In Memory of
TAPS
Day is done...
Gone the sun
From the lake...
From the hills...
From the sky.
All is well...
Safely rest
God is nigh.
Fading light....
Dims the sight
And a star....
Gems the sky....
Gleaming bright
From afar....
Drawing nigh
Falls the night.
Gone the sun
From the lake...
From the hills...
From the sky.
All is well...
Safely rest
God is nigh.
Fading light....
Dims the sight
And a star....
Gems the sky....
Gleaming bright
From afar....
Drawing nigh
Falls the night.
- Major General Daniel Butterfield
Those who have sacrificed
&
Those who paid the ultimate price
We Thank You
Memorial Day is a sad day, really. So many wars... such much blood spilled...
ReplyDeleteWhen's the last war we fought to "keep us free" from a foreign power?" 1812?
I've got relatives that fought. But even my brother-in-law the Purple Heart no longer believes it was worth anything.
I remember the dead... and what they thought they were accomplishing... but I reject the mythology of American nationalism as some kind of holy thing.
Your comment is much like Ilana Mercer's latest post: http://barelyablog.com/dying-for-nothing-day/
DeleteI haven't known many Soldiers who do it for the medals and awards. What I do know of them, is there is a class of men that says "take me, I'll go" Even when he is naive to the cause he still would rather take his place among our country's honorable men in the past than have a draft that forces unwilling men to do the country's bidding.
The men I know who have served, I gotta admit, I like them better than those who haven't. The military has been very successful as of late of taking young men who would otherwise have been liberal/progressive and made them into Constitution loving libertarians. I like winners. I like men of courage who go into burning buildings when others are running. Who go to war as a number for an ungrateful country so others are not forced to.
I think Mercer nailed it - thanks for the link.
Delete"Even when he is naive to the cause he still would rather take his place among our country's honorable men in the past than have a draft that forces unwilling men to do the country's bidding."
ReplyDeleteYes. Many of the military guys I know were the "true believers." What they desire to do is honorable... then what they find on the field often twists them inside out. I think that's where your observation that "the military has been very successful as of late of taking young men who would otherwise have been liberal/progressive and made them into Constitution loving libertarians" comes in. Not because that's the military's goal - but because it's the result of disillusionment.
I too love men that will fight. Men of courage. But... courage for a cause that is unworthy?
There's this tiny group of folks at the top chewing through some of our best young men. That eats me up.
I appreciate the honor side of things... but boy...