In stirring, eloquent and typically well- delivered remarks, President Obama yesterday paid tribute to the 13 people gunned down in last week’s Fort Hood shooting rampage — and to all the members of the US armed forces.
His comments were especially fitting — spoken, as they were, on the eve of Veterans Day, when the nation pauses to honor, and thank, the millions of soldiers, sailors, airmen and Marines who have served with distinction.
The president didn’t name the alleged gunman, Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan. Nor did he describe the attack for what it increasingly looks to be: the worst act of terrorism on US soil since 9/11, perpetrated by a would-be jihadist.
Still, he did place the shooting, appropriately, in the context of “the extremists who killed nearly 3,000 Americans” on 9/11. And he pointedly noted that “no faith justifies these murderous and craven acts; no just and loving God looks upon them with favor.”
By contrast, neither Gen. George Casey, the Army chief of staff, nor Lt. Gen. Robert Cone, the base commander, could bring themselves to go even that far: They merely referred obliquely to the “tragedy,” the “horrific event,” the “incident” and the “crime scene.”
Yet no onlooker could fail to be moved by the sight of 13 pairs of combat boots, each with an inverted rifle topped by a helmet — the traditional salute to a soldier killed in action.
It was an acknowledgment that these men and women died in combat — that the attack was an act of war, not a case of a stressed-out soldier gone berserk.
As the nation today pays well-deserved tribute to its veterans, it should keep in mind President Obama’s inspiring description of America’s fighting men and women — in this and preceding generations:
“They are part of the finest fighting force that the world has ever known,” he said. “They have served tour after tour of duty in distant, different and difficult places. They have stood watch in blinding deserts and on snowy mountains . . .
“They are man and woman; white, black and brown, of all faiths and stations — all Americans, serving together to protect our people.”
Hear, hear, Mr. President — well said.