Thank you Veterans for your service,

Subject: Memorial Day
From: Steve in Idaho
Date: 23 May 01 - 10:42 AM

Memorial Day

To all on this site who have honorably served their country - Thank You for your service. Remember those who have gone before and those who currently serve.

Semper Fidelis
Steve

Subject: RE: Thank you Veterans for your service,
From: Mrrzy
Date: 23 May 01 - 10:55 AM

Remember those who died for their country whether serving it or not, also. Or is this holiday specific to the armed forces? I am curious, not intending anything derogatory.

Subject: RE: Thank you Veterans for your service,
From: UB Ed
Date: 23 May 01 - 10:59 AM

Memorial Day, originally called Decoration Day, is a day to remember those who have died in our nation's service. In 1971, it was declared a national holiday to be held on the last Monday in May.

Subject: RE: Thank you Veterans for your service,
From: MMario
Date: 23 May 01 - 11:30 AM

I don't know what the technicalities are - but growing up - my home town's Memorial Day services and activities always *did* include mention and remembrence of ALL who died for their countries - whether or not they were in a service. They would also include memorials to *all* those who died as a result of war.

Subject: RE: Thank you Veterans for your service,
From: late 'n short 2
Date: 23 May 01 - 11:31 AM

I haven't gone through it entirely but this looks like a good site for Memorial Day History

Dan

--- Link fixed. ---

Subject: RE: Thank you Veterans for your service,
From: kendall
Date: 23 May 01 - 11:51 AM

Semper paratus.

Subject: RE: Thank you Veterans for your service,
From: Lonesome EJ
Date: 23 May 01 - 12:01 PM

Thanks for the link, late, and for the thread Norton. And thanks for reminding us that there's more to Memorial Day than picnics, the Indy 500, and a day off.

Subject: RE: Thank you Veterans for your service,
From: Clinton Hammond
Date: 23 May 01 - 12:08 PM

11:11

Ah the glorious few are all the fewer here
In the cold November air
The crowd draws silent
Their collars raised
To the edges of the square
The children's choir sings "In Flander's Fields"
The band plays "Over There"
The old heroes still try to dress the line
As the chaplain reads the prayer

For the glorious few no longer stand so straight
As they did long years before
When they faced a hard and cruel fate
On a far and distant shore
Their tunics faded green and blue
Poor shelter from the cold
The memories made yet raw and new
At the calling of the roll

The heads are bowed in silence now
At the tolling of the hour
The first few falling flakes of snow
Drift gently on the flowers
All piled and stacked against the stones
Petals fluttering in the air
The eyes that stare down through the years
At the ones no longer there

The taste of lost and wasted years
So bitter on the tongue
White breath in clouds in the autumn cold
Frail chests with medals hung
In battle ribbons red and gold
In the pale November sun
The hands and faces grown so old
While the heart stays ever young

For the glorious few are all the fewer here
The old soldiers form the square
The wind blows hard and shakes the leaves
And stirs the thin white hair
Of these fading brave and fragile souls
As the bugler plays "Last Post"
The snow falls thick and faster still
And turns them white as ghosts

Subject: RE: Thank you Veterans for your service,
From: mousethief
Date: 23 May 01 - 12:16 PM

I've said it before, and I'll say it again: THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU to all who have worked, fought, and died for my freedoms and those of the people -- and the country -- I love.

Alex

Subject: RE: Thank you Veterans for your service,
From: Amergin
Date: 23 May 01 - 12:20 PM

Also a good time to be remembering those who served and have gone missing....lest they be forgotten.....click here

click here

click here

Subject: RE: Thank you Veterans for your service,
From: Whistle Stop
Date: 23 May 01 - 12:45 PM

Semper Paratus back at you, Kendall -- it's nice to know I'm not the only Coast Guard veteran lurking here. When and where did you serve?

My service was all peacetime (1977-81, 85-88), and all stateside, so while I appreciate the thanks offered on this thread, I think it should primarily go to those vets who served in times of crisis -- whether declared or not. I am as grateful to them as anyone.

Subject: RE: Thank you Veterans for your service,
From: dwditty
Date: 23 May 01 - 12:57 PM

Your welcome. And thanks to you and the rest as well.

Subject: RE: Thank you Veterans for your service,
From: Mrrzy
Date: 23 May 01 - 12:58 PM

Please also remember all the victims of the undeclared wars - terrorism (both home-grown and international). Especially those who weren't even serving their nation, but were in the wrong place at the time and got to die or be maimed anyway.

