It is the Soldier

This is from an e-mail from my father. Happy Veterans' Day to him and to all the other veterans who have sacrificed for our Country.

Update - I decided to do a little searching to find the source of the following in order to give the author the credit he deserves. His name is at the end. (It also turns out that my originally posted version was slightly incorrect, such is the nature of the internet.)

It is the SOLDIER, not the reporter,
who has given us freedom of the press.

It is the SOLDIER, not the poet,
who has given us freedom of speech.

It is the SOLDIER, not the campus organizer,
who has given us freedom to assemble.

It is the SOLDIER, not the lawyer,
who has given us the right to a fair trial.

It is the SOLDIER, not the politician,
who has given us the right to vote.

It is the SOLDIER,
who salutes the flag,

It is the SOLDIER,
who serves under the flag,

and whose coffin is draped by the flag,
who allows the protester to burn the flag.

Father Dennis Edward O'Brien, USMC