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Opinion

Remember the young who serve

Phil Bossert
Guest Commentary 

Veterans Day has always been a poignant holiday, especially during wartime, and this Nov. 11 is no different. As our nation pauses once again to remember and thank 48 million veterans, half of whom are still alive, we should remember that we have not had an attack on our homeland since 9/11.

Although every human life is priceless, we have lost fewer than 3,000 U.S. military personnel during the war on terror, a war that is now 17 months longer than our involvement in World War II. During WWII, we lost more than 440,000. In Korea we lost 34,000, and during Vietnam, 57,000 died. 

We have the most professional, effective, dedicated and educated military in the history of the world, one that is made up of volunteers. 

Although we have experienced more than five years of this war and see no end in sight, we haven't heard talk of bringing a draft back. Plenty of young people from all backgrounds with character, commitment and courage have stepped forward to defend our country. At the same time, those serving reap many of the enormous benefits of military service. Al-Qaida's strategy of asymmetric warfare is failing, especially its key tactic of attempting to break the will of the American people. 

Much time is spent in Air Force ROTC classes studying military history. One of the key historical trends we discuss is how our enemies have underestimated the will of the American people. 

When the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor, they assumed that our country would not be able to counterattack for at least two years. Jimmy Doolittle and his flyers bombed Tokyo just four months later. Less than 30 days after 9/11, we began military operations in Afghanistan, and within weeks had chased the remnants of the Taliban and al-Qaida into the mountains and caves of eastern Afghanistan.

Today's terrorists are not students of American history. As we increasingly refer to military operations in Afghanistan, Iraq, the Horn of Africa, the Philippines and other battlefronts as the "Long War," consider this: since 9/11, more than 1.6 million young people have freely joined the world's greatest military force. Many of these volunteers are ROTC cadets. At the University of Houston, the number of cadets in Air Force ROTC has increased 55 percent this year, and Army ROTC has increased 30 percent.

These cadets are smart, enthusiastic, rock-solid citizens who personify the Air Force's core values. And when they join ROTC they know exactly what they are getting into, including earning commissions as second lieutenant in the world's greatest military and a possible deployment into a combat zone within a year or two of graduation. And they keep coming forward voluntarily to join our ranks.

The increase in the number of cadets in Air Force and Army ROTC at UH is not that surprising considering the incredible support for those of us in uniform, especially in the Houston area. When my officers and NCOs go out for lunch, it is common for Houstonians to drop by our table and thank us for our service. When we attempt to pay our bill, we're occasionally told that someone already paid our way. I grew up on Long Island and lived in many parts of the country, and I've never seen the level of patriotism and support for our military than I've witnessed here in Houston. 

When I drove to work the other day from Friendswood, I counted the number of American flags I could see from Interstate 45. My latest count was more than 60, and many of these were big flags. These are not just displayed on holidays such as Veterans Day but every single day. 

Until July, my family and I were stationed at Ramstein Air Base in Germany. The only time in our three years there that we saw anything close to the level of patriotism that is seen daily in Houston was during the World Cup. But within a week of the last soccer game, the German flags quickly came down.

Cadets learn this old saying in the first of eight courses in ROTC: a nation's military is a reflection of the society it serves. As we continue to witness millions of our young people volunteer to defend our nation on this Veterans Day, remember the good news that comes from this Long War. The enemy's strategy of breaking our will is failing.

Col. Phil Bossert, chair of Aerospace Science at UH, 
can be reached via dccampus@mail.uh.edu