Memorial Day and painful memories

Nothing I can think of is more painful to veterans than Memorial Day or the day a buddy died in combat.

I started this year in the Philippines, first overlooking the rebuilt city of Manila, remembering that 80 years ago it fell to Japan. The Army and Navy nurses and the male and female civilians were held prisoners there for three years. Some of the women veterans died there.

Then there is the island of Corregidor, which was a large Army outpost and last stand for them. For a while, the living had envied the dead. Living in tunnels under constant bombardment, they were not the nice barracks originally provided. Knowing they were going to either die or be taken prisoner when General Douglas MacArthur evacuated in March 1942.

There were the naval bases at Cavite, Mariveles and Subic Bay and others throughout the islands that had no way of escaping.  I’ve visited these historical sites.

And as much as I said I would never do it again, I felt compelled to do the Bataan Death March on the 80th anniversary of the nightmare. The brave souls who died along the way, and those who survived, deserved my respect. I still have pain in my legs and bones to this day. But it is nothing compared to what they went through.

Three things hold true about these veterans, both survivors and honored dead and those who served since.

First, they stood the line for freedom and defense of both at the time and for those yet to be born.  At the time the Philippines was part of the United States, and the furthest outpost of our security.

They knew American sailors and Merchant Marines had been dying at sea for months. They learned too late that Pearl Harbor was attacked just hours before they were.

Second, they trusted their civilian and military leaders to provide them with the necessary equipment and ammunition to defend themselves. Should they be in danger above their ability and injured in any way, their government would take care of them.  That is something all veterans have since, in some way, believed.

The infamous War Plan Orange (WPO-3) never had the ammunition and supplies on Bataan to survive months of defense and a rescue. MacArthur let the men down because he didn’t believe the Nov. 26, 1941 message that an attack was possible.

In late March, 1942, when asked about help for more than 70,000 service personnel, Secretary of War Harry R. Stimson said, “There are times when men must die”.  Proof that even President Roosevelt’s government couldn’t be trusted by our military.

And third, one thing all combat veterans share is the fact that our government either lied, experimented or didn’t live up to its promises to those who go in harm’s way.

We who survived these past years have dealt with poor veteran’s hospital care, lack of the promised benefits, Agent Orange, Burn Pit Syndrome, PTSD, supporting corrupt and inept dictators, the Hamburger Hills of history and much more.

As I returned to Manila to fly back home, I looked at the city again and remembered that in February,1945 brave Americans took the city and country back. It looked like present day Ukraine. Then they moved forward to end the war in September.

I visited the Manila American Cemetery and Memorial, which contains the graves of 17,206 brave American and Filipino military.  Walls have the names of 36,286 either Missing In Action or buried at sea during this war.  Most painful are the 3,744 headstones that say “HERE REST IN HONORED GLORY A COMRADE IN ARMS KNOWN BUT TO GOD” that no one seems to visit – but I do.

Add on the millions of wounded and traumatized during this one war and you can clearly see that even though their (our) government didn’t care about them, they and those who served since cared about you.

Joe Diaz of Carleton is a retired command master chief and spent 40 years with the U.S. Navy. He served in six wars and conflicts. He can be reached at joediaz00@hotmail.com.

This article originally appeared on The Monroe News: Memorial Day and painful memories