Thoughts and blasphemies on Memorial Day.

[bluestateboomer]

I am a Vietnam vet and yesterday I had occasion to attend the ceremony my town has every year to honor our war dead. Each Memorial Day people gather to read the names of service members who gave the “ supreme sacrifice”. This year along with the hundreds from WWII, Korea and Vietnam wars we had one name from the current Iraq conflict. Once again speeches and prayers were given extolling the selfless sacrifice these men (I’m sure there will be women in the future as well) performed for us, their fellow citizens. As I listened, I couldn’t help thinking of the wasted lives, wasted treasure and just plain wasted effort we’ve caused in the world. For me no amount of exhortation to “support the troops” can cover the disaster we are causing for the world and ourselves. That’s the sadness I feel on this day. I am not sure whether all wars in the past are unjustified, but I am sure that history will show the current Iraq mess will be one of the most tragic blunders in the checkered history of the United States. Unfortunately our leaders seem unwilling or unable to recognize this mistake and move to correct it.

And here’s a paranoid thought I had while thinking about the men and women who are laboring to “do their duty” in the military of our country. If the time comes in the future when we citizens get so fed up with the lies and destruction being caused in our name that we take to the streets in protest, it will most likely be those same service men and women whose job it will be to suppress our outrage. On whose side will their “duty” lie? If and when the protests become too big for the criminals in power to ignore, will our service people join us or will they obey the “orders” of those who already caused so much destruction? I wish I were sure of the answer to those questions.