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The FReeper Canteen Observes ------------------------Memorial Day 2021 ------------------------ HistoryMemorial Day, originally called Decoration Day, is a day of remembrance for those who have died in our nation's service. There are many stories as to its actual beginnings, with over two dozen cities and towns laying claim to being the birthplace of Memorial Day. There is also evidence that organized women's groups in the South were decorating graves before the end of the Civil War: a hymn published in 1867, "Kneel Where Our Loves are Sleeping" by Nella L. Sweet (see below) carried the dedication "To The Ladies of the...

I almost never watch or recommend anything on Pinko Broadcasting but I just wanted to remind all FReepers of the National Memorial Day Concert a 8 PM Eastern time tonight -- in about 15 minutes.

Please take a minute and visit your local VFW tomorrow and say hi to the men and women who served your country on foreign lands in time of war. I know a lot of people think that you can only enter a VFW if you are a member, but that isn't true. Just sign in as a guest. There are Auxiliary Members and National Home members that have never served in the military, so don't think that you're not welcome as either a guest or as a non-veteran member. VFW's are closing by the dozens because there isn't enough participation...

Private John Klopfenstein was our Cousin killed by German fire in France in WWI. Born April 15, 1896 in Indiana. He was employed at the Brass Foundry in Sturgis, Michigan where he entered the US Army on 9/19/1917. He was sent to Camp Custer, Michigan & was assigned to Company D, 328th Machine Gun Battalion & transferred to Camp Merritt New Jersey. He was subsequently sent overseas to Company C, 18th Infantry, 1st Division, "The Big Red One." John was died while serving his country after being wounded on 09/13/1918, passing away 09/18/1918. He was laid to rest at the...

On Memorial Day weekend, we celebrate courage, specifically that of the men who died fighting for the greatest country in the history of the world. Once upon a time in Hollywood, such bravery was taken for granted. After the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, even the most popular male movie stars quit their lucrative studio contracts to join unknown men in uniform, dirt, and combat. It didn’t matter to Clark Gable that he was “the king of Hollywood” and had just nailed the most iconic role of his career as Rhett Butler in Gone with the Wind. He became Lt....

Eddie died leading his battalion in a desperate fight to relieve (Major) Whittlesey’s beleaguered men two. He was commanding a company of Three Hundred Seventy infantry from Camp Upton, when the battle began. For four days and four nights, his company was part of the command which was trying to get to Whittlesey. On the morning of the day that relief was effected, Eddie was so worn out he could scarcely move. Some of his brother officers noticed him sitting on a stump, with a cup of coffee in front of him. Two or three times, they say, he tried...

Memorial Day is a federal holiday honoring and mourning the men and women who died while in performance of their duties in the U.S. Military. An Ohio state-funded news outlet chose to kickoff Memorial Day weekend with a video tribute to Ohioans who suffered COVID-related deaths. “This Memorial Day weekend, we remember some of the nearly 20,000 Ohio husbands and wives, parents and grandparents, siblings and loved ones lost to COVID-19 with the words of those who knew them best,” read the Tweet from the Statehouse News Bureau. The video was published on Twitter Friday evening and at the same...

Students and other people walking around the Georgetown area of Washington, D.C., signed a fake petition ahead of Memorial Day to ban the holiday honoring fallen military service members. The petition, authored by Campus Reform, a conservative news site and higher-education watchdog, calls for support to ban Memorial Day in the U.S. for glorifying "American Imperialism." Campus Reform reporter Addison Smith interviewed those who signed the petition in a video published on the outlet's website. Fox Nation contributor and retired Marine bomb technician Joey Jones told "Fox & Friends Weekend" on Saturday that one of the young men in the...

The Army deployed 65 infantry divisions for the Second World War. Each was a small town with its own equivalents for community services within eight categories of combat arms. Units such as artillery, engineering, and heavy weapons engaged the enemy directly. Yet of all categories, the foot soldier faced the greatest hazard with the least chance of reward.These civilians become warriors confronted the most dismal fate of all, and whose duty was uninterrupted by missions completed or a fixed deployment time. The infantryman was enveloped within a most deranged, barbaric, and brittle existence against a resolute enemy where victory often...

Students and other people walking around the Georgetown area of Washington, D.C., signed a fake petition ahead of Memorial Day to ban the holiday honoring fallen military service members. The petition, authored by Campus Reform, a conservative news site and higher-education watchdog, calls for support to ban Memorial Day in the U.S. for glorifying "American Imperialism." Campus Reform reporter Addison Smith interviewed those who signed the petition in a video published on the outlet's website. Fox Nation contributor and retired Marine bomb technician Joey Jones told "Fox & Friends Weekend" on Saturday that one of the young men in the...

