Today is Memorial Day

[billryan]

Lest I continue my complacent way,
Help me to remember that somewhere,
Somehow out there
A man died for me today.
As long as there is war
I must ask, and answer
each and everyday
Am I worth dying for?

[Come Back Kid]

There aren't enough words to express the gratitude I have for the men and woman who put there lives on the line everyday for our freedom...God bless those who gave the ultimate sacrifice, those who are still giving, those that already gave...Thank you and God bless you all!!! God bless the USA

[olds442jetaway]

Our neighbor when I was a child who was my best friend's dad was a survivor of the Bataan Death March. My father in law was a WW11 hero (marine) who saved his company by charging a Japanese machine gun nest while carrying two hand grenades. The nest had been cutting them to pieces. He survived and was awarded the Silver Star, but was riddled with machine gun bullet holes and had a lifetime of health problems. My former boss at work lost both feet in Korea as they were frozen solid during a battle. One of my best friends in high school was killed in Nam just a few months after we graduated. A local street is named after him. I lost several other classmates as well and some of the others that did return home could never find their place in society again. These are just a few of the people that I will never forget this Memorial Day.

[DaBurglar]

This is MY OWN personal inventory of feelings about Memorial Day, the Military and what it all means.   Obviously from the time I was born, actual military service for me was never an option, as none of us CHOOSE to be born (let alone with circumstances or problems), none of us choose the TIME in which we are born, none of us choose our families, etc.I have made it a point in my own life to contribute in other ways, whether it is volunteering my time (or money) for charities or organizations dedicated to veterans or victims of war.....I have a father, a brother, at least 5 cousins, two uncles and two aunts who have served (or are serving still) in various branches of the military, and with my father, brother and the two uncles served in actual combat postions (My father did 3 tours in Vietnam, my brother two in Iraq.)      I also have two very close personal friends who also served in AFghanistan and Panama (remember that little 'war'?)  I can confidently state the following, based on conversations and shared experiences from all the above mentioned people:-- WAR is the biggest, most egregious, most horrific criminal activity we Humans engage in......its costs are never really truly calculated or understood, since they reverberate and continue to accrue LONG after each individual battle or war ends.   Even the "winners" in war are losers.....-- When it comes down to it, when the bullets are flying and the bombs exploding and people are dying, each individual U.S.  soldier, sailor or airman is NOT fighting for ME, or any of you out there reading  this;  they are NOT fighting for the USA, the COnstitution or the AMERICAN way of life;  No Mom, Apple Pie or Baseball.......They fight (and die) for the man next to them.....they fight and die for each other, because in actual battle, each other is all they have.....there is a belief that no two men can be closer to each other than two soldiers sharing a foxhole in the middle of a battle.    A few veterans I  have known over the years have actually said that, for a lot of guys who were in some really horrific battles, or who SAW the results and aftermath of really horrific battles (like a lot of medics or support/follow on troops do),  MEMORIAL DAY actually serves to dredge up and bring back to life MANY experiences they wished they could forget.    I find this ironic, and a little annoying.....how WE, the general public (most of whom have NOT served, like myself) ASSUME we are doing a good thing with Memorial Day and all the sweet, thoughtful things we do and say i praise of our military.Maybe we should ask them before we just assume they want all the parades, and barbecues, and awards, etc.   Maybe the veterans (REAL VETERANS) would prefer a quiet day of remebrance and introspection, where they gather quietly amongst themselves ONLY and just 'be' with each other......something inside of me thinks that is the way to go, and that all the speechifying by presidents like OBAMA, Bush Junior, Clinton etc (the three of who together collectively shunned and dodged military service) is just hypocritical noise.    One last point to consider:  we have VETERANS day in November, and MEMORIAL DAY in MAY......what is the overlap, what is the difference between the two (besides the technical origins and circumstances of their origins)??

[billryan]

Veterans Day is for honoring all who served.
Memorial Day is for honoring our War dead.

[DaBurglar]

Veterans Day is for honoring all who served.
Memorial Day is for honoring our War dead.

Makes sense......I'll buy that, although let me share another pearl of wisdom that only veterans who have been in war, in battle, under fire and seen people die can possibly know:My dad often would tell me how it is that some veterans who were killed in action truly were "heroes" and sacrificed themselves for others;  he would also say, however, that quite a few other veterans who were killed in action were dead because they were Idiots, or were reckless and too eager to be a "hero" and got themselves killed needlessly.   He said it is a distinction you never ever hear about back home in society for a lot of reasons.....I find this sobering and interesting too.....it makes sense.   I do not know where I read it, but I also remember someone else echoing my father's points, namely that a veteran who manages to fight through a war and SURVIVE is also deserving of a type of credit and recognition too few actually receive.

[Lionqueen]

Any man or woman who is deployed for an entire year with a short 2 week leave possibly to attend their child's 1st birthday who they haven't seen or held since they were 3 months old is a hero in my eyes.