POST 1072 / 1288
Tomorrow is Memorial Day.
This essay was originally posted on Memorial Day, 2012, with wars raging in Iraq and Afghanistan, promoted by the beat of politicians thumping chests and spraying lies.
Today we’re in an unwinnable war against Iran through just as much pointless, homicidal bravado as before. Yes, we’re still sending our young off to kill and be killed for no patriotic reason. We still have not learned our lessons.
This is offered today (with some updating) as a reminder of what this holiday – this holy day – is actually about.
Our War Dead
It was originally called Decoration Day, a formal day of remembrance of the fallen Union soldiers of the Civil War. The refreshing of their graves with flowers and flags was the order of the day and it was later extended to all Civil War dead. It became known as Memorial Day in 1967 and was declared to be in honor of our dead from all of our wars. That federal re-naming packaged all of the various honoring ceremonies for our war dead and all the individual traditions practiced around the country into a neater package, something that apparently was important in 1967. In addition, the date of remembrance was shifted from May 30 to the last Monday in May so that there would always be that 3-day weekend, also apparently of great importance in 1967, however well it misses the point.
We no longer conscript our young into military service and instead rely upon a voluntary corps of warriors, with roughly 0.4% of Americans doing frightful tasks for the rest of us. Military service and its risks seem remote at best to most of us.
Then we see a soldier in desert fatigues walking through the airport, his boots the color of desert sand, his heavy camouflage backpack hung from his shoulders, and we know he’s either on his way to or from trouble and war becomes a bit more real to us. It’s already quite real to that GI.
Study this picture and you’ll understand the meaning of Memorial Day. Source unknown
Memorial Day is not for that soldier. It is for those who have died doing their duty to protect and defend our country. What is poignant is that that soldier in the airport might be one of those whom we remember next year.
Memorial Day is intended to be a somber event. It is not about parades to entertain us with patriotic sounding music, nor about political clowns promoting themselves. It is about the renewal of our individual and collective memory and the honoring of those who can no longer march in our parades. We do this in earnest, lest we forget them.
Read Longfellow’s poem aloud.
Decoration Day
by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, pub. 1882
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Go To Your Local Memorial Day Ceremonies Today
It’s okay to buy the new mattress, the set of tires and any of the rest of the stuff offered in Memorial Day sales. But that isn’t the point of the day.
Let yourself be transported even for just a few moments of gratitude to be beside those who sacrificed everything, Remember and honor our fallen ones and say “Thank you.” Because they remembered: Duty, Honor, Country.
Finally, watch this short video from Adam Kinzinger. I know you’ll understand his message.
The time for action is NOW!
Keep standing up,
speaking out
and taking action
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To The November 3, 2026
Mid-Term Election
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Copyright 2026 by Jack Altschuler
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