Fifty years ago a young man put his name down on a piece of paper. He
was scared out of his mind, for his life, his family (both here and overseas),
and for the future. This 18-year-old waited 48 hours and was then shipped
off to a small version of hell, in which he was tested to his extreme limits.
After weeks and weeks of torture, he was given a uniform and a rifle. This
kid got on a boat and was sent out over the ocean. He died on foreign
shores, a nazi bullet through his chest. Back home, his family received a
world-ending telegram from Western Union which contained military condolences.
Because of that kid's bravery, and the bravery of many more just like
him, a tide of evil the likes of which had never before been seen on this planet was
stopped.
I pledge allegiance, to the flag...
Eighty-five years ago some people made stupid liasons and alliances,
setting the stage for a European war. And then some people who are still fighting
today assassinated a poor soul, and a huge bloody conflict was begun. It was
a terrible war, a gruesome war. Many American soldiers were sent across to
end this conflict as quickly as possible. Many American soldiers were sent
across and did not come back.
But because of their actions, that war was ended before Europe could be
melted into bedrock.
...of the United States of America.
In 1972 a war ended in a faraway place called Vietnam. Thousands of
American boys were killed in a conflict which was based upon a useless
theory. They were told that they were making the world safe for democracy
when in reality there was no need to fight. They went because they had some
feeling of hope for their families back home, that somehow shedding blood on
foreign soil would help not just their own, but the entire world. They were
told. Those who told were wrong. And when they came back, a country full of
hatred and begrudged with "higher values" spat upon them, beat them,
ridiculed them. It wasn't their fault.
They fought, many of them, out of a sense to help these United States
and the world in which it existed. They fought, many of them, with courage and
honor. They fought, many of them, and died.
And to the Republic for which it stands...
From 1861 until 1866 (and even up to today, for some), a great Civil
War was waged in this country. This was a war based upon, quite simply, a single
issue: getting along. Could the agricultural South co-exist in one nation
with an industrialized North? Could we see eye-to-eye? It would be the
bloodiest conflict ever fought by Americans. And in the end, we discovered
that our United States must remain United, that we are all brothers and
sisters beneath the Red, White, and Blue. And still we have problems as a nation, and
still we continue despite these problems, to eradicate these problems, and move on. We
continue to fight to make ourselves united in every last sense of the word.
We continue. We.
And this lesson of unification is one for not just Americans, but for
all of the citizens of the world. We will overcome. We.
...One nation, under God, indivisible...
Over two hundred years ago an oppressed people scraped together the
limited resources available to them. A fighting militia was formed which would have
to be pitted against the then strongest nation on the planet. Men, women,
sons, and daughters were united in one single goal: freedom. A Declaration
of Independance was signed, guarenteeing the rights of Life, Liberty, and the
Pursuit of Happiness. The nation which eventually formed from this
fledgeling document paid for it's right to live, and for it's citizens' right
to live, with blood. It paid for the freedom of itself and the world with blood.
It paid for the right of people to live without fear and find happiness with one another in blood. And that small fighting militia overcame the greatest army on the planet, and forged out a new nation, conceived in liberty.
And today, that nation fights on, internally and externally, through
corruption and terrorism, paying with blood and sweat and toil and tears, to continue that
proud heritage, for her citizens, for the citizens of Earth. The obstacles
are many, but our determination is fierce. Our ancestors have paid for our
right to live as we do, to work for the betterment of all humanity, with
blood. Let us not forget them or their sacrifice. We must now put our noses
to the grindstone, and we must go on. With fortitude. With strength. With
honor. With truth.
...with liberty and justice for all.
Amen!!!
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