At this time I a
m usually getting ready to post the follow up questions from a book review. Well, you get to wait a few more days for that to be posted as it is Memorial Day in the United States and I wanted to put a short post out regarding the day.
Today is Memorial Day. A day we are to remember those who have gone before us in the service of this great country, The United States. If you turned on television, the radio, or looked at the news there were not a lot of stories about this day. In fact many are talking about the unofficial start of Summer, the weather, the idiotic Kardashians, or anything but the truth of this day.
If I was to ask when Memorial Day truly started not many would know. They may guess and get it right but in truth it was the Civil War that brought this holiday to our minds. It isn’t hard to believe when you look at the number of dead and wounded during that period. It was a war that brought family against family and the death toll was over six hundred thousand. As it was so many generations ago it like many other conflicts has left the conscious of many.
The same can be said for those who died in World War I and II, Korea, and dare I say Vietnam. There are those who served in World War II, Korea, and Vietnam that are still with us. If you ask them they will undoubtedly remember their friends they left behind.
In war, in conflict, and even in peace there are service men, and women, who are dying wrapped in a piece of fabric called a uniform. They are all fighting for each other, their lives, their family and their country. Their lives ripped from them earlier than all can fathom. These are people who could have done so much with their lives but went and followed the orders they were given. It is why we have a Memorial Day. It is a day to remember those who we have lost, those who fought for what we believe in.
To give an idea of the cost of live and the families impacted the below graphic will show what has happened in some of the major wars the US has fought. This is just a small listing as there are events all over this world that have cost a life of a US soldier. To all of them and their families I hope a simple day of remembrance helps, but in truth they will always be in the heart of those who thank them.
| Major U.S. War Casualties | U.S. Deaths | Wounded | Date | |
| Iraq War | 4,800 | 31,965 | 2003 – 2011 | |
| Afghanistan | 2,229 | 18,675 | 2001 – Present | |
| Gulf War | 258 | 849 | 1990 – 1991 | |
| Vietnam War | 58,209 | 153,303 | 1955 – 1975 | |
| Korean War | 36,516 | 92,134 | 1950 – 1953 | |
| World War II | 405,399 | 670,846 | 1941 – 1945 | |
| World War I | 116,516 | 204,002 | 1917 – 1918 | |
| Civil War | 625,000 | 281,881 | 1861 – 1865 | |
| American Revolutionary War | 25,000 | 25,000 | 1775 – 1783 | |
| Statistic Verification | ||||
| Source: Washington Post Database of U.S. Service-Member Casualties, McGavock Confederate Cemetery | ||||
Graph from: www.statisticbrain.com/u-s-war-death-statistics/
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