"Not On Your Life"

 

I learned early on—in the 1950s—that my cousin Louis was anything but a fan of the Japanese. He would avoid buying Japanese-made goods whenever he could. That is nearly impossible today.

 

In the years immediately following World War II, Japan's economy was devastated, and the country struggled to rebuild its industrial base. Many of its early exports developed a reputation for being cheap and poorly made. "Made in Japan" meant  "Don't buy it. It's junk!"

 

But Louis's reluctance to buy Japanese had absolutely nothing to do with product quality.

 

Louis was a survivor of the Bataan Death March.

 

It began on April 9, 1942, after approximately 75,000 American and Filipino troops surrendered to Japanese forces on the Bataan Peninsula in the Philippines. What followed was one of the most notorious atrocities of World War II.

 

The prisoners, already weakened by months of fighting, hunger, disease, and exhaustion, were forced to march roughly 65 miles to prison camps in the tropical heat. They were given little or no food or water, and those who collapsed from exhaustion, thirst, or illness were often beaten, bayoneted, or shot. Some were deliberately denied water even when passing wells. Others were executed for falling behind or attempting to help fellow prisoners. Thousands died along the route, and many more perished in the prison camps that followed.

 

For those who survived, the march was only the beginning of a long ordeal of captivity, forced labor, starvation, and abuse.

 

Louis saw all of this —It was how he lived, or tried to.

 

 A soldier who had been compelled to surrender spent nearly three more years fighting—not on a battlefield, but simply to stay alive. He had been stripped of his freedom, his possessions, and nearly everything that made up his former life.

Something he never forgot.

Nor should we.

Veterans Day is not really a holiday about recalling wars, celebrating battles, or revisiting the politics that sent men and women into uniform. It is about remembering the men and women who answered the call to serve, without knowing what lay ahead or what might be asked of them. It is about recognizing the sacrifices they made, the hardships they endured, the families they left behind, and the burdens many carried long after they returned home.

 

Some came home with medals and stories. Others came home with wounds that couldn't be seen. Some never came home at all. And many simply returned to civilian life, went back to work, raised families, and quietly carried their experiences with them.

 

Whatever their branch of service, wherever they served, and whatever their particular experience, they accepted an obligation that most of us never had to face.

 

Veterans Day is our opportunity to acknowledge that service, express our gratitude, and remember that behind every uniform was a person who gave a part of their life in service to the rest of us.

 

To all those who served:

A sincere Thank You.

 

God Bless – and Help America