Pause and Remember the Reason for Memorial Day

John Stuart Mill once wrote,” War is an ugly thing, but the ugliest of all things; the decayed and degraded state of moral and patriotic feeling which thinks nothing worth a war is worse. A man who has nothing which he cares more about than he does his personal safety is a miserable creature, who has no chance of being free unless made and kept so by the exertions of better men than he.” It is that “decayed and degraded state of moral and patriotic feeling” which accounts for why so many “miserable creatures” have relegated Memorial Day to nothing more than a date on a calendar to exploit for commercial greed, cupidity and political maneuvering. Too many of America’s citizenry are overly preoccupied partying, playing in the surf, firing up the grill and just having a good time to pause, and recognize the priceless burden borne by generations of our uniformed patriots. Similarly, many seekers or holders of public office will use Memorial Day to advance personal or partisan interests. They will use this day as a soapbox to feign Patriotism, while they are in constant violation of oaths to America’s Constitution.

Memorial Day is the one day a year when we are asked to remember those who gave their lives for this country. Most of them were in their teens or early twenties. All of them had plans for a full and long life, but they interrupted those plans because they knew that serving their country, and the risks that commitment entails, was more important than life itself. Their dreams and their expectations ended suddenly on a battlefield. Some of them are buried in unmarked graves on foreign soil or rest forever in the sea. Some became missing in the fog of war and will never be accounted for.

For those of us who served, and for the Gold Star families and friends of those who gave their lives, Memorial Day will always be the one day a year when we publicly honor our battle buddies, our brothers, our sisters, our sons, our daughters, our fathers, our mothers, our nieces and nephews, our cousins ... all those who perished, their young lives cut short, while serving America ... while fighting next to us ... while protecting you. We remember them daily. We will never forget them... the sound of silence military tribute lyrics - YouTube