More Veterans Day Thoughts

We will have to repent in this generation
not merely for the vitriolic words and actions
of the bad people,
but for the appalling silence of the good people
--Martin Luther King, Jr.

Rule #1:
Use your good judgment in all situations.
There will be no additional rules
--Nordstrom's Employee Handbook
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[Note: Ranger had a flight of reverie on Veterans Day which was lost to the morgue, so without further ado . . .]

When we think of veterans we think of war, and we toss around terms like "victory", which sounds patriotic and for lack of better words, we then feel like we are honoring our veterans:

Patriotism --> Veterans --> War
Veterans --> War --> Patriotism
War --> Patriotism --> Veterans

The order is not understood, but Victory issues forth from killing enterprises, which is linked to War but seldom to Peace. When was the last time veterans' wartime efforts won the U.S. peace? The U.S. may glory in the illusion of victory, but when has that victory won peace?

Peace may be a noble pursuit worthy of the sacrifice of our veterans. Why did they freeze at The Bulge or on the Chosin Reservoir? Why did they attack and counterattack on nameless hills in far-flung countries? Why did we live, fight and die in jungle thickets?

Wherever we were sent we complied with whatever we were ordered to do, to the limits of our endurance. Why did soldiers endure death marches and starvation in Prisoner of War camps? We do not do it to win wars, but rather to secure the blessings of liberty and peace in our national life. Peace and not win wars -- are those the same concepts?

War is only a tool for attaining peace. If this is not true, then we have abandoned Enlightenment principles ad the Age of Reason is grown dun.

More ruminations later.