Today
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"...conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of their life above and beyond the call of duty..."
"Come on, you sons of bitches, do you wanna live forever?!" - Gunnery Sergeant Dan Daly, USMC, Battle of Belleau Wood
Today doesn't mean a day off to me. It means just what it says, to remember. It is in the most literal sense, a holiday. As long as someone is remembered, they are not fully gone. The 300 Spartans at Thermoplyae are still known today individually by name 2,500 years later. Horatius Cocles, Spurius Larcius, and Titus Herminius are remembered in Rome. They are immortal.
Since Vietnam, the Medal of Honor has been awarded just eight times, all of them posthumously. Our fighting in Afghanistan is about to surpass Vietnam for length. There have been a grand total of two Medals of Honor awarded for Operation Enduring Freedom. Two. You can't justify that. There were 110 awarded for the Spanish-American War, and that lasted 3 1/2 months and had half as many men involved! And you can't even try to make the excuse that we're not as brave as our forefathers.
Like Sgt. Rafael Peralta, some may not get the recognition they deserve. Some, like SFC Paul Smith, may be honored, but largely unknown to the American public. But all of us feel their presence. So remember them today. For as long as we do, they are not fully gone from us. And they never should be.
I blame my dad for this. Growing up, he taught me to read, and showed me story after story of noble causes, valiant heroes, courageous stands...some people teach their kids good from evil by threats of punishment in Heaven, some by appeals to their reason....my father taught me about heroes. And without ever saying anything, dared me to keep up. And I thank him for it. Because one day I'll get to teach my daughter the same, and dare her.
Then out spake brave Horatius,
the Captain of the Gate:
"To every man upon this earth
Death cometh soon or late.
And how can man die better
than facing fearful odds,
For the ashes of his fathers,
And the temples of his Gods?"
A civilization's heart is revealed in what heroes it chooses. I think we've got some great ones. So turn over a cup for them today, 'to soak the earth, and reach the famous dead below.'
Amen.
"...conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of their life above and beyond the call of duty..."
"Come on, you sons of bitches, do you wanna live forever?!" - Gunnery Sergeant Dan Daly, USMC, Battle of Belleau Wood
Today doesn't mean a day off to me. It means just what it says, to remember. It is in the most literal sense, a holiday. As long as someone is remembered, they are not fully gone. The 300 Spartans at Thermoplyae are still known today individually by name 2,500 years later. Horatius Cocles, Spurius Larcius, and Titus Herminius are remembered in Rome. They are immortal.
Since Vietnam, the Medal of Honor has been awarded just eight times, all of them posthumously. Our fighting in Afghanistan is about to surpass Vietnam for length. There have been a grand total of two Medals of Honor awarded for Operation Enduring Freedom. Two. You can't justify that. There were 110 awarded for the Spanish-American War, and that lasted 3 1/2 months and had half as many men involved! And you can't even try to make the excuse that we're not as brave as our forefathers.
Like Sgt. Rafael Peralta, some may not get the recognition they deserve. Some, like SFC Paul Smith, may be honored, but largely unknown to the American public. But all of us feel their presence. So remember them today. For as long as we do, they are not fully gone from us. And they never should be.
I blame my dad for this. Growing up, he taught me to read, and showed me story after story of noble causes, valiant heroes, courageous stands...some people teach their kids good from evil by threats of punishment in Heaven, some by appeals to their reason....my father taught me about heroes. And without ever saying anything, dared me to keep up. And I thank him for it. Because one day I'll get to teach my daughter the same, and dare her.
Then out spake brave Horatius,
the Captain of the Gate:
"To every man upon this earth
Death cometh soon or late.
And how can man die better
than facing fearful odds,
For the ashes of his fathers,
And the temples of his Gods?"
A civilization's heart is revealed in what heroes it chooses. I think we've got some great ones. So turn over a cup for them today, 'to soak the earth, and reach the famous dead below.'
Amen.