To all veterans, the men and women who have won our freedom and work to keep us free and safe every moment of every day: THANK YOU. You are appreciated each day of the year, not just today. We love you and pray for you, our heroes.
It is the Soldier
It is the Soldier, not the minister
Who has given us freedom of religion.It is the Soldier, not the reporter
Who has given us freedom of the press.It is the Soldier, not the poet
Who has given us freedom of speech.It is the Soldier, not the campus organizer
Who has given us freedom to protest.It is the Soldier, not the lawyer
Who has given us the right to a fair trial.It is the Soldier, not the politician
Who has given us the right to vote.It is the Soldier who salutes the flag,
Who serves beneath the flag,
And whose coffin is draped by the flag,
Who allows the protester to burn the flag.~Charles M. Province
EDIT: Joan’s post moved me to tears. I try to always thank veterans and it very nearly always catches them off guard.
There’s something so glaringly sad about Vietnam era Vets, though… case in point:
Hubby went to an airshow at Homestead AFB last weekend. While there a field of new recruits took the pledge, which is moving in itself… but at the end of the show all the active duty personnel took time to thank the Veterans. My Vet said exactly what Joan’s had: ‘we didn’t get this back then’. They weren’t welcomed home, they were spat upon, called baby killers and made to look like the worst sort of humanity by scum like john kerry and jane fonda.
So, today… especially for the Vietnam Vets… Welcome home; we love you.
11. November 2009 at 9:40 am
Amen.
11. November 2009 at 9:56 am
11. November 2009 at 10:45 am
It’s hard to think of ‘Nam without having to try and wrap one’s mind around what Jane Fonda did. I declined to mention her, but her unspeakable inhumanity in the face of tortured and imprisoned soldiers still boggles the mind. That she breached their trust and crushed their hopes on the altar of her own vanity makes her one and the same species with Obama.
. . .Which is why it is deliciously warming and satisfying to practically hunt down a Vietnam Vet and thank them profusely. They deserve it. And if it makes Jane Fonda howl in pain, so much the better!
11. November 2009 at 10:49 am
Amen!
I shouldn’t have mentioned the traitors in the same post as our heroes… just got off on a rant, as usual.
11. November 2009 at 11:18 am
Sending hugs and thanks to your very own vet. Hope Arthur has a terrific day!
11. November 2009 at 1:34 pm
Thanks, Teresa! He will appreciate that!
11. November 2009 at 12:57 pm
Refresh your gratitude to Veterans with the second video I just added there. Just beautiful stuff I stole from The Corner.
11. November 2009 at 1:34 pm
Awesome, Joan!!
11. November 2009 at 4:41 pm
I want to thank all the vets for making it possible to elect ME, BARACK OBAMA, an African of African descent, as your commander-in-chief. If it wasn’t for your contribution, I, Barack Obama, wouldn’t be here speaking to you. I, Barack Obama, want to thank you for this great opportunity. I, Barack Obama, will be your commander-in-chief for three more LONG FUCKING YEARS…
11. November 2009 at 4:44 pm
That sounds like every speech he’s ever given…
11. November 2009 at 5:03 pm
Well, I’m a veteran who served in Viet nam. Please, though, don’t ever call me a hero. And, please, don’t ever say I was cheated in any way, either.
The heroes came back from Viet Nam in the cargo holds of those airplanes, I rode in the seats. And then I got to come back and live in the United States of America after having seen how folks lived in several other countries. I, and your Art, are a couple of the luckiest somenobeeches ever to live in this old world.
11. November 2009 at 5:16 pm
Thank you for your service, Peter.
…and you’re still my personal heroes. Those who came back and those who didn’t….
11. November 2009 at 6:18 pm
Peter, that we are – but I cheated, I hid 300 feet underwater most of the time – I did not take fire like you – was only depth charged once by Russa and they missed –
Tersea, Thank you
Art
12. November 2009 at 10:40 am
John Kerry still sucks…but on the bright side, they love him in Hanoi!
12. November 2009 at 10:57 am
Well, at least he’s loved somewhere!