Today, like every Veterans Day, Americans will go out of their way to say thank you to service members, past and present. While I believe these expressions are genuine and, as a veteran myself, truly appreciate them, I cannot help feeling disappointed when I take a step back and look at the big picture. We say we support the troops, but when given opportunities to demonstrate that support, we consistently let them down.

We often express gratitude for the freedoms veterans protect through their sacrifice. A week ago on Election Day, we had a chance to exercise one of our most basic and important freedoms, and only 36.4 percent of eligible voters chose to do so, according to early projections from the United States Election Project. And if just over a third of the country showed up to vote, the bare minimum of civic responsibilities, what can we assume about what people are doing on the hundreds of nonvoting days between elections?

Are we an informed and engaged citizenry, fulfilling the essential functions to maintain our republic? If we are truly thankful for the democracy we ask our veterans to protect, we sure don't treat it very well.

Beyond our disconnection from what we believe our veterans protect, we are also separated from what we ask them to do. As much of the world observes Armistice Day, celebrating an end to war, we seem content to maintain the status quo of endless war, allowing a select few to bear the sacrifice while the rest of us don't really give it much thought.

Boston University Prof. Andrew Bacevich, a retired Army colonel and Vietnam veteran, writes about this in his book "Breach of Trust." He quotes former Undersecretary of War Robert Patterson, who in 1944 said: "In a democracy, all citizens have equal rights and equal opportunities. When the nation is in peril, the obligation of saving it should be shared by all, not foisted on a small percentage."

Unfortunately, this is exactly what has happened. Bacevich goes on to make the case that we have failed not only our armed forces but also our country. While soldiers and their families endure repeated deployments, most people maintain business as usual, paying more attention to sports and reality television than to the missions we have sent our military on.

While the costs of war continue to skyrocket, we refuse to accept increased taxes or reduced government services. In other words, shared sacrifice is an idea that is lost on us. And since so few actually have skin in the game, our leaders are allowed to push forward through another decade of perpetual war with little accountability and no end in sight.

While the tone of my writing undoubtedly sounds cynical, I remain optimistic about the future. I am fortunate to work with young people who, despite being surrounded by apathy and negativity, remain curious about the world around them, willing to listen to new ideas and deliberate important issues, and eager to make a positive difference in the world.

I also believe that most of us really do want to do more. So I challenge my fellow citizens this Veterans Day: Will we go beyond patting a veteran on the back and saying "thanks" or posting another soldier-family reunion video on Facebook? Will we take our rights and responsibilities as citizens more seriously and set a better example for the next generation? Will we commit to sacrificing a little bit of ourselves to make the world a better place?

If we truly are thankful, I think it's the least we can do.

Scott Glew is an Iraq war veteran and social studies teacher from Elk River.