Let's write about a lesson from "The Greatest Generation" a Second World War witness

An essay submitted to the Door County Pulse newspaper in Bailey's Island, Wisconsin:

My father was typical of his "Greatest" generation; quiet, responsible. He enlisted in the Army during World War II and was a platoon sergeant in some of the worst South Pacific battles. He shared only a few stories from those times.

During one battle, his platoon was pinned down by an enemy machine gun. Somehow, he managed to get close enough to that gun to destroy it with a grenade. During that battle, many in his platoon were killed in action. Subsequently, when his platoon was again under fire, in foxholes, he saw one of his new recruits standing up exposed, frozen in terror. My father left his foxhole, grabbed the young recruit, threw him into his foxhole, and dug a new one for himself. Then he watched as a shell landed right into the foxhole in which he’d put the new recruit.

That is a painfully tragic story of just one second in a war that lasted years. We can all understand the tear in my father’s eye as he related the story

My father went to the other side of the world to defend and promote democracy for us and the rest of humanity. He was decorated with two Bronze Stars and a Purple Heart for his service. 

Donald Trump and the current military leadership appear to be undermining the principles that inspired and define our country’s support for democracy- "defending democracy". That is like spitting on my father’s grave. Not only does it destroy the efforts of countless American heroes for over 200 years, it offends me personally.

Ukraine is fighting that same battle now, for themselves and the rest of civilization. The battle in Ukraine is an opportunity for us. It is an opportunity to battle against fascism and authoritarian regimes without sending US soldiers to die in battle. If we don’t take advantage of this opportunity, it is likely that a less desirable option will eventually be our only choice. Is that what you want? On which side will you find yourself?

From Mitch Leavitt  Baileys Harbor, Wisconsin

Let's demand the immediate release of Americans wrongfully detained in Russia

Journalism is not a crime.

Russia must release Evan Gershkovich and Paul Whelan❗

An editorial echo published in the Maine newspaper, the Bangor Daily News:

Editorial - There are far more questions than answers about what happened in Russia when the Wagner group was marching toward the Kremlin in Moscow.  (Maine Writer- when the attempted coup turned out to be not so much of a coup.) What will continue to happen? What may have been an almost-coup and uncertainty about the strength of President Vladimir Putin’s position. 

Amid the uncertainty, at least one thing remains clear: Russia must release the people it has wrongfully detained.

For example, Maine’s two U.S. senators joined with a bipartisan group of their colleagues recently to show support for journalist Evan Gershkovich, the Wall Street Journal reporter and Bowdoin College graduate detained in Russia since late March. 

Symbolic steps like this are necessary until Russia gives up on its wrongful detention and releases someone who was just doing his job.

“We are fully committed to bringing you, Paul [Whelan], and every wrongfully-detained American home at the earliest opportunity. Every day you spend in Russia is a day too long,” U.S. Sens. Susan Collins, Angus King and colleagues wrote in a June 13 open letter to Gershkovich. “Please know that the support for you and Paul go well beyond the walls of the United States Senate, and that the American people are with us in demanding your release.”

A Russian court rejected Gershkovich’s appeal to be released from his pre-trial detention. 

He is accused of espionage without Russian officials offering any evidence to back up the charge — a charge that he, his employer and the U.S. refute. One federal official described the legal proceedings against Gershkovich as a “sham” ahead of the hearing.

“We’ve been very clear that Evan is wrongfully detained — being wrongfully detained and targeted for simply doing his job as a journalist,” State Department spokesperson Vedant Patel said on Wednesday.

Journalists from the U.S. and abroad have rallied to Gershkovich’s cause, condemning Russia’s hostility to press freedom and calling for his release. The senators highlighted Gershkovich’s critical role as a truth-teller in their recent letter as well.

“We believe that a free press is crucial to the foundation and support of human rights everywhere,” the group of more than 30 lawmakers wrote. “We applaud you for your efforts to report the truth about Russia’s reprehensible invasion of Ukraine, a conflict that has resulted in untellable atrocities, tragedies, and loss of life. Your courageous efforts have demonstrated how these atrocities have affected everyday Ukrainians and helped inform accountability efforts here in Washington.”

Gershkovich had lived and reported in Russia for several years before his arrest. Both of his parents, Mikhail Gershkovich and Ella Milman, left the former Soviet Union for the U.S. decades ago, and were in the Moscow courtroom for Thursday’s hearing.

“Any parent who loves their kid would travel to the end of the world to be with them for five minutes,” Milman told the Wall Street Journal after a previous hearing in May.

Gershkovich was able to chat and smile with his parents when they attended the Russian hearing. But this moving and brief interaction once again put his wrongful detention in stark focus. 

Sadly, Gershkovich and his parents should not be spending a few minutes together through a glass cage. They should be at home, free from the authoritarian whims of a Russian government that has shown little regard for press freedoms — and has seen significant instability in recent days.

“His wrongful detention is a blow to press freedom, and it should matter to anyone who values free society,” Wall Street Journal leaders said in a June 13, statement welcoming the bipartisan show of support from the group of senators. “We will not rest until he is free.”

As we did with basketball player Brittney Griner, we will continue to call on Russia to release wrongfully detained Americans like Evan Gershkovich, and Paul Whelan and to push President Biden's administration to help secure that release.