Memorial Day is more than just the “unofficial start of summer.” It was originally a celebration of the lives sacrificed on both sides during the War Between the States. Not an official federal holiday until 1971, the history of Memorial Day is one of controversy. This guide traces the origins of this American day dedicated to remembering and honoring those who gave the ultimate sacrifice. Early Celebrations: Annual Decoration Days While the day was eventually codified as a Civil War-centric holiday, people had laid flowers on the graves of fallen soldiers for decades before there was such a thing as...

On the verge of Memorial Day weekend, people are asking whether they’re safe from COVID-19 as they cool off in the ocean or pool. text, letter: A sign at the YMCA pool in Hollywood displays precautionary COVID-19 swimming rules, Wednesday, May 26, 2021.© Joe Cavaretta / South Florida/Sun Sentinel A sign at the YMCA pool in Hollywood displays precautionary COVID-19 swimming rules, Wednesday, May 26, 2021. Lifeguards and swim coaches are getting questions like this one from Erica Garcia of Fort Lauderdale: “Is it safe for my unvaccinated child to go into a public pool?” A new online survey of...

If you open a paper this week, you will see ads for Memorial Day sales. Your inbox is probably being inundated with such ads. Along with sales, Memorial Day images include BBQs, parties and pool openings. It's the official beginning of summer. Many people travel to a beach, a lake or a mountain. Some traditions include visiting a memorial park or a cemetery to honor the fallen. Whatever you do this Memorial Day weekend, spend a few moments thinking about the real meaning of the day. It's the day to remember those who gave their lives to keep our country...

Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Wolf said Wednesday that he won’t lift the COVID-19 restrictions until Memorial Day, despite requests to do so earlier. Earlier this month, Wolf said the state’s COVID-19 restrictions on businesses and gatherings would end on Memorial Day, May 31. Businesses, including restaurants and entertainment venues, can operate at full capacity starting Monday at 12:01 a.m. There will be no state-imposed limits on gatherings - including pro sports events - beginning on Memorial Day. Some lawmakers had asked the governor to end the restrictions on Friday, so businesses that have been hurting during the pandemic can move to...

May 21 (UPI) -- Restrictions on cemetery visits during the Memorial Day weekend, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, were lifted on Friday by the Department of Veterans Affairs. No masks, social distancing requirements or limits on the size of groups will be demanded of any visitors vaccinated against the COVID-19 virus, although those not vaccinated are expected to adhere to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidance. The announcement follows a May 13 order allowing "fully vaccinated NCA [National Cemetery Association] employees, on-site contractors, volunteers, to include honor guards, and visitors" to forego masks. As on Memorial Day weekend in...

“Follow the science,” co-anchor Joe Scarborough said. “If we’re telling governors to follow the CDC for a year when Donald Trump is president of the United States, shouldn’t they follow the CDC guidance when Joe Biden is president of the United States?” Co-anchor Willie Geist called it a “curious move” by Murphy who “stands alone,” no longer working with Democratic New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo or Democratic Connecticut Gov. Ned Lamont. Geist also said that about 70% of adults in New Jersey have received at least one dose of the vaccine. “Good luck getting people to wear masks through Memorial...

Pentagon blamed coronavirus risks for decision on Rolling to Remember event.EXCLUSIVE - Rep. Brian Mast, R-Fla., and more than 30 other Republican members of Congress pressured President Biden in a Tuesday letter to override the Pentagon's decision to block a veterans group from staging a Memorial Day motorcycle rally in the Pentagon parking lot."I would have hoped that President Biden would have more respect for a Memorial Day tradition, which raises awareness to the 82,000 service members who are still missing in actions and that 22 veterans die by suicide each day," Mast told Fox News. "That is why today,...

ens of thousands of motorcyclists will gather in downtown Washington on May 30, shutting down the streets around the National Mall for about 15 hours to conduct a traditional Memorial Day ride. In a change from previous years, the riders will be staged on the roads around the National Mall, rather than at the Pentagon parking lot. The Defense Department barred the motorcyclists from gathering at the Pentagon this year, citing the ongoing coronavirus pandemic and the size of the expected crowd. Organizers are preparing for up to 100,000 motorcycles and nearly twice as many people. AMVETS, the national veterans’...

Veterans in New York City have expressed anger after NYC Mayor Bill de Blasio blocked a permit for Staten Island’s 102nd annual Memorial Day parade. The news comes just over a week after de Blasio permitted demonstrators to march in the Cannabis Parade on May 1.

Mayor de Blasio is refusing to allow a group of military veterans to march on Staten Island on Memorial Day — after welcoming public pot smokers to puff their way down Broadway in last week’s Cannabis Parade. “It’s a slap in the face,” Jamie Gonzalez, 57, a Marine infantryman who saw combat in Iraq during Operation Desert Storm, told The Post. Gulf War vets like Gonzalez were set to be given special honors in Staten Island’s 102nd annual Memorial Day Parade this year to mark the 1991 conflict’s 30th anniversary — until the city pulled the plug. “For many of...