Military paid a price

As I watch our cities being destroyed night after night, not by genuine protesters but by individuals that I feel do not love our country and are only thinking of themselves, I remember how I was told for 28 years that the reason we were in the military service was to protect our country, mostly to keep our country free.

Suppose our fathers, our uncles and aunts had decided not to go and help with their lives and blood in World War II. It might have been very possible that our country might have been taken over by Hitler, and Americans could have been in concentration camps.

Did our military members that died in Pearl Harbor die in vain? And how about all those prisoners that suffered in the Korean War? For the Vietnam War alone, there are over 58,000 names on the Vietnam Memorial of Americans that died in that conflict. And we have not finished counting the dead from Iraq and Afghanistan that are protecting our country from terrorists.

So before you feel that these rioters and looters have a right to destroy or harm our country and other people’s lives, go to the nearest VA hospital and see those military members in wheelchairs, walking with a cane, and some relying on help to move around. These are the ones that did not leave their blood on foreign soil but are suffering from war wounds or diseases such as diabetes, cancer, and many more from Agent Orange. If you live close to a military cemetery, go and visit the hundreds buried; some did not have a chance to return and see their loved ones before they died so the rest of us could enjoy our great country.

Yes, our military members have paid a price for you and me.

LUIS CANTU

Bella Vista