Freedom Isn't Free (My friend,Pentagon 9/11 victims prescient words)

wsj ^ | 10/05/2001 | dan shanower

[milwguy]

Editor's note: This article originally appeared in the May 1997 issue of the U.S. Naval Institute's monthly journal Proceedings. Cmdr. Shanower was among the 189 people killed at the Pentagon Sept. 11.)

In a era of downsizing and tight budgets, it's easy to let the issues of the day and our different cultures and traditions distance us from our peers in the other military services. Memorial Day is one day of the year when those differences seem insignificant, when all service members reflect on the one defining experience many of us have felt that sets us apart from the rest of society--the loss of close friends in the defense of our nation.

It seems that anyone who has spent a few years in uniform has a story of a shipmate who died in combat or while preparing for it. Those memories are something that many of our civilian counterparts cannot fathom. They realize that those of us in the military are expected to make the ultimate sacrifice when called, and they are willing to take the day off in observance of the many who have, but few realize--and fewer have experienced--the incredible price the military pays to ensure freedom in both peacetime and war.

The issue is important enough that once a year we take time to remember and pass along a story of when we first learned that freedom isn't free. It is the tenth anniversary of one such experience for me.

[milwguy]

Every year I remember a college friend of mine who perished at the Pentagon on 9/11. The words he wrote in 1997 still echo in my mind when I think of him. A true American hero.

[Jeff Head]

RIP Commander Shanower. May God rest your soul and may he continue to comfort your family and loved ones, secure in the knowledge of a glorious resurrection and joyous reunion one day. Your words ring true down through the years.

FREEDOM ISN'T FREE - NEVER HAS BEEN, NEVER WILL BE

[TopQuark]

Thank you, Cmdr. Shanower, for serving our country. Thank you, sir, RIP.

Please accept my condolences, milwguy. We will never forget.

[montag813]

There’s a hefty f**kin’ fee.