Memorial Day

Many folks view this weekend as simply the unofficial start of summer, a time to fire up the grills, dust off the patio furniture and enjoy the great outdoors with family and friends. All of those activities are fantastic ways to enjoy the warmth of late spring, but none of them could take place as we know them without the sacrifices made by our brave men and women in uniform.

Originally known as Decoration Day, the Memorial Day holiday first commemorated the deaths of soldiers from the American Civil War. Flowers or wreaths were placed on the graves, followed by singing, sermons and then a picnic. First celebrated in Waterloo, NY on May 5, 1866, the holiday gained national prominence as a result of the friendship between General John Murray of Waterloo and General John Logan, Commander in Chief of one of the earliest veteran's organizations, the Grand Army of the Republic. On May 5, 1868 Logan proclaimed May 30 Decoration Day...to be celebrated annually in honor of those who made the supreme sacrifice.

The name Memorial Day came into use in 1882, but it wasn't until after WWII that it gained widespread acceptance. In 1967, federal law officially amended the name to Memorial Day. In 1968, the Uniform Holidays Bill established a series of three day weekend holidays and Memorial Day was officially designated as the last Monday in May. Many people feel that the rotating date and three day weekend status has cheapened the holiday. There is currently a push among veterans' groups to have Memorial Day restored to a single day event, celebrated on the traditional May 30th date.

Tradition has the American flag flown at half-staff from dawn until noon. During this time many communities and veterans' groups hold parades and ceremonial wreath layings, followed by the playing of Taps and a 21-gun salute. At 3 p.m. local time, a national moment of remembrance is held. Many veterans wear a poppy on Memorial Day in honor of the WWI veterans commemorated in the John McCrae poem "In Flanders Fields"

In Flanders Fields
By: Lieutenant Colonel John McCrae, MD (1872-1918)
Canadian Army

In Flanders Fields the poppies blow
Between the crosses row on row,
That mark our place; and in the sky
The larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce heard amid the guns below.

We are the Dead. Short days ago
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
Loved and were loved, and now we lie
In Flanders fields.

Take up our quarrel with the foe:
To you from failing hands we throw
The torch; be yours to hold it high.
If ye break faith with us who die
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
In Flanders fields.

Enjoy your start of summer picnics, family gatherings and social happenings...enjoy the traditional Indianapolis 500 and Coca-Cola 600, baseball games and other sporting events. Just don't forget to take time out of your busy schedule remember the real reason why you are celebrating the day. You might not be able to attend a tribute at one of our many National Cemeteries, you might not even be able to attend a local memorial ceremony, but please take a moment to remember those who gave their all to protect our rights and freedoms.

What's Wrong With This Picture?

On a daily basis, lifelong citizens of the United States and specifically residents of North Carolina line up at the DMV office to get a driver's license. Without fail, they are subjected to abuse and humiliation at the hands of the DMV staff....a barrage of foolish questions, a list of absurd requirements longer than the average giraffe's neck. Birth certificate, Social Security card, your last 86 utility bills, your mail for the past month, notarized statements from 10 relatives and 50 strangers that you are exactly who you claim to be are all going to be needed before the clerk will even look at your application.

Standing in the line next to you is a very nervous young man, whispering to his companion in muted Spanish...."I've only been in America for 12 hours, will they really give me papers?" "Don't worry" mumbles his friend in broken English, "they don't even question people that are obviously Mexican."

The lifelong NC resident is sent home for additional documentation. The illegal Mexican immigrant is handed a driver's license and voter registration card. The DMV clerk says to the illegal in perfect non-English...."Early voting has begun, if you need transportation or help getting to your voting place, just call the number on this card." ??????????????????????????????????

Are you kidding me?

Tiger Woods

Call me naive. Call me out of touch. Call me whatever you wish, but I just don't understand the media fascination with Tiger Woods' private life. The man is a golfer, not a head of state, not a researcher on the verge of curing cancer.....just an athlete participating in what at best could be called a fringe sport.

Why does anyone think he owes them an apology? Why do you think that he needs to explain his actions any more than Joe Schmoe living next door to you does? Why does the news media seem to think he needs to justify his private life to the people reading this? Do any of you feel that you need to confess your private affairs to him?

It really is amazing that people seem to think they have some inalienable right to know what goes on behind every closed door in the world, and yet, they would be absolutely livid if anyone wanted to scrutinize their intimate actions. Isn't it about high time we accept the fact that people have sex, that people drink, that people smoke and that people do thousands and thousands of actions each and every day that simply are none of our business? Knowing which direction a celebrity wipes their backside does not make me a better person, nor does it make me more worldly or intelligent, it just makes me creepy. If we put half the effort into constructive activities that we put into finding ways to expose people's flaws, the potential for making the world a better place is mind-boggling.