And I do thank the peace-time servers, WhistleStop! Just because you didn't have to commit war doesn't mean you weren't providing a valuable service!

Although I think that the point of MEMORIAL Day is to remember the FALLEN, not allthose who served... isn't a memorial by definition to the dead?

The songs of the wars are as old as the hills
They cling like the rust to the cold steel that kills
Let's drink to the men who got caught in the chill
Of a patriotic fever and the cold steel that kills...

... or something. Wish I could remember all the words to that one...

Subject: RE: Thank you Veterans for your service,
From: Mrrzy
Date: 23 May 01 - 01:08 PM

Here it is, from http://www3.pei.sympatico.ca/wfrancis/lightfoot/patriots.htm:

Patriot's Dream (Gordon Lightfoot)

(G) The songs of the wars are as (C) old as the hills
They (G) cling like the rust on the (A) cold steel that (D) kills
They (G) tell of the boys who went down to the (C) tracks
In a (D) patriotic manner with the (C) cold steel on their (G) backs
The patriot's dream is as old as the sky
It lives in the lust of a cold callous lie
Let's drink to the men who got caught by the chill
Of the patriotic fever and the cold steel that kills
The train pulled away on that glorious night
The drummer got drunk and the bugler got tight
While the boys in the back sang a song of good cheer
While riding off to glory in the spring of their years
The patriot's dream still lives on today
It makes mothers weep and it makes lovers pray
Let's drink to the men who got caught by the chill
Of the patriotic fever and the cold steel that kills

(Em) Well there (G) was a (D) sad, sad (Em) lady
(G) Weeping (D) all night (Em) long
She re(G)ceived a (D) sad, sad (Em) message
From a (G) voice on the (D) tele(Em)phone
Her (G) children (D) were all (Em) sleeping
As she (G) waited (D) out the (Em) dawn
How (G) could she (D) tell those (Em) children
That their (G) father (D) was shot (Em) down
So she (G) took them (D) to her (Em) side that day
And she (G) told them (D) one by (Em) one
Your (G) father (D) was a (Em) good man ten thousand (D) miles from (G) home (B7)
He (Am7) tried to do his (D) duty and it (G) took him straight to (Cmaj7) hell
He (Am7) might be in some (D) prison, I (G) hope he's treated (Cmaj7) well (Am7)
Well there was a young girl watching in the early afternoon
When she heard the name of someone who said he'd be home soon
And she wondered how they got him, but the papers did not tell
There would be no sweet reunion, there would be no wedding bells
So she took herself into her room and she turned the bed sheets down
And she cried into the silken folds of her new wedding gown
He tried to do his duty and it took him straight to hell
He might be in some prison, I hope he's treated well
Well there was an old man sitting in his mansion on the hill
And he thought of his good fortune and the time he'd yet o kill
Well he called to his wife one day, "Come sit with me awhile"
Then turning toward the sunset, he smiled a wicked smile
"Well I'd like to say I'm sorry for the sinful deeds I've done
But let me first remind you, I'm a patriotic son"
They tried to do their duty and it took 'em straight to hell
They might be in some prison, I hope they're treated well

The songs of the wars are as old as the hills
They cling like the rust on the cold steel that kills
They tell of the boys who went down to the tracks
In a patriotic manner with the cold steel on their backs
The train pulled away on that glorious night
The drummer got drunk and the bugler got tight
While the boys in the back sang a song of good cheer
While riding off to glory in the spring of their years
The patriot's dream still lives on today
It makes mothers weep and it makes lovers pray
Let's drink to the men who got caught by the chill
Of the patriotic fever and the cold steel that kills...

Too moving. I can't even read through it easily.

Subject: RE: Thank you Veterans for your service,
From: Amergin
Date: 23 May 01 - 01:39 PM

Mrrzy, I found this site for you, my friend.....though I have a strong suspicion you already knew of it...

Subject: RE: Thank you Veterans for your service,
From: katlaughing
Date: 23 May 01 - 01:49 PM

There is a very nice writeup, looking at the history of Memorial day in a healing light at THIS SITE, including the names of the women who first put flowers on the graves of their fallen loved ones.

It says, also, that it was to honour those who served in war and in peacetime.

Thanks to you all and may we see a day when we do not have to remember more losses to the folly of humankind.

kat

Subject: RE: Thank you Veterans for your service,
From: Mrrzy
Date: 23 May 01 - 01:54 PM

Indeed, Amergin. Back in the olden days, Mbo told me about it, and I've been to Jacksonville to see it, too. They used to have stuff there about the civilians, like Dad, but they took it all down recently, probably at the behest of the military. I've been trying to get info on that for a while now...

