Memorial Day

As a student of American history it has become my opinion that since the Big War, only a very few of our brave women and men in uniform have lost their lives for our freedom. Many have died or returned crippled, but not for our freedom as the pundits and politicians would have us believe.

Every conflict since September 2nd, 1945 has been a war of our own making. We have allowed a wicked and selfish class of humans to flourish and to profit from spilled blood. I'll not live long enough to see it, nor will most of the people whom I call friend... but I long for the day when Americans finally wake up and see how we have been pawned by feckless politicians and soulless panderers of yellow journalism. If that day ever comes, perhaps we will witness the interment of greed, the dethronement of the ruling class... and see the last of the mangled bodies of our children.

Today I shall sadly view well manicured fields dotted with the white marble of gravestones with somber or crying men, women and children clutching tiny flags... and I will wonder just how many of the dead lost their lives so that some plutocrat could sketch in another zero on a balance sheet tally and grease the palm of another politician. These children did their duty as they are sworn to do... and they sacrificed their lives on orders from above... orders soaked in greed.

I'll see the photos on Facebook and the blogs of the young spouses, the children, parents, best buddies, brothers and sisters, clutching handkerchiefs and consoling one another. My heart will break a little every time I see the images. Too many people believe the lies. Even those who died believed the lies. There is nothing in my lifetime that I can do to change that.

Other than that I'll go about my day as usual. Friends are having a get together and as usual I'm bringing some food. So for an old man with a heavy heart, life just goes on. What other choice do I have?