Chat with Chic, November 6, 1987

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: November 6, 1987 CONTACT: Mike Miller (202) 224-6244 CHAT WITH CHIC All across America this week, we have paused to pay honor to veterans, those men and women who proudly wore the military uniform of our country. As a senator and as a veteran, I am extremely proud of the contributions that veterans, soldiers and citizens alike have made to the security of our nation. Veterans Day is a time when those who have returned from war-- and those who waited for them-- recall a multitude of memories. It is a day when literally millions of people will vividly recall the terrible costs of war. In this century alone more than 600,000 of our countrymen have paid liberty's supreme sacrifice. They and those who have survived them have earned the eternal gratitude of all Americans, and this special day is set aside for them by action of the Congress of the United States. Veterans Day-- as we observe it-- often has the face of strife, of suffering and bloodshed, of horror, of destruction, mutilation and death. However, we must never forget that Veterans Day is really a day of peace. John Foster Dulles once observed, "The world will never have lasting peace so long as men reserve for war the finest human qualities. Peace, no less than war, requires idealism and self-sacrifice, and a righteous and dynamic faith." Idealism-- self- sacrifice-- faith . To these could be added the human qualities of bravery, compassion, imagination, industry and ingenuity-- all qualities called for in successful warfare, all qualities needed in the pursuit and establishment of lasting peace. To these must be added the quality of patriotism, the love of country that reflects love of self, but that at the same time transcends it. True patriotism is not displayed only on holidays, in short, frenzied bursts of emotion. It is a steady dedication of a lifetime. Here in Washington, my staff and I have been specifically working to help our Nevada veterans cut through red tape to obtain their cemeteries, a VA Hospital at Nellis Air Force Base and improved beneficiary travel treatment. There is, however, much more involved. I'm concerned whether we've done our part to preserve the freedoms that so many of our veterans have fought for over the years. Are we going to continue to be strong, militarily or get into another war through weakness? Or will we stand together, as our veterans stood strong, to let the world know that we are free because of the sacrifices of others, and that we intend to remain free as a nation for those who come after us? As we reflect on this holiday, I ask all Nevadans to join in reded i eating ourselves, not only to the past, but on preserving the future for our children and grandchildren. America will only be the land of the free, so long as it is the home of the brave.