[November 11, 2020] Veterans Day, 11 NOVEMBER 2020:
The guns of the First World War eerily fell silent over a century ago on this date in 1918. Today is the day when Americans all across this great Nation gather in large and small groups and pause to remember those Veterans who served in our Armed Forces.
We have observed this day, first as Armistice Day and now as Veterans Day, for 102 years. And, in doing so, we thank our Veterans for standing up for America and for our way of life and freedom. As such, we honor all Americans who served in the U.S. Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines, and Coast Guard, in times of peace and in war, and who are now passing the torch of liberty from our generation to the next.
I’m reminded of the “Great War,” when a neighbor Jed Neidigh told me about his experience during the Third Battle of the Aisne in late May 1918. The American Expeditionary Forces under General John “Blackjack” Pershing were taking a terrible beating from the Germans. Doughboy Neidigh said that he had lost his rifle in one of many attacks, but “since there were thousands just lying around, I just picked one up.” The implication was obvious.
Veterans Day is a time we recognize the debt we owe to our Veterans like Jed Neidigh. We can never fully repay that debt. But today, we can rededicate ourselves to them and to their sacrifices. It is also a time that we can, in the words of President Abraham Lincoln, “care for him who shall have borne the battle.”
We must be ever mindful that it is this sacrifice of our Veterans that has preserved this Nation and the ideals we treasure. We, and our children after us, must be devoted to the principles for which these men and women dedicated themselves … to honor, loyalty, integrity, and faith in America.
Our Veterans did not let down our flag or our Nation. They did not bow before our enemies. They were committed to their last breath to the United States of America. The next time you meet a Veteran, stop and thank them for their service but know in your heart that without the Veteran, we would not now be here to enjoy the freedoms of a powerful, generous America.
Let us never forget the Veteran, their hard and dangerous work, their duty and devotion to a great cause, their willingness to sacrifice their own lives if needed, and for being heroes in their own right.
In America, we honor our Veterans.
Great Veterans Day message. Thank you, Gen. Satterfield.
This leadership website remains one of the very best out there. It’s down to earth, focused, gives us daily short snippets of great info, has a great comment forums, many resources (like book reviews), and a host of interesting stories that allows anyone from anywhere to post, ask questions and get answers. Thanks Gen. Satterfield for the great job you are doing here. Keep up the fantastic works.
Yeah Paul, you got that right. I’m a daily reader. I don’t always post but I’m here reading the article and I also read all the comments as well.
Dale, good points. I’m one of the fans of Gen. Satterfield as well. 💖
I had a wonderful time yesterday on Veterans Day, getting to meet many vets and their families. I was amazed at the patriotism of these men (just happened that there were no women vets there), their desire to be respected for their service, and their devotion to the US military. Great day overall. I hope everyone else got the chance to thank a vet and let them know that we support them.
Pink Cloud, thanks for sharing your story. I was also fortunate to be at a Vets Day ceremony in my hometown here in southern Illinois. Had a great time and got to meet a lot of vets who are just wonderful people.
Happy Veterans Day !
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Truly inspirational, thanks! This is the kind of article that brings me back to this leadership blog. Well done. Please Please keep up the wonderful article writing. I wish I could do as well.
Yes, a good article to read to my High School students to teach them a bit more about the military and how military leaders think.
If you don’t mind, Gen. Satterfield, I will use parts of your article in my speech before veterans later today at a dinner my local VFW created. I’ll quote you, of course. Thanks.
“I offer neither pay, nor quarters, nor food; I offer only hunger, thirst, forced marches, battles and death. Let him who loves his country with his heart, and not merely with his lips, follow me.”
– Giuseppe Garibaldi, 19th century Italian general and mercenary
Look him up here. The man has an interesting story. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Giuseppe_Garibaldi Garibaldi became an international figurehead for national independence and republican ideals. He was showered with admiration and praises by many intellectuals and political figures, including Abraham Lincoln, William Brown, Francesco de Sanctis, Victor Hugo, Alexandre Dumas, George Sand, Charles Dickens, Friedrich Engels and Che Guevara. Historian A. J. P. Taylor called him “the only wholly admirable figure in modern history.”
Another over-the-top blog post on a subject we should all agree about (but don’t). Too many “woke” millennials walking around with a chip on their soldier and a crusade behind them to make the world over in their vision of sameness, minimalization, and using Lenin tactics to squash the opposition.
Hi Mr. Kennedy III, great fan of yours. Great comment here as well.
Got to give it to them, they do think they are on a crusade and the government god is behind them totally. Thus, they can do anything with total forgiveness by the PC gods.
Scary!!!! 👍😊
More Sherman quotes here: https://www.military-quotes.com/william-sherman.htm
Applies to this article on Veterans Day.
Happy Veterans Day to all the vets out there and to their families and supporters as well.
Great story about the Doughboy Mr. Neidigh. You were honored to have him as a neighbor for a while. I’m sure you and he had many talks, both of you being combat veterans.
War is hell. A common phrase mostly accredited to Union General William Tecumseh Sherman highlighting the negative impact of warfare. The US Civil War was the most destructive war in US history that led to more deaths and destruction than the country had seen up to that point or has ever experienced since. War is, indeed, hell.
The story on Mr. N. was spot on. Well received. He must have been a wonderful man.
Yes, I agree. Well written document, Gen. Satterfield. Did you publish it in the local paper or something?
Hi everyone, lets be clear on how to write Veterans Day. It is without an apostrophe or any other possessive or contraction on its name. Just remember it that way and you are fine. Gen. Satterfield has it right.
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Thanks for the English lesson. And you would have thought my High School English teacher would have wanted me to catch such a common error.
You guys are on drugs. 😊 Who cares. This is about Vets Day, pure and simple. Be kind to a vet by treating them with respect. They don’t want a discount, they just want to be recognized for the contribution they made to the nation.
Ha Ha Ha …. I think it’s abbreviated LOL.
Yes, thank a vet but do more and let them know they are not alone.
Wow, very very nice. Thank you Gen. Satterfield for a great article on Veterans Day.
Great article that could easily be a short speech for honoring our veterans. I would also hope that we further honor and recognize our Vietnam Vets who were disparaged so much by the traitorous likes of Hanoi Jane Fonda. She’s lying low today to avoid the facts of her treason to the USA.
She should have been tried for treason and then let go to feel the shame of her illegal, immoral behavior.
Hanoi Jane
Hanoi Jane
Hanoi Jane
Let us never forget.
I have something to say about Jane ‘Traitor’ Fonda but it Gen Satterfield would probably delete it. Ha Ha Ha……..👍
I agree that Jane Fonda is a traitor and remains a thorn in the side of veterans today. She is a money grubbing, commie pig – in my mind anyway – and I will extend her no respect. Those who support her in any way are meatheads.