ISLAND VOICES
Make no mistake: We are in a war

Frank Yuan is a Hawai'i resident temporarily doing residency in Portland, Ore.

Somewhere, Lady Liberty is weeping. One of her precious sons, Pat Tillman, gave his life for her.

Tillman, who quit his job playing in the National Football League — and in doing so walked away from a life of financial and social prosperity — to join the Army, was killed in Afghanistan on April 23, fighting to prevent another Sept. 11.

My first encounter with veterans came while working at Tripler Hospital during my years of medical school at the University of Hawai'i. In the nearly two years I have spent away since then, I have come to develop a deep and profound respect for those who have been willing to make the sacrifices the rest of us don't.

I have had patients from both humble and noble beginnings, from every major conflict from the Vietnam War dating back to World War I. Many returned with wounds I found with my eyes, others with wounds I could find only with my ears. Caring for a ship commander from the Pacific theater made me swell with pride, while a survivor of the Battle of the Bulge tore me apart with his tears.

But some of the most heart-rending stories told to me are those from Vietnam veterans, who fought for a country that vilified them upon their return.

In an age in which the nightly news is consistently infiltrated with war footage, when the implosion of the World Trade Centers has been played so many times that it has almost blurred into fiction, distinguishing between the reality of war and a scene from "Saving Private Ryan" has become difficult.

But do not be mistaken. We are in a war. Not the type of war fought by our fathers and grandfathers, but a war nonetheless. Our country cannot afford to be politically correct in a world that is not, and against an enemy who is not.

It both saddens and upsets me when I see protesters on the streets who will eventually return to their homes that are made warm and safe by the blood spilled by our sons and daughters fighting overseas. I would ask those who oppose them to walk the halls that I walk.

Lady Liberty, go ahead and weep for Pat Tillman. I only ask that you let me join you.