tragic as his loss is, it is only one of many, at least 118 in Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan and at least 698 in Operation Iraqi Freedom. Each life lost, each American son and daughter, is tragic. Yet, each is a hero who served their country with distinction and gave their life to preserve the security of our nation and secure the same freedoms we enjoy of the afghan and Iraqi people.
The Matthew J. Bourgeois' and Evan W. O'Neill's, the Craig S. Ivory's, the Lori Ann Piestewa's and the Ryan C. Young's all tell a story of honor, of potential, of service and love of family and country. Of men and women who believed in an ideal, a promise, a hope and were willing to lay their lives on the line so their friends and families, acquaintances and strangers could enjoy those ideals, even as the candle of their lives was snuffed out.
Never forget the sacrifice made for freedom. Never take it for granted and never forget to honor the life, and death, of those who died that you can enjoy those freedoms taken so casually.
Be sure to visit Letters From Iraq