Posted on 06/17/2006 11:30:44 AM PDT by sailordoc
Stop saying “HAPPY Memorial Day” By Jeff Seeber
I hope I live long enough to be able to get through the month of May just once without some moron sending me a HAPPY Memorial Day e-mail or hearing some idiot wishing people a HAPPY Memorial Day.
It’s bad enough I’m reminded every May and every November that very few Americans know the difference between Memorial Day and Veterans Day, but expecting me to remain silent about the growing trend to turn Memorial Day into some sort of celebration is asking too much. I usually chagrin and bear it, but I’m getting too old to care who I piss off from one day to the next, so if you’re one of those fools who sends me a HAPPY Memorial Day e-mail or wishes people a HAPPY Memorial Day, listen up!
There is nothing HAPPY about Memorial Day. That’s why it’s called M-e-m-o-r-i-a-l Day! Memorial Day is to be commemorated, not celebrated. Memorial Day is supposed to be a day of quiet reflection, remembrance, tribute and rendering honors to those who have given their lives ensuring you nitwits can have the freedom to be able to take full advantage of the rights their deaths secured for you, one of which is the freedom to make ignorant statements like HAPPY Memorial Day.
Believe it or not, Memorial Day was not placed on calendars to remind you that summer has officially begun. Memorial Day is not the first day of "Get Drunk While Pretending To Be An Outdoorsman At Your Cabin" season. Memorial Day was not created by General Motors so their dealerships could have a "Three-Day Used Car Clearance Blowout". Memorial Day is not intended to be the first day of "National Burn That Burger Month".
Memorial Day is supposed to be commemorated on May 30th ... not May 28th, May 29th or May 31st. It makes no difference what day of the week the 30th falls, that’s when Memorial Day is supposed to be observed. However, the United States Congress changed the date in 1971 to the last Monday in May to give Americans yet another 3-day weekend. After all, what’s more important ... one-hundred-plus years of American tradition or giving Americans one more 3-day weekend to have a few brewskis while driving to see Yellowstone with the wife and kids?
The National Moment of Remembrance was started to encourage all Americans to pause wherever they are at 3 p.m. local time on Memorial Day for a minute of silence to remember and honor those who have died in service to the nation. Of course, it’s been a dismal failure. I mean, c’mon, you expect Americans to pause for an ENTIRE MINUTE to remember those who died serving the people who are too busy to pause for ONE ENTIRE MINUTE? Are you nuts?
It’s bad enough American Civics is no longer taught in American schools. It’s bad enough most Americans ignore Armed Forces Day. It’s bad enough that very few civilians know that May is National Military Family Appreciation Month. It’s bad enough few Americans understand that Veterans Day is now intended to honor all those who have worn a uniform serving in this nation’s Military, especially those still living. But it’s pitiful that most Americans can’t seem to comprehend that Memorial Day is the one day a year when we are asked to remember those who gave their lives for this country.
Let me repeat that ... they gave their LIVES. Most of them were teenagers or in their twenties. Many of them left behind a spouse after being married for a very short period of time. Some of them left behind infant children who grew up never knowing one of the two people who brought them into this world with the good fortune of being born a free person. 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 in some foreign land, or in a training accident at home or abroad, or during a secret mission to ensure this country is not attacked without warning. 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.
Is it too much to ask that Americans pause for one day every year to recognize those who gave the last full measure of devotion? Are we as a nation so selfish, so lazy, so ignorant of the reality of the price of freedom, that we can’t set aside even one day to acknowledge the sacrifice of each and every one of our honorable dead? Apparently it is too much to ask. Apparently expecting Americans to relinquish even one day of basking in the sun while swilling beer is too much of an imposition. Let’s face it, most Americans prefer a HAPPY Memorial Day.
For those of us who served, and for the families and friends of those who gave their lives, Memorial Day will always be the one day a year when we PUBLICLY honor our 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. The rest of the year, we remember them in private. We remember them daily. We will never forget them.
Why, the latter, of course! :D~
Have a good Fourth!
I bet this guy is a real wet blanket at a funeral wake.
I first came across the phrase "Happy Memorial Day" here.
That's bunk. I've never hear of anyone nor have I ever seen a Hallmark Card with "Happy Memorial Day" on it.
When folks get to a certain age, they feel as if they've earned the right to preach at us about every conceivable subject.
I've never in my life heard the phrase "Happy Memorial Day," but I guess somebody may have said it, somewhere.
I believe Memorial Day is over. But I hope you had a happy one.
So, if I take a hour, and watch the parade, and perhaps take a few moments of quiet reflection to honor those who have served our country, I still cannot be happy for the rest of the day? There are times to be somber, and there are times to be joyous, but I'm willing to bet a whole bunch of the people we are honoring on this day, would want us to hoist a beer, and have a laugh, all in their name.
Next time you buy panties, go for the XL, them Mediums are too tight.
Happy Memorial Day.
You may want to use a different search engine. Doing a search for "happy Memorial Day", I got these results:
Google - 1,140,000 hits
Yahoo - 696,000 hits
MSN - 119,230 hits
Smiley faces, "humorous" screen-savers, car sale ads, furniture sales and too many barbecue recipes to count. Yep, that's what Memorial Day is all about.
I first came across the phrase "Happy Memorial Day" here......Polybius
You may want to use a different search engine. Doing a search for "happy Memorial Day", I got these results: Google - 1,140,000 hits Yahoo - 696,000 hits MSN - 119,230 hits ............sailordoc
HuntsvilleTxVeteran and I were commenting about our life experiences and not search engine results.
In 8 years of military active duty and during the rest of my life, I can't recall ever hearing anybody ever say "Happy Memorial Day".
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.