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The Day Veterans Felt Shame
By Jay Janson (about the author) Page 2 of 2 page(s)
My older veteran friends, who fought against the Nazi Third Reich and the Japanese Empire that attacked and declared war on the United States, feel themselves solid in that understanding that they were fighting in defense of their country. And quite a few of those, who are well read, are well aware that international capitalism flourished in the arming of the Axis powers right up to, and even into, the beginning of the Axis wars of expansion; well known names like Joseph Kennedy and Prescott Bush come to mind as examples of businessmen who made fortunes building up the enemy that our boys would later have to die fighting.
How many million veterans are like yours truly, who was drafted during the 'Korean conflict' as it was called, and was politically uneducated beyond what the war promoting New York Times 'taught' him? We were so caught up in our families and young careers, loves and amusements, that we never once imagined that we would ever come to actually use the weapons we practiced with during basic training - with real intention to kill another human being.
Sorry, don't see the need for a Veterans Day.
Memorial Day is what comes to mind on Veterans Day.
Those fallen veteran buddies, like six bunkmates buried in North Korea, who never made it to parade or watch on either of these great holidays for armed forces recruitment.
Neither their Memorial Day nor any Veterans Day did those, who died on a battlefield or in an 'urban warfare' engagement, ever live to see.
Veterans who are educated to the ways of the world see an official Victims of War Day or War Victims Day coming in a future peaceful and intelligent world. Such a day would of course be have to include the warriors of all sides as well as their victims.
Even Albert Einstein would agree that the warriors, through their ignorance, are victims of war. Einstein wrote:
"He who joyfully marches to music in rank and file has already earned my contempt. He has been given a large brain by mistake, since for him the spinal cord would fully suffice. This disgrace to civilization should be done away with at once".
"Heroism at command, senseless brutality, deplorable love-of-country stance, how violently I hate all this, how despicable and ignoble war is; I would rather be torn to shreds than be a part of so base an action! It is my conviction that killing under the cloak of war is nothing but an act of murder."
In any case, it is always especially galling to see creators of war like Bush and Cheney pontificating on Veterans Days and Memorial Days. Pitiful, ignorant, desperately greedy and immoral members of the nations elite, who curiously never had to put themselves 'in harms way', yet speak to us so eloquently on Veterans Days.
Replace Veterans Day with a War Victims Day!
One veteran speaking for many.
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