Today, while standing in line at Home Depot, that’s right Home Depot, a big box store that I love, I saw this frail gentlemen in his late 80’s, wearing a sport coat and tie while waiting in line. I noticed the ball cap he was sporting which read, “Big Red One”. The Big Red One stands for the U.S. Army’s First Division. I approached him and asked him if he had served with that unit and he smiled and “yes sir”. I reached out to him and shook his hand, thanking him for his service and the gift of democracy he had provided me. As he looked at me, his eyes welled up with tears, he held my hand tightly as though our lives depended upon it, and tried to summon some words. After several seconds with a tear streaming down his face, he said, "Thank You Sir, Thank You, You have made this a most memorable day.”
With tears now forming in my eyes, as I stood in the presence of this now frail lion, I gently hugged this man and told him “I would never forget how much I and so many others owe him” and told him how “Honored I was to meet him”. He thanked me again, and we parted, each with teared eyes and heartfelt smiles. That moment released a deluge of thoughts about the great sacrifices he and so many others have made, and how indebted we are to them. This gentle man, a man once young and full of vigor, was an individual who fought for each of us, and is now a man with so very little time left. He is but one of a few left, who now represent the many with whom he once served. Thus, as we close out the Memorial Day Weekend, I thought it necessary to share a few final thoughts, beginning with this reminder of what Memorial Day is. (The remainder of this post can be read by selecting the READ MORE link below).
Memorial Day, originally called Decoration Day, is a day of remembrance for those who have died in our nation's service. Memorial Day was officially proclaimed on 5 May 1868 by General John Logan, national commander of the Grand Army of the Republic, in his General Order No. 11, and was first observed on 30 May 1868, when flowers were placed on the graves of Union and Confederate soldiers at Arlington National Cemetery. The first state to officially recognize the holiday was New York in 1873. By 1890 it was recognized by all of the northern states. The South refused to acknowledge the day, honoring their dead on separate days until after World War I (when the holiday changed from honoring just those who died fighting in the Civil War to honoring Americans who died fighting in any war).
In 1915, inspired by the poem "In Flanders Fields," Moina Michael replied with her own inspiring dedication:
"We cherish too, the Poppy red
That grows on fields where valor led,
It seems to signal to the skies
That blood of heroes never dies."
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So then, just exactly what is it, that so many brave men and women have paid the ultimate sacrifice for. Well, as a veteran myself, and one who has long held the ideals of freedom, democracy, and justice, as well as a loathing for tyranny as sacred principles, I can certainly hazard a guess, based upon the beliefs held by those I’ve served with.
The brave men and woman who have taken an oath to “Protect and Defend the Constitution of the United States against all Enemies, both Foreign and Domestic” share a common belief that freedom and democracy are God granted rights that belong to all human beings.
We believe that “Principles should always take Precedence over Personalities”, and that democracy is vested in the people, not the politicians or special interest groups; be they in Washington D.C. or here in Sturbridge, MA.
We believe that the needs of the many, outweigh the wants or selfish desires of the few. For it is the very desires of the few, that lead to the despicable and violent tyranny in Germany, Japan, Korea, Vietnam, the former Soviet Union, Afghanistan, Iraq and a hundred other places on this planet. It was, and still is, in some parts of the globe. It is also the tyranny of the few, that has lead to classist and racist systems resulting in woman and people of color being treated as second class citizens.
It was the tyranny of the few, that forged workers to unite in battle against horrendous working conditions via the unionization of workers. It was the tyranny of the few, that lead to the Suffrage Movement as well as the Civil Rights Movement. Equally so, it was the tyranny of the few, that lead to millions of deaths at the hands of the Nazi’s and hundreds of thousands, perhaps millions more at the hands of Pol Pot’s Khmer Rouge, and Saddam Hussein’s Republican Guard.
It was and is, the tyranny of the few, that has tragically necessitated the establishment of women’s shelters throughout this country. It is also the tyranny of the few, which has lead to the deaths of students and teachers in our schools.
