There but for the grace of God go I
Nov. 11th, 2008 05:23 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
penfield"Every gun that is made, every warship launched, every rocket fired signifies in the final sense, a theft from those who hunger and are not fed, those who are cold and are not clothed. This world in arms is not spending money alone. It is spending the sweat of its laborers, the genius of its scientists, the hopes of its children. This is not a way of life at all in any true sense. Under the clouds of war, it is humanity hanging on a cross of iron."
- Dwight D. Eisenhower, 16 April 1953
Veterans Day. It's sort of a messed-up holiday, if you want to call it a holiday.
It's not really a holiday, because I don't get the day off from work. My office holiday policy operates on a two-track system: if the federal government is open, we're open. If our member companies' offices are open, we're open. If both are closed, we're closed. Today, the federal government is closed but most businesses are open.
(I can imagine bygone scenarios in which the lack of mail itself might have encouraged the average business office to shut down for the day. But communications technologies -- and services like FedEx and UPS -- have destroyed that quaint little tradition. Also, such scenarios probably pre-date Veterans Day, anyway.)
Or "Armistice Day," as it was once called. Apparently they wanted to broaden the holiday to apply to all veterans, which I understand. But "Armistice Day" sounds a lot cooler. Plus, "Armistice Day" avoids all of that annoying apostrophe confusion.
Note well: there's no apostrophe in there. While Veterans' Day (and, regrettably, Veteran's Day) are commonly acceptable, the official spelling uses the attributive case (no apostrophe) rather than the possessive case (apostrophe).
Also, it's one of those weirdo holidays where it takes a specific day on the calendar -- November 11 -- despite not being the actual anniversary of anything. According to Wikipedia, "U.S. President Woodrow Wilson first proclaimed an Armistice Day for November 12, 1919. The United States Congress passed a concurrent resolution seven years later on June 4, 1926, requesting the President issue another proclamation to observe November 11 with appropriate ceremonies." Of course, by that time, President Wilson was long dead, so I'm not sure how they accomplished that little legislative trick. They probably snuck it with the Hawley-Smoot Tariff or something.
I distinctly remember growing up that Veterans Day was always observed on a Monday or a Friday, but tradition seems to have changed. I'm not sure when or how that happened, or who decided. It was probably mailmen, angling for a four-day weekend, who went and changed all the calendars.
Anyway, today I am working, so I haven't had a chance yet to reflect on the sacrifices of our soldiers past and present. Tonight, on my train ride home, I'll pass through Arlington Cemetery, with it's thousands of rows of departed patriots.
When I do, I'll think of my grandfather, who distinguished himself with meritorious service in World War II's European theater, including the Battle of the Bulge. And I'll think of my other grandfather, still kicking, who puttered around the Midway Islands as a young Coast Guardian, probably scared down to his socks. And I'll think of my friend SLHF's late husband, who perished tragically several years ago in a naval training exercise. And I'll thank them all silently for their sacrifices.
But as noble as their lives and deaths were, I feel funny "celebrating" Veterans Day. Instead, we should be thinking about how to make it obsolete.
"There are no atheists in foxholes" isn't an argument against atheism, it's an argument against foxholes."
- James Morrow
- Dwight D. Eisenhower, 16 April 1953
Veterans Day. It's sort of a messed-up holiday, if you want to call it a holiday.
It's not really a holiday, because I don't get the day off from work. My office holiday policy operates on a two-track system: if the federal government is open, we're open. If our member companies' offices are open, we're open. If both are closed, we're closed. Today, the federal government is closed but most businesses are open.
(I can imagine bygone scenarios in which the lack of mail itself might have encouraged the average business office to shut down for the day. But communications technologies -- and services like FedEx and UPS -- have destroyed that quaint little tradition. Also, such scenarios probably pre-date Veterans Day, anyway.)
Or "Armistice Day," as it was once called. Apparently they wanted to broaden the holiday to apply to all veterans, which I understand. But "Armistice Day" sounds a lot cooler. Plus, "Armistice Day" avoids all of that annoying apostrophe confusion.
Note well: there's no apostrophe in there. While Veterans' Day (and, regrettably, Veteran's Day) are commonly acceptable, the official spelling uses the attributive case (no apostrophe) rather than the possessive case (apostrophe).
Also, it's one of those weirdo holidays where it takes a specific day on the calendar -- November 11 -- despite not being the actual anniversary of anything. According to Wikipedia, "U.S. President Woodrow Wilson first proclaimed an Armistice Day for November 12, 1919. The United States Congress passed a concurrent resolution seven years later on June 4, 1926, requesting the President issue another proclamation to observe November 11 with appropriate ceremonies." Of course, by that time, President Wilson was long dead, so I'm not sure how they accomplished that little legislative trick. They probably snuck it with the Hawley-Smoot Tariff or something.
I distinctly remember growing up that Veterans Day was always observed on a Monday or a Friday, but tradition seems to have changed. I'm not sure when or how that happened, or who decided. It was probably mailmen, angling for a four-day weekend, who went and changed all the calendars.
Anyway, today I am working, so I haven't had a chance yet to reflect on the sacrifices of our soldiers past and present. Tonight, on my train ride home, I'll pass through Arlington Cemetery, with it's thousands of rows of departed patriots.
When I do, I'll think of my grandfather, who distinguished himself with meritorious service in World War II's European theater, including the Battle of the Bulge. And I'll think of my other grandfather, still kicking, who puttered around the Midway Islands as a young Coast Guardian, probably scared down to his socks. And I'll think of my friend SLHF's late husband, who perished tragically several years ago in a naval training exercise. And I'll thank them all silently for their sacrifices.
But as noble as their lives and deaths were, I feel funny "celebrating" Veterans Day. Instead, we should be thinking about how to make it obsolete.
"There are no atheists in foxholes" isn't an argument against atheism, it's an argument against foxholes."
- James Morrow
