We tend to give the French grief fairly often.\u00a0 And in truth, as a nation and a society they do have their faults.\u00a0 And they definitely also look out for French interests first.<\/p>\n
Yet as I\u2019ve written several times before, the French also have a true sense of national honor.\u00a0 They also remember those who\u2019ve helped them in the past.<\/p>\n
This was recently again proven.\u00a0 This time, the proof came at West Point, NY.<\/p>\n
At a recent ceremony held there, 34 US World War II veterans were presented the French Legion of Honor. \u00a0\u00a0The presentation was part of events leading up to the celebration of the 70th Anniversary of D-Day this year.\u00a0 In the words of the Consul General of France Bertrand Lortholary:<\/p>\n
“Seventy years have passed since then, and yet the memory of the sacrifice of American soldiers remains more vivid than ever in the villages of France \u2014 in Normandy, in Provence, in the Ardennes, whose cemeteries bear witness to war’s cost in life.\u00a0 I want to tell you that your example gives us inspiration for the future.”<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
The choice of location for the presentation was intentional.\u00a0 During his remarks, Lortholary also indicated his belief that it was important to express France’s gratitude before those who would become some of the next generation of US officers.<\/p>\n
Today, we don’t always see 100% eye-to-eye with the French.\u00a0 And as I said above and have said elsewhere:\u00a0 the French indeed have their faults.\u00a0 But ingratitude and a short memory certainly don\u2019t seem to be among them.<\/p>\n