First and foremost, I want to recognize the bravery of some, the unfortunate happenstance of others, and the downright tragedy of all those conscripted to service who have been killed in action. I also want to recognize those who chose to serve their country who survived the ordeal but have since then passed away. Memorial Day is for those who served and are no longer here. Regardless of anyone’s feelings about service, there should be no equivocation about the sacrifice it takes. That being said, in utter sincerity, there are certainly things we must question and confront.
It is safe to say that I oppose war, in the sense of Nation States sending their military to foreign lands to be slaughtered at the behest of irresponsible politicians and unaccountable bureaucrats. What history I have read and understand indicates that wars are the product of competing financial and political interests that rarely, if ever, reflect the propaganda used to propagate them. I hear the famed lyrics to War Pigs by Black Sabbath in a new light these days,
Generals gathered in their masses
Just like witches at black masses
Evil minds that plot destruction
Sorcerer of death's construction.In the fields, the bodies burning
As the war machine keeps turning
Death and hatred to mankind
Poisoning their brainwashed minds
Oh lord, yeah!Politicians hide themselves away
They only started the war
Why should they go out to fight?
They leave that role to the poor, yeah.Time will tell on their power minds
Making war just for fun
Treating people just like pawns in chess
Wait till their judgement day comes, yeah!Now in darkness, world stops turning
Ashes where their bodies burning
No more war pigs have the power
Hand of God has struck the hour.Day of judgement, God is calling
On their knees, the war pigs crawling
Begging mercy for their sins
Satan laughing, spreads his wings
Oh lord, yeah!
To think of all the lives that have been sacrificed in a quest for power and resources. It boggles the mind.
One might ask why I would write this as we celebrate Memorial Day here in the States. It is not out of disrespect for those who have given their lives in service of their ideals. It is to emphasize the fact that war is a betrayal and perversion of the highest principles.
“Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends.” John 15:13 ESV
As a veteran, who thankfully never had to take a life, I understand the countless souls sacrificed in combat are another tragic example of how evil this broken world is, and how often those who claim to represent us are content to discard our loved ones to fulfill their selfish ambitions. The fact that our fallen comrades were placed in the unenviable position to be consumed by the war machine is not a reflection of their character, but those who treated them as pawns in chess. Today, we honor the brave souls whose lives were snuffed out for the greed and indifference of lesser men. May they rest in peace.
Well said.
I appreciate this. Memorial Day irks me. I have sometimes thought of going to our local Memorial Day event and going, uninvited, to the mic to give a differing perspective on it all.
My dad was one of the ones you write of. He was killed in Vietnam when he, a medic, volunteered to go on a night patrol in place of a sick soldier. The man in front of him stepped on a land mine and my dad was killed in the blast.
https://www.vvmf.org/Wall-of-Faces/45581/ERNEST-E-SANVILLE/
My comment is under “Dad, I never got to know you”
Another aspect that irks me is how “Memorial Day” has been turned into a holiday celebration. What should be a sobering and solemn event is turned into a three-day vacation full of fun. If people really think Memorial Day is about honoring/remembering those who, as they suppose, have died for their freedom, where is the honoring, the remembering, the appreciating?