Joseph J. Heck: “Our Nation's security is dependent, in part, on the willingness of Americans to participate in that security.”

Civic education provides the foundational basis that every American must have in order to fully comprehend his or her individual role in achieving the collective security of our Nation.

For those of us that serve voluntarily in any capacity, being the military or any other--the Peace Corps or any other public service--we do it voluntarily because of the common goal and interest and principle that binds us as a country.

We need to think of new ways to bring talented individuals into our armed services.

But without aggressively maintaining their skills, who knows how many patients our specialists can optimally treat? Maybe 80 percent? Maybe? But 80 percent is a B-minus. And is a B-minus really the best that we can do for the young men and…