Lest we forget…what it means to serve a cause greater than yourself.

Last night my wife and I were fortunate enough to have a friend of ours spontaneously over for dinner. In what turned out to be nearly 5 hours of wine, good food, and great conversation we touched on a topic that has been on the lips of many people recently. I am referring to the recent VA scandals and the subsequent resignation of Secretary Shinseki. My friend and I are both veterans, Navy and Marine Corps respectively, and my wife worked with the DOD for many years. I certainly have my own opinions on this matter but my friend brought up a very good point that I wanted to share with all of you as it has far reaching implications and speaks to the very nature of the way we communicate with each other and how we feel, or are told to feel, about many important subjects of the day. Today is also D-Day so I believe this post to be very well timed.

A few months ago when the stories about the VA began to appear there was a genuine surge in attention and care by the American people. I think that the vast majority of Americans believe in their hearts that we, as a nation, are supposed to support veterans medically, financially, etc…once they’ve served their country. The VA is the body of our government that is charged with that support. They are one of the biggest departments in the entire federal government with a massive bureaucracy and large amounts of funding. As the tidal wave of negative press flowed in concerning VA hospitals, lapses in judgement, and other associated failures the national conversation began to switch from an attitude of learning about what was truly wrong and taking steps to solve this national embarrassment to a direct assault on one man. The Secretary of the VA is former Army General Eric Shinseki. Naturally, being the leader of a failing organization, especially one that is failing such a nationally protected group like military veterans, will bring with it a certain ire and a responsibility to answer for the failures of your organization. A leader must take responsibility, they must lead by example, and they must place themselves at the point of greatest friction in any situation. In this particular situation, Secretary Shinseki was placed directly in the crosshairs of the vast majority of Americans, be they on Capitol Hill or Main Street USA. Here is where our mistake begins and I include myself in this group.

Many pundits, heads of lobbying groups, members of Congress, veterans, and other parties encouraged the attention of the American public away from the real problem of fixing a broken system with deep roots of mistrust and political/legal barriers that need to be broken down before any real change will occur to the easy to understand solution of vilifying one man. I do believe that Secretary Shinseki needed to go as he no longer held the trust of the American people nor the veteran community but as soon as this occurred the collective mindset of the American public began to equate the resignation of Secretary Shinseki with victory.

Secretary Shinseki resigned. We have won nothing.

Nothing has changed. We must not allow ourselves to proclaim victory in a fight that has only just begun. A fight that, in order to truly “win”, will require the American people to change the way they view veterans. It will require American lawmakers to pass legislation that allows the VA to operate more efficiently, nimbly, and gives it the teeth to execute according to a more aggressive and veterans focused ethos.

I challenge you to remember the service members who stormed Normandy on this day in 1944. I challenge you to remember the generation of young men who went to fight a war in the jungles of Vietnam and the frozen hills of Korea. I hope you remember the troops who fought in the first Gulf War, in Bosnia, in Somalia, in Iraq, in Afghanistan, and the countless little known conflicts that dot our history. These veterans deserve our unending love, respect, and honor whether they would ever say it or not. They deserve a system of support from the VA that places their needs as a top priority. We, as proud Americans, must always hold these veterans in our hearts.

The process to transform the VA into the organization that it can be didn’t end with Secretary Shinseki’s resignation, it’s only just begun. Remember how important this is and do not allow yourselves to be swayed into thinking otherwise. Every generation of veteran needs and deserves the support of the American people. I know that on this day especially I remember men like my Grandfather who fought for years in WWII. I remember millions of others that were a part of the greatest generation. We fight for them.

Lest we forget.