Also, kat, I have a feeling that the "first" women to put flowers on the graves of the fallen predate history by several millenia, but I wholeheartedly second the wish to not see any more 'of man's blind indifference to his fellow man" - speaking of songs I can't sing without tears...

Subject: RE: Thank you Veterans for your service,
From: katlaughing
Date: 23 May 01 - 01:57 PM

Oh, sure, Mrzzy, I just meant in the context of what got Memorial Day going, here, in the States.:-)

Subject: RE: Thank you Veterans for your service,
From: Irish sergeant
Date: 23 May 01 - 02:58 PM

Actually, Memorial Day ( Decoration Day) started to honor those who died in the Civil War but it has come to include those who died in all wars. (Declared or not, including terrorist actions) While generally thought to mean the military, I would include civilians who dies as well such as the Merchant Marine but certainly not limited to them. As a veteran, (Navy Viet nam era and Gulf War) Thank you all for remembering. And a special thanks to the parents who give up their sons and daughters for our country. Kindest reguards, Neil

Subject: RE: Thank you Veterans for your service,
From: Mrrzy
Date: 23 May 01 - 03:31 PM

And to children who give their parents...

Subject: RE: Thank you Veterans for your service,
From: Steve in Idaho
Date: 23 May 01 - 03:46 PM

I had no idea of the memories this would stir. I did mean what I said - for everyone. It was "Peace time" when I joined but then quickly turned to war. I work on an Air Force base and know that "Peace time" is an illusion. We have been deployed year around for as long as anyone can remember.

Memorial Day is for me a time to reflect on the sacrifices people make for their causes. Not just war, or military, but those whose beliefs created an opportunity to effect change. And their willingness to give their all for that cause.

Steve Neff US Marine 1962 - 1967
US Army 1979 - 1984
Social Worker 1986 - present

Subject: RE: Thank you Veterans for your service,
From: Banjer
Date: 23 May 01 - 04:27 PM

Our Civil War Artillery Unit will be representing Union artillery at the upcoming Memorial Day ceremonies at our local cemetery. There will be reenactors from various times in history. Year before last, when this event was first done there were Revolutonary War soldiers and Vietnam era soldiers and all stops in between. We had Span-Am, WWI, WWII, and Civil War uniforms all mingled together. All branches were also represented. It was quite a sight and a stirring recognition for those who gave the last full measure. We have been invited again this year to fire our salute along with others at the end of the ceremony. I consider it an honor!

Subject: RE: Thank you Veterans for your service,
From: chip a
Date: 23 May 01 - 04:54 PM

Thanks Dad, Uncle Ken, Uncle Doug, Skip, Grampa, Grampa...........moms, dads, brothers, sisters, all... Thanks for giving America to me.

Chip

Subject: RE: Thank you Veterans for your service,
From: Rick Fielding
Date: 23 May 01 - 04:59 PM

Yup, and thanks Bill Fielding for leaving five years of your life in France ('39-'45). It's appreciated.

Rick

Subject: RE: Thank you Veterans for your service,
From:
Date: 23 May 01 - 09:52 PM

You are very welcome. I think that collectively since WWII we have held our fingers in the dike and so far it has more or less held, with great tragedies in between to be sure. How long it will continue to hold is anyone's guess. Freedom is not free, but I believe we are lurching our way toward a hopeful future. mg

Subject: RE: Thank you Veterans for your service,
From: Chip2447
Date: 23 May 01 - 11:38 PM

My heartfelt thanks to ALL who have worn the uniform, all who gave for the country I call home and to all of you who remember those of us who served.

To my grandfathers, who fought at the Somme and Anzio,
To my Uncles who fought in Vietnam and Korea,
To All of you....Thank you. Lest we forget...

Chip2447 U.S.N. 1977 TO 1982

Subject: RE: Thank you Veterans for your service,
From: MarkS
Date: 23 May 01 - 11:50 PM

Semper Paratus is also the motto of the 12th US Cavalry regiment. I was with them years ago and they are still active today.
Appreciate the sentiments.
Mark

Subject: RE: Thank you Veterans for your service,
From: Murray MacLeod
Date: 23 May 01 - 11:57 PM

As a guest in your country, I will observe Memorial Day too. It would be appropriate, when the time comes round, if we could all acknowledge the British equivalent, which is the 11th of November. That was the day the guns fell silent in WW1.

