There's a lot being said, written, assumed and even shouted since Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl was freed after serving as the longest-held American military prisoner since Vietnam.
He's a traitor. He's a hero. He walked away. He was scared. He wanted to join the enemy.
The American public is picking sides and shouting across dividing lines before officials can even figure out what actually happened.
Perhaps the most heartwrenching of reactions after Bergdahl's release was that of the family members of the six men who died while searching for him.
One mother asked a reporter, "Was his life worth my son's?"
That kills me inside. I would be beyond angry too. And I am angry that one person's selfish, bad decision could have possibly lead to the deaths of six others.
But my only comment as this story unfolds is this: they didn't die in vain.
I don't know what happened over there. We may never know the full truth.
What I know for certain is what those six men did after he disappeared is what sets them apart from the average American citizen. It is what sets them apart from every military on the planet.
They refused to leave a man behind, regardless of the fact that he may very well have turned against them.
It would have been very, very easy for them to dismiss Bergdahl, assume he got what he deserved and left. I would venture to guess that the majority of Americans probably would have done just that.
But the men in his unit had a obligation and a code to uphold - to leave no one behind. No questions asked. And they did just that.
They spent months searching for him, even though they knew it was his own fault that he was gone. They risked their lives, they gave their lives so that he might return home again.
These men are what makes America great. This is why they are heroes. When faced with the decision to uphold the vow they took, and bring every American home regardless of the circumstances, or save their own life, they choose to fulfill their promise and search for Bergdahl.
No, they did not die in vain. Their lives are not worth less than his.
Their actions are, in fact, what makes them better than Bergdahl, better than most Americans. This is what makes them heroes. They saved everyone, quite possibly, even the bad guy.
