to make such a terrible sacrifice. For the next 22 years they were able to applaud this seemingly good judgment. While there were conflicts throughout the world -- from Spain to Ethiopia -- America s dismantled war machine had only a small volunteer army and little taste for battle. But the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor brought a new, even more deadly conflict; and with wars end in 1945, Congress was forced to amend the Legions membership regulations in order to welcome home a new generation of war veterans. However, there was still no thought of opening the Legions doors to all the nations veterans. If their predecessors in the Congress had been wrong about World War I being the last great conflict, then surely this just concluded war -- brought to an end by the most powerful weapon in all history -- was the long-awaited end to war. That rationale lasted fewer than five years. And Congress was forced to amend the Legions membership qualifications following the Korean War, Vietnam, Lebanon, Grenada, Libya, Panama and yet again following Operation Desert Shield. What do we say to the men and women who helped prepare for any unforeseen war or confrontation, and having fulfilled their military enlistment prior to these actions they are discharged? Thanks for setting the table and training the help, now you can leave?Opening New Doors to RecognitionOver these past eight decades, the question of whether non-wartime veterans should be eligible for membership in the American Legion may have seemed unimportant. In the years between the Armistice of 1918 and Americas entry into World War II, the nations volunteer armed forces needed no inducements beyond the promise of adventure and a paycheck. The same could be said for recruitment efforts in the years just before and after Korea. But with Vietnam and its aftermath, American attitudes toward the military have shifted markedly.And with the fall of Communism, todays young Americ...
