To the editor:

On Memorial Day, I was thinking about remembering and forgetting. Justin Smitley reminded us in his letter of our need – our obligation – to remember and appreciate the men and women of our military services who have put their lives on the line with the intention of defending their country.

Indeed we should remember, and indeed we do not. Certainly the families of the dead remember; they will never completely heal the pain of loss. The rest of us set aside one day a year to do a certain amount of remembering, but most of the time the past sacrifices remain in the past and out of our remembrance. How often do you think of those who died in Korea or even Vietnam?

We recognize and appreciate and then we forget. And then a new set of leaders choose war as the answer for political or economic concerns, and we don’t remember the deaths, the terrible wounds, the years of suffering. And we do it all again. We call on another generation to sacrifice themselves for their country. And, of course, they do answer the call.

Time heals all wounds. Well, not really. But time allows most of us to forget. Otherwise we would never allow this bloody pattern to be repeated over and over again. Let’s try to remember this time, remember the 1,650-plus American deaths, the thousands of wounded and emotionally damaged, the many thousands of Iraqi casualties. Let’s remember at least long enough to stop the next call to arms and sacrifice.

Joe Douglas,

Lawrence