Today is the 75^th anniversary of D-Day which was the beginning of the end for the Nazis and their allies. It is the primary reason so many people across the world enjoy the lives they have today. To me it is the second most significant date in American history. Why isn’t it a national holiday?    

On July 4, 1776 America declared its independence and the 13 colonies became a nation. Americans celebrate Independence Day which we almost uniformly call the Fourth of July, so ingrained is the date in the American psyche. It just so happens to be my favorite holiday, (yes, over Christmas). Rightfully we celebrate the day we became an independent country; my question is why don’t we celebrate the day a bunch of scared young kids saved it?

There are people with advanced degrees in history who are much more knowledgeable of World War II than I am but I will challenge any of them if they refuse to recognize D-Day as the beginning of the end for the Axis forces. D-Day literally made my life and that of most people living on this earth possible and as pleasant as it is. We owe almost everything good to the guys who stormed Gold, Juno, Omaha, Sword and Utah beaches that 1944 morning and their support troops, some of which were female (it was a less enlightened age then).

While the invasion force primarily consisted of troops from Canada, the United Kingdom and the United States; Australia, Belgium, Czechoslovakia, Denmark, France, Greece, the Netherlands, New Zealand and Poland also contributed troops. On January 1, 1993 Czechoslovakia peacefully divided into the nations of the Czech Republic and Slovakia. By my math that means at least 12 other nations should be joining us in making June 6^th a national holiday. I won’t stop there; many other nations have survived because of the efforts of June 6, 1944. One that quickly comes to mind was then a British colony but now is an independent country of international consequence. I speak of India. How many other examples are there?

I’ll make today’s article a short one. I am confident I made my point. If you happen to see a D-Day vet today – there are very few of them left and they are all over 90 years old – take a moment and offer them a sincere thanks. You most likely owe them everything you have.

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