Think about it...if we exerted the same amount of energy tracking Osama bin Laden that we do stalking Tiger, do you honestly think he would still be on the run? Let's get our priorities straight and focus our attention on things that actually matter.

As a somewhat related aside, I have an acquaintance that is constantly reminding me that he is a "good Baptist". For a long time, I wondered exactly what that meant. Now I have the answer. To be a "good Baptist" in Asheville, you just need to drive to Hickory or Spartanburg to hit the liquor stores and lottery retailers....and whatever you do, avoid acknowledging people that act like they think you are their next door neighbor!

The Latest Politically Correct Insanity

Friday morning has come and gone. Tiger has issued an apology to the world, but the burning question remains....WHY? Whatever his foibles, whatever his transgressions, they have no bearing nor do they concern you, me or anyone beyond his family and the families of the other people involved. Perhaps his corporate sponsors feel they are due one...perhaps even rightfully so, but that could easily have been done in private, beyond the prying eyes of the world.

Tiger Woods is a man, nothing more, nothing less. He isn't a god, he isn't the President of the United States, he is simply an individual that plays golf and plays it extremely well. Unfortunately, much of the world seems to have lost track of this very important perspective. If Tiger has a bad day, makes a mistake or even fails to win....the world is not going to go to war, Armageddon is not going to be triggered, nor is life as we know it going to end.

Honestly, can any of you say you slept better Friday night in light of Tiger's public humiliation?

On Christmas and America

In 1776, our forefathers created a new country, which they declared to be the United States of America. In the process of creating this new country, the wise men drafted an amazing document entitled the Constitution of the United States of America. This new document was filled with freedom, liberty, hope and promise.

Included in this document are a series of amendments that grant further specific rights and clarify others. Unfortunately, we have a group of idiots that call themselves lawyers that feel it necessary to over-think what our founding fathers had in mind. The issue specifically at hand is contained in the First Amendment to the Constitution. "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances." This amendment is commonly referred to as directing the separation of church and state.

Let's talk about what they really meant and how it actually effects us. All this document actually says is that Congress shall not enact any law that restricts the formation of a new religion or the right of the people to practice that religion. It may also be interpreted to mean that the government does not specifically sponsor any one religion as being the "supreme" religion. In real world terms, what were they thinking?

The answer is very simple. At the time the United States was founded, there had been a number of years of religious turmoil in Europe. Most of the religions were based on Christianity or the belief in God and his son, Jesus Christ. One church in particular concerned many people of the time, that being the Roman Catholic Church. It wasn't a question of the Catholics being bad or anything of that nature, but instead it was an issue with the structure of the religion itself. Within the church, there is a supreme member, called the Pope. Over the centuries, the Pope(s) became very powerful figure(s) and directed the members of the church in matters beyond the spiritual. It is these matters beyond the spiritual that concerned our founding fathers. Their intent was to create a government free of outside influence, in particular, one that would not be dictated to by a head of state or religion in a foreign land, but instead would be governed solely by Americans living in America.

So, what does all this have to do with Christmas? Once again, extremists have decided that the First Amendment says something that it really doesn't. They have decided that there can be no religion in America at all...no prayer in school, no ten commandments in a courthouse and no Christmas in America. These idiots need to go back and read the Constitution again...America was founded by Christians. Christians that, in their infinite wisdom, decreed that all religions would be free to practice within the confines of our country, including all those religions that make up Christianity! One of the other very important tenets of the Constitution pertains to majority rule. Read up...virtually every function of the Constitution and the Government of this nation are based on the will of the majority. Therefore, if the majority of Americans wish to celebrate Christmas, that is their right...granted to them under the Constitution. By the same token, other religions are also free to celebrate their holidays, feasts and festivals as well.

Go forth and be of good cheer....celebrate Christmas, celebrate Hanukkah, celebrate Solstice, celebrate Kwanzaa or Festivus or any other made up event you want. Just remember that I have a right to celebrate and enjoy my holiday...and I will remember and respect your rights too. However, if you think for one minute that Christmas in America should be stopped because one Atheist thinks it should....you are sadly mistaken. That one Atheist has the freedom to not participate in my celebration, but he does not have the right to stop my celebration. That folks, is the very important distinction that the lawyers of the world seem to have lost sight of.

Merry Christmas and may God bless each and everyone one of us! Be sure and take a moment of your time during this busy holiday season to remember those brave men and women serving our nation in far away places. May God bless and protect them too.

P.S. Don't forget to leave a snack for Santa!