Posted by
Curt Day on Monday, May 25, 2009 12:46:38 PM
Memorial Day is a mixed holiday. On the one hand, we both need and are morally obligated to pay homage to those who risked their lives defending our country. When honoring these veterans, we need to keep in mind that it isn't just the troops who died on the battlefield during a war who deserve our thanks; it also includes those troops who died while training and those who died in times of peace. The military is a dangerous place to work even during peacetime. Paying tribute to these fallen heroes is the honorable part of Memorial Day.
But there is a part of Memorial Day that is taken advantage of. While we focus on the personal reasons why our troops have sacrificed their lives, most of which are very honorable, we forget that those who sent the troops into battle did not have the personal integrity that their subordinates had. And they are more than willing to use the valor of our troops as moral shields for their policies.
We only need to read the writings of former Marine Corps Major General Smedley Butler to realize how wars are ordered by Presidents for the benefit of the rich instead of the oppressed. Businesses that supply the military with weapons, materials and resources are the immediate beneficiaries of any war. Other businesses benefit from the successful completion of a war or an attack. And our country should be familiar with lies that come from the White House. Since the end of WWII, we have attacked over 50 countries and sometimes have even replaced a democracy with a dictatorship. In addition we have seen wars and escalations in conflict result from Presidential lies and inuendoes. The wars against Iraq and Vietnam are two of the most recent examples
Certainly, those who have fallen deserve our respect. But we are going to give our troops the respect they deserve, then we must demand full honesty and transparency from those who send our sons and daughters into battle.