by James Glaser
February 23, 2004

How many people do you know are willing to lay down their life for another human being? Firemen and policemen will for sure and because of that we hold these people in high regard. The men and women that join our armed forces have this same quality in their character and they will give their life so that their comrades have a better chance of making it home.

You don't go off to boot camp thinking that you will be called upon to offer up your life for your country, but this year we have asked that of over 100,000 men and women in our Armed Forces. 545 of them have done just that.

For some of our service men and women the Military is seen as a ticket to citizenship, for others it is an economic step up from the poverty they came from. Still others are looking at it as a career while a few see it as a needed part of a political resume.

If you watch the television advertisements for any of the branches of service, you quickly see that adventure is what they think sells. As I look back at my time in the Marines, adventure is not one of the words I search for to describe my time given to my country.

No one at the age of eighteen or even twenty two thinks that they are going to be called on to give up their life, but when that time comes that is exactly what they do. Even when that happens, the man or women who sacrifices their life is most likely doing it for a member of their own unit or someone in their branch of the service, not their country. It is probably different in a World War, where America is pitted against a foe that is trying to take away our way of life, but not in some dirt bag third world country like Iraq or Afghanistan, countries that have less than 1% of our military strength.

Seldom is a Soldier or Marine called upon to jump up in a hail of bullets to rescue a fallen comrade, but it is never a surprise when it happens. As I write this I think of Staff Sergeant Christianson, who did just that. We were in the mess hall in Dung Ha, South Vietnam and artillery shells started falling right next to the building. Shrapnel was flying through the air, through the metal walls and roof, and we all headed to a large trench outside. Just as I was going to jump in, I saw Sergeant Christianson coming out the door of the mess hall carrying another Marine Staff Sergeant like a baby. He ran with him over to the trench and stood right on the lip and gently handed this man off to those in the trench.

He could have dropped the guy in or he could have jumped in with him, but he took that extra time to safely hand him off. In that next couple of seconds Sergeant Christianson took a piece of shrapnel in the forehead. He lived and told me he had never had a headache like that one. A few weeks later we had a ceremony, just the guys from our unit, and I'll always remember this Warrant Officer who fought in World War II and Korea, awarding Sergeant Christianson the Bronze Star. The Marine saved and Christianson were not close friends or co-workers. Christianson was black and from the south, the Sergeant that was saved was white and he told me he came from a potato farm in Idaho. It was just a case of living the Marine Corps motto, "Semper Fidelis" meaning, Always Faithful.

Sergeant Christianson wasn't risking his life for anybody back here in America, but he was risking it for another Marine. He lifted up this guy like he weighed nothing, but I am guessing he was 170, maybe 180 pounds. There is no doubt in my mind that even on a good day the Sergeant couldn't attempt to grab a box or bundle weighing that much and take off at a dead run, but with the help of a strong dose of adrenaline, he did it with ease.

So today we have over 100,000 young men and women in Iraq that our government has put in the position that they are required to jump up and risk their lives for those they serve with. Over 500 of them have done that and it has cost them every thing they had. Another 3,000 have had to give a limb or limbs. Maybe it cost them their eyes or part of their mind. Soldiers and Marines in combat are out there every day and night putting their lives on the line for those in their unit.

The reason that they are in that position is that those in power in Washington decided they had too. Service men and women have no choice in the matter and must trust that those in charge are honest and forthright in their decision to go to war.

Not every young American is willing to give their life for a friend and we are very lucky that we are able to find enough men and women with the character needed to do that. Because these people are so very special, it makes it a real crime to send them off to harm's way, especially now that we know that we didn't make going to war the last resort.

There are only so many people in this nation that have what it takes to give their life for another American. This type of person is precious and we are fools to waste them.