Tyranny though, need not come in the form of violence or dictatorships, oligarchies, or classist forms of government. Tyranny as well, can exist well within the confines of a democracy, when the voices of the many are excluded at the urging of a few. Is not, that form of tyranny, at the very center of racism and discrimination within our own history? Is not, that form of tyranny, in part, the reason that some of our veterans are rotting away in sub-standard hospitals while money is funneled for pork projects elsewhere? Think about our own pork projects here, such as a Hazard (dead, dying, decaying) tree that takes precedence over safety or even our seniors with a small band of tyrants.
Is not that form of tyranny, the reason that my Church, the Catholic Church, finds itself now recovering from the secret and despicable acts of a few, who destroyed the lives of many. Is not, that form of tyranny, in part the reason that so many of our seniors, nationally, are struggling to make payments on over priced prescriptions, escalating food and fuel prices, while CEO’s and politicians are given outrageous compensation packages?
And is not, that form of tyranny, the very reason that a proposed amendment designed to help seniors and others “remain in homes they might otherwise be forced to leave” was beaten to death by 5 selectmen and their S.O.S. handlers? Is not that form of tyranny, the very reason that the Town of Sturbridge was forced to acquiesce on it’s public safety infrastructure standards, in order to appease six individuals over the will of the majority of residents on McGilpin Road, and over 400 residents who signed a petition to remove a Hazard (dead, dying, decaying) tree?
Is not, that form of tyranny, the reason that four selectmen chose to ignore the paid professionals, consultants and desires of the majority of residents at Public Hearings, when they supported a ridiculous warrant article for a 1.0 mgd WWTF? Is not, that form of tyranny, the very reason that those same selectmen chose to fight the proposed Route 15 Amendment, despite the will of the majority of residents who attended both the Public Hearing and the Annual Town Meeting? Is not, that form of tyranny, the very essence which emboldens our selectmen to ignore the desires of the majority time and time again while pandering to a small band of self centered individuals.
Tyranny comes in many forms, some, flagrantly obvious, some, not so. Each and every time an individual decides to merely “Think Out Loud” offering nothing more than hypocrisy, while turning a blind eye and ignoring, or in some cases supporting simple acts of discreet tyranny, they send a message to the tyrants; a message of ambivalence that further encourages more discreet acts of tyranny. And as this ambivalence continues, much as it did in Germany, Japan, the Soviet Union, Vietnam, Korea, Afghanistan, Iraq, etc., as well are right here in the U.S., the lines become so blurred that they no longer exist. At that point, there is no turning back, for there is nowhere to turn back to.
Each and every American soldier swears via his or her oath to “Protect and Defend the Constitution of the United States against all Enemies, both Foreign and Domestic.” That oath is a solemn promise to ensure that the needs of the many, take primacy over the selfish desires of the few, and that the governing institutions fulfill their responsibility to ensure that “Principles take Precedence over Personalities”.
The oath we take, is not for most of us anyway, some poetic set of words that sound nice on induction day. They are words of intense meaning and dedication. We do not take that oath to merely sit by while our own elected officials and their families manufacture and distribute misinformation and lies about candidates or issues facing this town. We do take that oath, to merely turn a blind eye while elected officials and their families engage in illegal practices and conduct scurrilous and hypocritical activities in pursuit of their self-centered political agenda.
We do not take that oath, to merely sit by while our political leaders disrespect it's citizenry, ignoring the masses and disrespecting them, by screaming at them as they try to bring issues forward that our selectmen do not favor. We do not take that oath, to simply sit by while government representatives denigrate fellow human beings by referring to them as "low wage casino workers" and "outsiders".
As Thomas Jefferson once said, "Rebellion to tyrants, is obedience to God"; and that my friends, is what our men and women serve, fight, and die for. I shall never forget the debt I owe them, nor my responsibility and obligation to continue on their behalf.
TRC
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