Five decades of the Cold War have come and gone. The Soviet Union is no more. The Berlin Wall came tumbling down. Still, there are those who would take away the freedom that was won and maintained by our forebears. In firm and peaceful strength, not in boasting, saber-rattling or the pursuit of glory or wealth, we must remain vigilant.
Vigilance is sustained by preparedness.
Vigilance is nurtured by remembrance. Vigilance is perpetuated by awareness. To paraphrase the words of President John F. Kennedy, we should be committed to the defense of any friend and to the opposition of any foe. One of the great lessons of World War II is that maintaining vigilance is essential to the preservation of the things we hold dear. In the months preceding the Gulf War, President George Bush vowed that there would be no appeasement of Iraq, no treaty rewarding aggression in exchange for a transparent peace.