The advertising circulars heralding a long weekend of barbecues and shopping deals came out this week. Before we let our consumerism hijack the true reason for an extended weekend (it’s not saving 25 percent on summer apparel and the latest videos), take a moment to consider, really consider, the sacrifices some have made in the name of our country.
Almost 7,000 service men and women have died in the Global War on Terror since it began in 2001. That’s a fairly small number of deaths as compared to World War I or World War II. But, it’s about seven times the size of my hometown in Minnesota. It’s over three times the number of people that can attend a 5th Avenue Theatre production and it’s enough people to fill about half of the new Husky Stadium.
These are the deaths of Americans during a war or major deployment:[vtftable cols=”{0}0-2:d9ead3;{/}”]
{f1}War;;;{f1}War Time;;;{f1}Death;nn;
American Civil War;;;1861-1865;;;625,000;nn;
World War II;;;1941-1945;;;405,399;nn;
World War I;;;1917-1918;;;116,516;nn;
Vietnam War;;;1961-1975;;;58,209;nn;
Korean War;;;1950-1953;;;36,516;nn;
American Revolutionary War;;;1775-1783;;;25,000;nn;
War of 1812;;;1812-1815;;;15,000;nn;
Mexican-American War;;;1846-1848;;;13,283;nn;
War on Terror;;;2001-Present;;;6,803;nn;
Philippine-American War;;;1899-1902;;;4,196;nn;
[/vtftable]
Here’s an infographic from the U.S. Census Bureau with additional information.
http://www.census.gov/how/pdf/memorial_day.pdfIf you are a veteran and you need help with Activities of Daily Living (ADLs), check out our white paper on the VA’s Aid & Attendance program to see if you might qualify for an additional tax-free pension.