I offer my appreciation to all the restaurants in the area that gave veterans a free meal. Veterans, such as myself, do not take the kindness that people show them for granted.

We served our country when called upon. The nation didn’t care whether those serving were Republican or Democrat, or the color of their skin. This country was in trouble and freedom was in jeopardy. We left our loved ones to answer the call. The lucky ones made it back home. Many didn’t.

At the young age of 18, I was sitting in the jungle with a rifle across my lap fighting an enemy I didn’t know and did nothing to. It was then I appreciated my own country, where life mattered.

What a difference 50 years has made. Every day now, in this country, people are murdered. It’s beginning to seem like life doesn’t matter here now. People are now carrying guns for protection. How sad is that.

Years ago, people celebrated democracy. Today, it’s a dirty word.

Did all those brave soldiers lose their lives for nothing? Has democracy been dropped from the nation’s education institutes, just as God has ?

I am praying that the new administration will drain the swamp in Washington, D.C., and turn this country around. America needs leaders who are for this country and not for their pockets.

And just to let people know — all lives matter.

Phillip Webber, Lisbon