tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-993649290245605005.post360465198310640387..comments2024-03-28T09:34:20.998-04:00Comments on Writers Who Kill: Of Matters Military and Celebration--Anzac Day and Beyond by Kait CarsonJim Jacksonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15090252530437277145noreply@blogger.comBlogger20125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-993649290245605005.post-88160016451592532032015-05-30T09:00:38.873-04:002015-05-30T09:00:38.873-04:00Well said, Brad!Well said, Brad!Kaithttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07758348842858993203noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-993649290245605005.post-19497973098745076392015-05-26T18:04:36.155-04:002015-05-26T18:04:36.155-04:00These days are known to be special for most of us,...These days are known to be special for most of us, since it commemorates the brave people who fought for our country. But for some, it is more than just that. For some people it is a day where they also celebrate the great deeds of loved ones and family members. We are truly grateful for them, and they truly deserve such a celebration.<br /><br /><br /><a href="http://www.jandils.com/" rel="nofollow">Brad Post @ Jan Dils</a>Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01739843183701801329noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-993649290245605005.post-38791408522242275912015-04-25T22:29:10.160-04:002015-04-25T22:29:10.160-04:00Thank you for this wonderful article. My husband ...Thank you for this wonderful article. My husband I have been following the ANZAC observances. My husband, a former Royal Marine, noted that Royal Navy and Royal Marines also participated in the battles.<br /><br />Memorial Day is a special day for my family. I, too, come from a military family. My father was in the Bataan Death March and was a Japanese prisoner of war for 3.5 years. My mother's five brothers fought in WWII and survived. Following in their footsteps, I served in the U.S. Navy for seven years. My husband in the Royal Marine from Britain. And now our daughter is serving in the U.S. Army. She and her husband between them have done four tours in the Middle-East. Days designated to honor our veterans and fallen comrades mean a lot to us.Grace Toppinghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10291304815273486038noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-993649290245605005.post-58272985094689370712015-04-25T19:48:20.113-04:002015-04-25T19:48:20.113-04:00Gloria, what a wonderful story. I am always in awe...Gloria, what a wonderful story. I am always in awe of the WWII vets. A woman I considered a second mother to me was from Australia. She introduced me to Anzac Day.Kaithttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07758348842858993203noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-993649290245605005.post-67229498436049078292015-04-25T17:57:01.690-04:002015-04-25T17:57:01.690-04:00Pat, that is fantastic. Wow what cool thing for yo...Pat, that is fantastic. Wow what cool thing for your husband to have a relation to the Revolution. How wonderful that you have the flags. We had my Uncle's commemorative flag - 48 stars. I flew it every day after 9/11 until it tattered. Kaithttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07758348842858993203noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-993649290245605005.post-60636268834694371352015-04-25T17:34:49.425-04:002015-04-25T17:34:49.425-04:00My father fought in WW2 under Patton, but my husba...My father fought in WW2 under Patton, but my husband's family has served in every American War since the Revolution. I don't 'celebrate' these holidays but I do take note of them, as WW1 and 2 impacted my life quite a bit. I have two fabulous flags given to me by the VFW, and no flag pole. <br />Well I guess I celebrate in my heart.<br />PatgPatghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01046665022709722606noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-993649290245605005.post-766049038487249252015-04-25T17:07:10.944-04:002015-04-25T17:07:10.944-04:00Thank you for telling me about Anzac Day. I've...<br />Thank you for telling me about Anzac Day. I've never heard of it before. I had two uncles that fought in WWII - one parachuted into Normandy on D-Day, and the other fought in Northern Africa and Italy where his best friend was shot and killed next to him.<br /><br />Recently, a delightful old man in his 90s that I deliver Mobile Meals to, told me how he tried three times to join the Navy when he was in his teens and always rejected because he'd lost his front teeth playing football. In between the times he tried to join, he went to New York City, got hired on a transport ship taking supplies to England for the war. On his third try when he was again rejected, he headed for the line the recruiter sent him towards, and once out of the recruiter's sight, he slipped into the line of those who had been accepted and joined the Navy and went to sea.Gloria Aldenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13581719606924364447noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-993649290245605005.post-34787208722593689512015-04-25T15:12:57.585-04:002015-04-25T15:12:57.585-04:00@Kara, big thanks to your godson and thank you for...