Murray

Subject: RE: Thank you Veterans for your service,
From: gnu
Date: 24 May 01 - 05:29 AM

I keep a poppy on every lampshade in my house and on the sun visor in my truck, year round. Attend the memorials and demonstrate your appreciation to those who serve(d). Lest we forget...

Subject: RE: Thank you Veterans for your service,
From: GUEST,Fra
Date: 24 May 01 - 07:21 AM

Subject: RE: Thank you Veterans for your service,
From: harpgirl
Date: 24 May 01 - 07:24 AM

Thanks, Navigator...for coming home safely in your B-24! your daughter

Subject: RE: Thank you Veterans for your service,
From: kendall
Date: 24 May 01 - 08:00 AM

Murray, we do honor November 11. Whistle stop, I was in during the Korean "misunderstanding". I even have a big medal, but, it is trivial compared to the Purple Heart.

Subject: RE: Thank you Veterans for your service,
From: Liam's Brother
Date: 24 May 01 - 08:22 AM

Thanks, Steve.

Subject: RE: Thank you Veterans for your service,
From: GUEST,FrankieB(at work)
Date: 24 May 01 - 08:34 AM

Sorry about that last blank there-- my fingers appear to have minds of their own (this happens when I type and when I play the guitar). I wanted to say that in my opinion, the best way we can honour those who have died to defend our rights and freedoms is to make sure we don't take those freedoms-- the incredible fortune that those of us in democratic societies enjoy--for granted. Too many of us don't vote, and I can't help but think that no matter how well entrenched, or bravely defended, democracy may be, it will die if we don't use it. Just a pre-election/Memorial Day thought... FrankieB

Subject: RE: Thank you Veterans for your service,
From: jets
Date: 24 May 01 - 08:37 AM

Thank you Irish Sargent for remembering those of us of the Merchant Marine. We were forgotten for over 40 years

Subject: RE: Thank you Veterans for your service,
From: The Walrus at work
Date: 24 May 01 - 08:39 AM

They shall grow not old, as we that are left grow old,
Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn,
At the going down of the sun and in the morning
We will remember them.

Subject: RE: Thank you Veterans for your service,
From: Matt_R
Date: 24 May 01 - 08:48 AM

Thanks to my Great Uncle Arthur Loro, who was with the Merchant Marines in the Pacific during WWII. He died 2 months ago from Lou Gehrig's Disease. My thanks are eternal...

Subject: RE: Thank you Veterans for your service,
From: folk1234
Date: 24 May 01 - 09:26 AM

Wars, declared or not, bring grief to not only the combatants, but also the loved ones back home. It takes a brave spouse (brother, sister, mother, father, etc) to endure the separation and looming expectation of the worse.

Hey, Norton1, I too am Norton, for real, and a Marine. 1960 - 1980. H/2/26 in RVN 1967, and Bn Advisor to the Vietnamese Marine Corps, 1972.

It's hard for me to accept that I have been out longer than I had been in!

Semper fi, Phil

Subject: RE: Thank you Veterans for your service,
From: Matt_R
Date: 24 May 01 - 10:06 AM

My Dad was in the USMC, for 24 years, from 1975-1999. He was never in any wars, but he did his part behind the scenes as heads of various Motor Maintenance shops around the US and the world fixing deadlines Hum-V's, 5-Tons, dumptrucks, forklifts, LVS's (Dragonwagons), and Low Boy cargo trailers; as well as training USMC reservist mechanic teams that were sent to Saudi during the Gulf War.

Thanks, Dad.

Subject: RE: Thank you Veterans for your service,
From: chip a
Date: 24 May 01 - 10:27 AM

Thank you Chuck, Captain, Air Force, Hawaii. I'm proud of you son.

Dad

Subject: RE: Thank you Veterans for your service,
From: Bluebelle
Date: 24 May 01 - 11:50 AM

Thank you Daddy and Uncle John for being on Omaha and Normandy Beaches, and Uncle Tom and Uncle James. And Rex and Robin and John, for continuing to make peace.

Bluebelle

As we honor our veterans:

THE THINGS THEY CARRIED

They carried P-38 can openers and heat tabs, watches and dog tags, insect repellent, gum, cigarettes, Zippo lighters, salt tablets, compress bandages, ponchos, Kool-Aid, two or three canteens of water, iodine tablets, sterno, LRRP-rations, and C-rations stuffed in socks.

