Monday, May 30, 2005

A Memorial Day Remembrance

Years ago, when some friends and I launched the GunTruths website, I wrote an article about some of the flames we'd been receiving from antis who took offense at our unapologetic advocacy of the right to keep and bear arms.

One particularly hate-filled Brit wrote:

"When you broke away 200 years ago realise why we don't think it was as great a victory as you do! There have been lots of events over the years that have shown the US to be less than willing to participate in warfare, and when you do, your preoccupation with firing missiles or dropping bombs from a 'safe' distance means that our guys are in more danger from you. Don't get too close you might get your uniforms dirty!"

My observations follow. The complete article is on KABA.

How do you deal with this? These are people who think that pledging your "lives fortunes and sacred honor" against tyranny is no big deal. These are people who took out ads in newspapers pleading for Americans to "Send guns to defend a British home". These are people who, despite the experience of two world wars in the last eighty years disparage the concept of being invaded and needing guns, all the while living under the protective shield of a largely American NATO deployment throughout Europe. Tonight, as they sleep, United States military forces will be standing guard in the darkness.

I cannot but consider such unfair and stark ingratitude against the recollection of my boyhood visit to the World War II Sicily-Rome American Cemetery and Memorial in Nettuno, Italy, where, beneath an ordered formation of uniform white crosses, my Uncle Nick is interred. He never grew past his teens, never went to college, never married, had children, a career, or grandchildren. I can only speculate as to the paralyzing horror, the denial, the sorrow, and the helpless, tragic realization of finality that my grandparents must have gone through with the loss of their baby, their laughing, lovely boy, their cherished only son.

Trust me, beneficiaries of his sacrifice, Nick Morrison's uniform got dirty.





"The World War II Sicily-Rome American Cemetery and Memorial is situated at the north edge of the town of Nettuno, Italy. It is just east of Anzio and thirty miles south of Rome...Beyond the pool is an immense field of headstones of 7,862 American military Dead arranged in gentle arcs which sweep across the broad green lawns beneath rows of Roman pines... On the white marble walls of the chapel are engraved the names of 3,095 American Missing who gave their lives in the service of their country and whose remains were never recovered or identified."
--From The American Battle Monuments Commission

No Victims

Deborah Ann Courtney has a new website. In her words:

"Everyone else was either working to get Mc Clintock or Ahnold elected; I was by myself in a courtroom, with one friend, Randy Herrst, not even my family, because my Momma was dying of cancer, and I delivered this statement, as I went deep into myself, and for some reason, the courtroom was jam packed, and silent, and when I was done, and wanted to crumple, a thunderous roar of applause filled the room, and the judge allowed me a few moments of triumph, that grew with the encouragement of the crowd, and as they gave me a standing ovation in the courtroom. My finest moment, his worst fear.

"It is so important that we as victims teach others to become victors. The crowd showed me, now we need to show each other."

Tagging Along

Claire Wolfe just "book tagged" me.

Wow--I'm honored. Really.

I feel like Garth and Wayne.

How can I decline?

Total number of books I've owned: No idea. It must be in the thousands.

Last book I bought: Easy. I'm wearing the t-shirt as I type.

Last book I read: I just finished it today. And what's this talk about maybe not doing a sequel? You can't just leave me hanging like this!

Five books that mean a lot to me:
[These are not listed in any particular order, and there are many more books that mean a lot to me than just these five. So this list is not fixed.]

The Time Machine by H.G. Wells

The Bible

Prodigal Genius by John J. O'Neill

The Federalist Papers by Publius

The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes by Arthur Conan Doyle.

Tag five people and have them do this on their blogs:

Jed

Nicki

Matthew

Kevin

Say Uncle

There are many more books and many other bloggers that could have been listed here. This reminds me of a scene from the end of the movie version of The Time Machine where Filby and the housekeeper discover George has returned to the future and has taken three books from his library. They don't know which ones he selected as being the most useful for rebuilding a civilization.

"Which three would you have chosen?" Filby asks.