If it's true that you really don't appreciate what you have until it's gone, then we could find ourselves saying that about the U.S. Coast Guard someday. Many citizens of both the United States and the world (and perhaps some of our readers), finding themselves in peril on the sea, have had occasion to look to the skies and see a helicopter in colorful Coast Guard livery heading to their rescue, or perhaps one of the service's familiar white-hulled cutters racing to the scene. Others will no doubt recall the unforgettable images of Coast Guard personnel going above and beyond to save their fellow citizens in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina.
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