THE REAL HEROES

Posted at 7:20 a.m. ET

The distinguished foreign-affairs analyst, Michael Ledeen, has a son in the Marine Corps, and takes an active interest in the military.  We need regular reminding of the sacrifices our uniformed services make for us.  Here, Ledeen quotes Secretary of Defense Robert Gates, who will be kept on by President-elect Obama.  The secretary spoke of one wounded warrior:

Or Lieutenant Jason Redman. He is a SEAL – part of the Navy's elite Special Ops team – who took rounds from a machine-gun in his face and arm in Iraq last year. Jason posted a bright orange sign on the door of his hospital room at Bethesda National Naval Medical Center. It read: "Attention to all who enter here. If you are coming into this room with sorrow or to feel sorry for my wounds, go elsewhere. The wounds I received I got in a job I love, doing it for people I love, supporting the freedom of a country I deeply love. I am incredibly tough and will make a full recovery. What is full? That is the absolute utmost physically my body has the ability to recover. Then I will push that about 20 percent further through sheer mental tenacity. This room you are about to enter is a room of fun, optimism, and intense rapid regrowth. If you are not prepared for that, go elsewhere."

When we think of those in American society who regularly present themselves as victims, we should also think of men like Lieutenant Redman.  One Jason Redman makes up for a thousand professional victims.  During the holiday season, we must especially remember those who bear the battle.

December 4, 2008.