@Kara, big thanks to your godson and thank you for posting. Military wives are a special breed. Kaithttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07758348842858993203noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-993649290245605005.post-54027218230058792072015-04-25T14:42:49.879-04:002015-04-25T14:42:49.879-04:00Thank you for explaining Anzac Day, Kait. And a hu...Thank you for explaining Anzac Day, Kait. And a huge thank you to your husband for keeping us safe. And for your service too! I think military spouses are very strong to hold families together while the other is serving their country.<br /><br />I have some family members and friends who are in the military. My godson is a Navy corpsman.Kara Cerisehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16484336785514235707noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-993649290245605005.post-2464811187111774592015-04-25T13:44:01.552-04:002015-04-25T13:44:01.552-04:00What a wonderful memory. I can only imagine how im...What a wonderful memory. I can only imagine how impressive it is to be in Gettysburg for the holiday. It is a great tradition. I have been to the battlefield. It is a sacred place.Kaithttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07758348842858993203noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-993649290245605005.post-66314892156295012142015-04-25T13:35:24.280-04:002015-04-25T13:35:24.280-04:00Regardless of its origins, I've always seen Me...Regardless of its origins, I've always seen Memorial Day (I do remember when it was called Decoration Day)as a vivid reminder of what so many have sacrificed for their country, right or wrong.<br /><br />When my kids were in school, they always took part in the annual parade that ended at the Gettysburg cemetery to place flowers (yes, usually ones cut from the participant's gardens, or wild flowers) on the graves.KM Rockwoodhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03973749764907859829noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-993649290245605005.post-39295739873909666962015-04-25T13:35:23.354-04:002015-04-25T13:35:23.354-04:00Regardless of its origins, I've always seen Me...Regardless of its origins, I've always seen Memorial Day (I do remember when it was called Decoration Day)as a vivid reminder of what so many have sacrificed for their country, right or wrong.<br /><br />When my kids were in school, they always took part in the annual parade that ended at the Gettysburg cemetery to place flowers (yes, usually ones cut from the participant's gardens, or wild flowers) on the graves.KM Rockwoodhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03973749764907859829noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-993649290245605005.post-3780215538376176282015-04-25T10:42:28.561-04:002015-04-25T10:42:28.561-04:00@Shari, please thank them for their service from G...@Shari, please thank them for their service from Gary and I. And a thank you to you too. It is not easy to be a military wife and sometimes I think their sacrifices are overlooked. I agree that service should be a prerequisite to government service. These days former service members in the Federal House and Senate are few and far between based on articles I have read. Kaithttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07758348842858993203noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-993649290245605005.post-17673727669479429032015-04-25T10:40:13.324-04:002015-04-25T10:40:13.324-04:00@Jim, I do believe you are right about May 1st. Ye...@Jim, I do believe you are right about May 1st. Yes, the flowers do bloom earlier here!Kaithttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07758348842858993203noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-993649290245605005.post-20326763197861598852015-04-25T10:33:38.619-04:002015-04-25T10:33:38.619-04:00Thank you for a beautiful remembrance, Kait. My hu...Thank you for a beautiful remembrance, Kait. My husband is a retired Coast Guard officer, and my son in law is in the Army. I agree that the military has become invisible to our country beyond the shallow photo ops. Our foreign policy would improve greatly if more politicians had first hand experience of the dangers and sacrifices they send others to make.Shari Randallhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16425493627354028820noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-993649290245605005.post-78389418825344865282015-04-25T09:55:49.088-04:002015-04-25T09:55:49.088-04:00In fairness to the South, they held the first deco...In fairness to the South, they held the first decoration days immediately after the war, whatever one chooses to call it. :)<br /><br />If memory serves it was May 1st -- the flowers bloom earlier below the Mason-Dixon line.