In Memoriam...

In Memoriam...

"In memoriam" is a preposition phrase requiring a following "of."  Whom are we remembering today?  Our focus is rightly on those who risked and gave their lives in answer to the our nation's call.  Families review photos and memorabilia, visit grave sites, pause and reflect and remember.

What of families in other lands?  Millions more.... Many have no grave stones to decorate, nor even know where to direct their thoughts.  But they  who suffered grievous loss do remember.  Let us be in memoriam of their soldiers, sailors, flyers, and marines-- enemies and allies alike -- as well as of our own:

                WWII    (000)                               Korea (000)                     Vietnam (000)                  

        Russian         8,700                    Chinese             ~600              North Vietnamese/VC     ~1,100

        Chinese       ~4,000                    North Korean      ~400              South Vietnamese             ~260

        German         3,900                    South Korean       217              US                                       58

        Japanese       2,100                    US                        36               South Korean                         5

        US                    407                   Turkish                    1

        British              383

        Yugoslavian     ~375

        Italian             ~300                                     Iraq(000)

        Hungarian       ~300                      Iraqi                         ~24

        French              200                      US                               5

        Canadian            45                      Coalition Allies           0.3

        Australian           40