Paying proper tribute to the last veteran of first world war

It will be nothing short of a dis- grace if House and Senate leaders do not reach an agreement to allow the body of the last surviving American doughboy to lie in honor in the Capitol Rotunda.

Frank Buckles, died Feb. 27 at age 110 on his West Virginia farm. He reached the singular honor of being the last World War I veteran standing through a unique combination of longevity and his youthful tenacity. Buckles lied about his age when he enlisted at 16. He served in England and France, mostly as a driver and warehouse clerk.

His family suggested that allowing the body to lie in honor in the Rotunda would be a tribute not simply to Buckles, but to all 4.7 million veterans of the conflict that optimists at the time thought would be the war to end all wars.

Every war has its horrors, but those serving in the first world war suffered through brutal combinations of cold, hunger and deprivations in the trenches of Europe, fighting a mechanized war in which artillery, tanks and aircraft killed with newfound efficiency. And then there was the poison gas.

It seems entirely fitting to open the Rotunda for the 31st time to a man who represents that generation of warriors. It was a generation that returned home to a nation that did not have enough jobs for them and would be in a full-blown economic depression before they reached middle age. Thanks to Ernest Hemingway, they would come to be known as the Lost Generation. History would treat their sons and daughters more kindly; thanks to newscaster Tom Brokaw, they would be dubbed the Greatest Generation 80 years after the great war ended.

Buckles and his generation deserve the last extraordinary sign of respect that was suggested in a House resolution authored by Rep. Shelley Moore Capito, R-W.Va. House Speaker John Boehner took the initial heat for denying Buckles that honor, but he has been joined by Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid. It could be called a bipartisan example of narrow thinking. Boehner, R-Ohio, and Reid, D-Nev., are seeking Pentagon permission to conduct ceremonies in the amphitheater at Arlington National Cemetery, where Buckles will be buried. They need no one’s permission to honor Buckles and his generation in the Rotunda.

Gesture of gratitude

This would be the last great gesture of appreciation from a nation that has all but forgotten what America’s doughboys suffered through in 1917 and 1918. Buckles was the last grandfather who could share firsthand stories of that war. If the image of his flag-draped casket inspires some of us to give an extra thought to those sacrifices, it will be well worth it.

And it will also send a signal to the next generation of warriors that this nation does not forget and gives a full measure of respect and gratitude to those who have served.

Frank Buckles’ later counterparts, those young men who enlisted in the last years of World War II, will be turning 110 around the year 2040. Those 16 million veterans who go before them — who are now dying at the rate of 1,000 per day — should know that when their last brother or sister in arms dies decades from now, their collective service will also receive the tribute it merits.

Boehner and Reid have it in their power to set the precedent and send that message. They should do so without further delay.