Why there should be a Cold War Medal?
The
multitude of military members who served between the period of September
2, 1946 through December 26, 1991, may or may not have served in direct
combat actions, but one thing is for certain: their service prevented
further combat actions, precipitated by the nations hiding behind
the "Iron Curtain". Their service was instrumental, in helping to
prevent a World War III, from occurring. While it still may occur
sometime in the future, it did not happen during that era.
It
is our nation’s duty to honor those millions of men and women who
served their country, during those many decades of potential world
war and possible nuclear annihilation. That period of service was
a part of what is probably one of the most important eras, in the
history of the world. We are here today with our country intact; all
302 million + of us, thanks to all of those who wore the uniforms
of all those years. We have four and a half decades worth of military
servicemembers, to honor.
The period of the Cold War includes
not only the "hot" wars of Korea and Viet Nam, but also the actions
of so many other operations and duties. We’ve stood at the brink of
world war and nuclear disaster on many occasions.
The Cuban Missile
Crisis is probably the most widely known one of that period. One bad
decision, or one poorly thought out order given by a military commander,
or even an accidental or wrong move by any of our troops in the field,
would have plunged our planet into the nuclear abyss. It never happened.
It thankfully remained a cold war. This is just one of many reasons
why the honor of a Cold War medal is so important and necessary.
Another
related, and much more recent event, was when Russian President Boris
Yeltsin’s finger was near that red button; awaiting the outcome of
a trajectory and destination confirmation, of a missile over Norway.
Now, what about the Berlin Airlift, and the invasion of Grenada? They
too, big and small, are all a part of it.
Of course there are
the service and campaign medals, along with the expeditionary medals
which exist to cover certain portions and operations of the Cold War;
but what about the sailors of the USS Thresher and USS Scorpion? What
about all of those who perished and were injured, in the testing of
all of the equipment and inventory during the massive military buildup,
which may not have existed, if not for the Cold War? What about all
of those unacknowledged firefights and other incidents on the 38th
Parallel, injuring and killing those who were ultimately labeled as
"victims of accidents"?
What about those G.I.’s who died in non-combat
air crashes, while patrolling borders, gathering intelligence on the
communist nations, or transporting troops and supplies in support
of all of the countless Cold War era missions? What about all of those
who were exposed to ionizing Gamma radiation, as a result of participating
in Nuclear Weapons tests? What about those who tirelessly patrolled
along the Czech and East German borders, or who fearlessly guarded
nuclear weapons storage facilities, as I did? What about all of those
tensions and conflicts in the Middle East, which were fueled by the
Cold War adversaries?
Think of all of those people who ended
up serving in a much larger military, than would have been necessary,
if it weren’t for the Cold War. Don’t all of them deserve recognition
for their special service? Don’t they deserve a medal to honor their
sacrifices and service?
Now, Korea and Viet Nam, didn’t exactly
turn out they way we would have liked them to, but they were extremely
important, and deadly parts of the Cold War. They effectively put
the brakes on communist expansion. Because of Viet Nam, military and
political strategists never had the opportunity to see if the "Falling
Domino" theory would ever pan out. Afghanistan stands out as the only
real example of attempted communist expansion since the Viet Nam War
era.
With the arguable exception of Tibet, communist expansion
in the Orient was effectively shut down, due to the Korean and Viet
Nam wars. There’s something that many people would never connect or
attribute to those two wars. In all probability, there may never have
been a Korean or Viet Nam War, without the existence of the Cold War
itself. Myself, my two brothers, and about 2.5 million others, may’ve
never had to go to Viet Nam. This is why a Cold War Medal would recognize
and honor those who served in those wars, in that special way, which
the other medals of those conflicts, cannot cover.
A certificate
by itself, does not do the Veterans justice. Only an official medal,
would serve to properly thank them and to appropriately honor them.
An authorization for the issuance of a Cold War Medal, is the only
respectful and honorable lane to travel, on the road to proper recognition
of their service. A certificate hanging on one’s wall is nice, but
a medal which can be worn on the various military uniforms, of both
the past and present, and as a pin on one’s civilian wear, publicly
and proudly shows to our country and to the world, by both active
duty personnel and Veterans alike, their immensely important service
during a very trying
g and extremely dangerous time in world history.
Please
allow our nation to publicly recognize the immense importance of their
service, by acknowledging just how dangerous and potentially apocalyptic
the Cold War really was, by authorizing the issuance of the Cold War
Medal. It is truly the only way to honor their contribution of deterrence.
Nuclear weapons have been used twice, in time of conflict. Both times
were in the space of one week, back in August of 1945. They have not
been used since. Political maneuvering, Administrative decisions,
Ambassadorial negotiations, and legislative actions kept the lines
of communication open over the years; but it was the active duty personnel
who provided the muscle, should those lines have broken down. Who,
back in those times, would have thought that Mutually Assured Destruction
(MAD), would actually work?
Finally, European conflicts like
Bosnia and Kosovo, and our involvement in them, would never had happened
(or at least not in the manner and/or time that they did), if it weren’t
for the Cold War. Now, that is loss of life, at the end of, in the
aftermath of, and directly attributable to fall of the communist expansion
of the Cold War.
Don’t allow the talk of expense, to interfere
with the passing of this legislation. Honoring our Veterans, make
it worth every penny. The government need not spend as much though,
as many think. The medal itself, has already been designed and approved,
is already being manufactured, and is offered for sale by most, if
not all of the retailers and wholesalers of military and Veterans
merchandise. Only enough need be made for the government, to issue
to active duty personnel who served during those years, and to issue
to those Veterans who want it, but cannot afford it, and to the families
of those Veterans who are no longer with us, should they desire the
medal. The government will not have to track everyone down, who served
during that era, to issue the medal to. Most Cold War era Veterans,
and probably many of the families of those Veterans who have passed
on, have already purchased the currently available medal. Many others
will purchase it upon its becoming official.
I believe that the
NATO and (former) SEATO countries should also authorize the issuance
of the very same Cold War Medal, for their active duty troops and
for their Veterans, who were a part of that era.
The Cold War,
to include its hot conflicts, has claimed well over 100,000 American
lives, and hundreds of thousands of injuries, both combat and non-combat
related. Call it the Cold War Victory Medal, or the Cold War Service
Medal; but please pass the legislation needed, to make the medal a
reality. Let us not allow any more Veterans to leave the confines
of our Earth, without knowing of that special official acknowledgement
of their courageous deeds, by way of the Cold War Medal.
