Service in the military is a
credential that deserves every American’s deepest respect. Service in the military is an expression of
love of country and a desire to keep men free.
From Mark Pryor, who insulted his
opponent in his bid to be re-elected as senator for Arkansas, to some
mealy-mouthed worm at Salon, there are those of my countrymen who have no idea
what service means.
Honoring our veterans is not an act that deadens real
democracy, it strengthens it.
I was moved to tears as I read an
article from Great Britain’s Daily
Mail reporting on the poignant tributes to her fallen heroes one
hundred years after the start of World War I.
David Masciotra blithely wrote at
Salon (I'll be damned if I'll link to that bastard), “It is equally challenging for
anyone reasonable, and not drowning in the syrup of patriotic sentimentality,
to stop saluting, and look at the servicemen of the American military with
criticism and skepticism.”
In contrast, the Daily
Mail article discussed an exhibit that captured the heart of that
nation. It was, in a word,
eloquent. The exhibit’s creator filled
the moat of the Tower of London with red ceramic poppies—888,246 in all—one for
each of the young men who died fighting for their country. He called the exhibit “Blood Swept Lands and
Seas of Red.”
Millions of Britons have visited
the Tower, including Her Majesty. Instead of closing the exhibit today—Remembrance
Day—officials will continue it until the end of the month. Nigel Farage wiped
tears from his eyes, as did the Queen.
In all, there are 84 photographs
that depict the honor and respect of a people for a military that fought
against tyranny. Scrolling down the
page, there is a picture of the stunning sight of all those poppies in the
moat, another where someone tied a picture of a soldier of that time to a railing and in the background are the poppies.
There’s one heartbreaker of a little four-year-old boy who laid a wreath
made of poppies in honor of his father whom he never met. There are others which I hope you will take
the time to view.
Make no mistake, I know the
difference between Memorial Day and Veterans Day, but it is important that
America realize that our world would be a nightmare without the service and
sacrifice of the men and women who served and are serving in America’s military
in order to make men free.
It has been said that we are only alive in those moments
when our hearts are conscious of our treasures. Our veterans are our treasures—precious treasures that
remind us of why America is a beacon to the world.
No liberal agenda, no politician,
no community organizer, no hack writer at some delusional magazine speaks for
me. I clamor for the syrup of patriotic
sentimentality, I will not stop saluting our service men and women and I will
never stop honoring their service. God
bless ‘em all.