<br /><br />~ JimJim Jacksonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15090252530437277145noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-993649290245605005.post-74846453807887458332015-04-25T09:27:15.175-04:002015-04-25T09:27:15.175-04:00Jim, what a wonderful comment. Thank you so much f...Jim, what a wonderful comment. Thank you so much for the posting. What you do is so much more meaningful than a day of hot dogs and hamburgers. It is so important to celebrate Veteran's Day everyday. My husband often wears his Marine Corps "cover" (hat to the rest of us) and is frequently thanked for his service. We make it a point to thank others - no surprise there. And your comment, that you thank individuals even though you do not agree with the wars is most meaningful. The men and women who fight for our country do not get to pick and chose their wars. They are, however, doing something most of us don't and wouldn't do. The are willing to make the ultimate sacrifice for us. Kudos. And keep being raw on the subject. You make great points. <br /><br />PS - Yes, Memorial Day (formerly Decoration Day) was begun by the North after the War of Northern Agression (as I was always taught to call it). Kaithttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07758348842858993203noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-993649290245605005.post-40578323732857778742015-04-25T09:12:23.258-04:002015-04-25T09:12:23.258-04:00My father was a World War II veteran, wounded in H...My father was a World War II veteran, wounded in Holland, and spent most of the rest of the war in hospitals. My four-greats grandfather Jackson served in the War of 1812 as the surgeon at Hackett’s Harbor, NY; his father was a Revolutionary War Colonel who penned the articles of capitulation at Saratoga. He was chief of staff to Gen. Gates. I could be a Son of the American Revolution about twelve-times over (my father knew the exact number, but I have forgotten).<br /><br />That said, I do not celebrate Memorial Day. The day was started as an act of politics by the Grand Army of the Republic (in today’s parlance a lobbying group for union army veterans’ benefits). The day has lost its meaning. Here are a few lines from a sermon I delivered in 2007:<br /><br />Reading and rereading the Order [No. 1 of the Grand Army of the Republic] I found a number of points striking. First, the concept [of Memorial Day] was not parsimonious, but rather grand in style. It called for “strewing flowers” on the graves of their fallen comrades. These would be fresh cut from the bounty of gardens – “the choicest flowers of spring-time.”<br /><br />The language was poetic: “cherishing tenderly the memory of our heroic dead, who made their breasts a barricade between our country and its foes.”<br /><br />It included the then immediate political goal of the organization to “renew our pledges to aid and assist those whom they have left among us a sacred charge upon the nation’s gratitude, the soldier’s and sailor’s widow and orphans.”<br /><br />In large part I think the holiday has been perverted because Americans as a whole have no skin in the wars our country participates in. A small percentage of our citizens are in the armed forces; our politicians reduce taxes rather than have us pay for our wars; our politicians do not provide adequate medical coverage for those injured in war; the politicians use Memorial Day to puff their collective chests about what patriots they are.<br /><br />I cannot stand the duplicity.<br /><br />Instead of the faux-celebration of Memorial Day, throughout the year when I see individual soldiers – even though I do not agree with most of the wars they have been required to fight – I thank them for their service.<br /><br />~ Jim<br />Whose nerves are a bit raw on the subject<br />Jim Jacksonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15090252530437277145noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-993649290245605005.post-16634434191585840792015-04-25T08:24:28.841-04:002015-04-25T08:24:28.841-04:00Was he with Patton's army? How wonderful that ...Was he with Patton's army? How wonderful that he survived being wounded twice! What wonderful stories you must have grown up with. Kaithttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07758348842858993203noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-993649290245605005.post-13297069580413343212015-04-25T07:36:27.015-04:002015-04-25T07:36:27.015-04:00My father was a combat infantryman in WWII. He fo...My father was a combat infantryman in WWII. He fought in the Battle of the Bulge and crossed the bridge across the Rhine River at Remagen. He was wounded and sent back to his unit. He fought until he was wounded severely enough to be sent to the hospital until he recovered and then home. We celebrate the holidays.Warren Bullhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07789270258599769915noreply@blogger.com