They carried standard fatigues, jungle boots, bush hats, flak jackets, and steel pots. They carried the M-16 assault rifle. They carried trip flares and Claymore mines, M-60 machine guns, the M-70 grenade launcher, M-14's, CR-15s, Stoners, Swedish K's, 66 mm Laws, shotguns, 45 caliber pistols, silencers, the sound of bullets, rockets, and choppers, and sometimes the sound of silence.

They carried C-4 plastic explosives, an assortment of hand grenades, PRC-25 radios, knives and machetes.

Some carried napalm, CBU's, and large bombs; some risked their lives to rescue others. Some escaped the fear, but dealt with the death and damages. Some made very hard decisions, and some just tried to survive.

They carried malaria, dysentery, ringworm's, and leaches. They carried the land itself as it hardened on their boots. They carried stationery, pencils, and pictures of their loved ones real and imagined. They carried love for people in the real world, and love for one another. And sometimes they disguised that love: "Don't mean nothin'!"

They carried memories! For the most part, they carried themselves withpoise and a kind of dignity. Now and then, there were times when panic set in, and people squealed, or wanted to, but couldn't; when they twitched and made moaning sounds and covered their heads and said, "Dear God," and hugged the earth and fired their weapons blindly, and cringed and begged for the noise to stop, and went wild and made stupid promises to themselves and God and their parents, hoping not to die.

They carried the traditions of the United States military, and memories and images of those who served before them. They carried grief, terror, longing, and their reputations.

They carried the soldier's greatest fear, the embarrassment of dishonor. They crawled into tunnels, walked point, and advanced or flew into fire, so as not to die of embarrassment.

They were afraid of dying, but too afraid to show it. They carried the emotional baggage of men and women who might die at any moment. They carried the weight of the world, and the weight of every free citizen of America. THEY CARRIED EACH OTHER.

Subject: RE: Thank you Veterans for your service,
From: Kim C
Date: 24 May 01 - 11:51 AM

Kendall, my dad served in Korea. I have his Purple Heart.

Subject: RE: Thank you Veterans for your service,
From: kendall
Date: 24 May 01 - 12:01 PM

I didn't mean to trivialize the Korean war, if Dean Acheson had kept his mouth shut, the North Koreans probably wouldn't have invaded the south. Isn't it odd that our Ambassador to Iraq made the same mistake with Sadaam Hussein? We really do never learn.

Subject: RE: Thank you Veterans for your service,
From: Amergin
Date: 24 May 01 - 12:58 PM

Two of my uncles served in Korea....one of them went on to fly for Air America....

Subject: RE: Thank you Veterans for your service,
From:
Date: 24 May 01 - 01:17 PM

Bluebelle...that was really great. Was that from the book "the things they carried" by the same title or was it original? If it is original may I repost it on forums for veterans? mg

Subject: RE: Thank you Veterans for your service,
From: Matt_R
Date: 24 May 01 - 01:21 PM

My great uncle Domenic, also known as Uncle Popeye, fought at Anzio. His parents, my great-grandparents, came over from Italy around 1905, from a small mountain town near Naples called Castelvetere Sul Calore. At night, he used to make his way through enemy lines to reach the family member who stayed behind, to bring them food...

Subject: RE: Thank you Veterans for your service,
From: Lonesome EJ
Date: 24 May 01 - 02:25 PM

To Dad, who served with a Railroad Battallion from Utah Beach to Berlin, Uncle Charlie who flew P-51s in the South Pacific, and Uncle Jim who served aboard a Destroyer, thanks for risking your lives. To Grandma, who waited at home for your three boys to come back...my admiration. To my friend Jeff, who won the Siver Star in the Vietnam highlands after seeing his entire squad killed, I hope the years have brought healing to you.

Subject: RE: Thank you Veterans for your service,
From: Bluebelle
Date: 24 May 01 - 03:47 PM

MG ... I wish I could lay claim to having written it, but I cannot. I would, however, not hesitate to post it on your other forums.

Thank you, all, for allowing the integrity of this thread to continue, as it was meant.

Subject: RE: Thank you Veterans for your service,
From: chip a
Date: 24 May 01 - 04:11 PM

Second to Bluebelle's thank you!

:)

Subject: RE: Thank you Veterans for your service,
From: The Walrus
Date: 24 May 01 - 05:38 PM

These lines were posted on a newsgroup recently, regretably they are all too often true

God and the soldier, we adore
In time of danger, not before,
The danger passed and all things righted,
God is forgotten and the soldier slighted."

(Author Unknown)

Walrus