The Reality of Memorial Day . . .

I'm sure most of you in the United States have been inundated with Memorial Day advertisements for sales, car deals, three-day weekend specials, etc. I know from my own experience that any store that stay open on Memorial Day will be packed with bargain hunters. Sad to think this day has been reduced to a vacation day off from work with little meaning other than to to many people's minds. Here is a little history that was readily available on-line.

Memorial Day, originally called Decoration Day, is a day of remembrance for those who have died in our nation's service. There are many stories as to its actual beginnings, with over two dozen cities and towns laying claim to being the birthplace of Memorial Day. There is also evidence that organized women's groups in the South were decorating graves before the end of the Civil War: a hymn published in 1867, "Kneel Where Our Loves are Sleeping" by Nella L. Sweet carried the dedication "To The Ladies of the South who are Decorating the Graves of the Confederate Dead" (Source: Duke University's Historic American Sheet Music, 1850-1920). While Waterloo N.Y. was officially declared the birthplace of Memorial Day by President Lyndon Johnson in May 1966, it's difficult to prove conclusively the origins of the day. It is more likely that it had many separate beginnings; each of those towns and every planned or spontaneous gathering of people to honor the war dead in the 1860's tapped into the general human need to honor our dead, each contributed honorably to the growing movement that culminated in Gen Logan giving his official proclamation in 1868. It is not important who was the very first, what is important is that Memorial Day was established. Memorial Day is not about division. It is about reconciliation; it is about coming together to honor those who gave their all.

Memorial Day was officially proclaimed on 5 May 1868 by General John Logan, national commander of the Grand Army of the Republic, in his General Order No. 11, and was first observed on 30 May 1868, when flowers were placed on the graves of Union and Confederate soldiers at Arlington National Cemetery. The first state to officially recognize the holiday was New York in 1873. By 1890 it was recognized by all of the northern states. The South refused to acknowledge the day, honoring their dead on separate days until after World War I (when the holiday changed from honoring just those who died fighting in the Civil War to honoring Americans who died fighting in any war). It is now celebrated in almost every State on the last Monday in May (passed by Congress with the National Holiday Act of 1971 (P.L. 90 - 363) to ensure a three day weekend for Federal holidays), though several southern states have an additional separate day for honoring the Confederate war dead: January 19 in Texas, April 26 in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, and Mississippi; May 10 in South Carolina; and June 3 (Jefferson Davis' birthday) in Louisiana and Tennessee.

In 1915, inspired by the poem "In Flanders Fields," Moina Michael replied with her own poem:

　
We cherish too, the Poppy red
That grows on fields where valor led,
It seems to signal to the skies
That blood of heroes never dies.

　
She then conceived of an idea to wear red poppies on Memorial day in honor of those who died serving the nation during war. She was the first to wear one, and sold poppies to her friends and co-workers with the money going to benefit servicemen in need. Later a Madam Guerin from France was visiting the United States and learned of this new custom started by Ms.Michael and when she returned to France, made artificial red poppies to raise money for war orphaned children and widowed women. This tradition spread to other countries. In 1921, the Franco-American Children's League sold poppies nationally to benefit war orphans of France and Belgium. The League disbanded a year later and Madam Guerin approached the VFW for help. Shortly before Memorial Day in 1922 the VFW became the first veterans' organization to nationally sell poppies. Two years later their "Buddy" Poppy program was selling artificial poppies made by disabled veterans. In 1948 the US Post Office honored Ms Michael for her role in founding the National Poppy movement by issuing a red 3 cent postage stamp with her likeness on it.

Traditional observance of Memorial day has diminished over the years. Many Americans nowadays have forgotten the meaning and traditions of Memorial Day. At many cemeteries, the graves of the fallen are increasingly ignored, neglected. Most people no longer remember the proper flag etiquette for the day. While there are towns and cities that still hold Memorial Day parades, many have not held a parade in decades. Some people think the day is for honoring any and all dead, and not just those fallen in service to our country.

There are a few notable exceptions. Since the late 50's on the Thursday before Memorial Day, the 1,200 soldiers of the 3d U.S. Infantry place small American flags at each of the more than 260,000 gravestones at Arlington National Cemetery. They then patrol 24 hours a day during the weekend to ensure that each flag remains standing. In 1951, the Boy Scouts and Cub Scouts of St. Louis began placing flags on the 150,000 graves at Jefferson Barracks National Cemetery as an annual Good Turn, a practice that continues to this day. More recently, beginning in 1998, on the Saturday before the observed day for Memorial Day, the Boys Scouts and Girl Scouts place a candle at each of approximately 15,300 grave sites of soldiers buried at Fredericksburg and Spotsylvania National Military Park on Marye's Heights (the Luminaria Program). And in 2004, Washington D.C. held its first Memorial Day parade in over 60 years.

To help re-educate and remind Americans of the true meaning of Memorial Day, the "National Moment of Remembrance" resolution was passed on Dec 2000 which asks that at 3 p.m. local time, for all Americans "To voluntarily and informally observe in their own way a Moment of remembrance and respect, pausing from whatever they are doing for a moment of silence or listening to 'Taps."

The Moment of Remembrance is a step in the right direction to returning the meaning back to the day. What is needed is a full return to the original day of observance. Set aside one day out of the year for the nation to get together to remember, reflect and honor those who have given their all in service to their country.

But what may be needed to return the solemn, and even sacred, spirit back to Memorial Day is for a return to its traditional day of observance. Many feel that when Congress made the day into a three-day weekend in with the National Holiday Act of 1971, it made it all the easier for people to be distracted from the spirit and meaning of the day. As the VFW stated in its 2002 Memorial Day address: "Changing the date merely to create three-day weekends has undermined the very meaning of the day. No doubt, this has contributed greatly to the general public's nonchalant observance of Memorial Day."

On January 19, 1999 Senator Inouye introduced bill S 189 to the Senate which proposes to restore the traditional day of observance of Memorial Day back to May 30th instead of "the last Monday in May". On April 19, 1999 Representative Gibbons introduced the bill to the House (H.R. 1474). The bills were referred the Committee on the Judiciary and the Committee on Government Reform. To date, there has been no further developments on the bill.

Many truths in short quotes . . .

"Freedom of the press is limited to those who own one."
-- A. J. Liebling

"What others think of us would be of little moment did it not, when known, so deeply tinge what we think of ourselves."
-- Paul Valery

"The only people who find what they are looking for in life are the fault finders."
-- Foster's Law

"Television has proved that people will look at anything rather than each other."
-- Ann Landers

A little update . . . re. the Catholic Lawsuits . . .

Just in case anyone might think I was over the top regarding my dismay over the lack of attention paid to the historical event of the Catholic Church standing up to the obama administration's mandate and making themselves heard - re. the numerous lawsuits recently filed, the major news stations prove me out on this. What a world where the press/media would rather defend the government than the citizens.

- ABC World News – ZERO seconds of coverage. But, last night there was time for a full report on sleep apnea and Katie Couric discussing how she met Queen Elizabeth; how she wore a peach coat and "a lovely peach hat."

- NBC Nightly News – ZERO seconds of coverage. But last night there was time to squeeze in a story on a new computer app that shows America's eating habits, "graphic evidence" of how we eat badly late at night.

- CBS Evening News – a brief 19 seconds of coverage on Monday, the evening the lawsuit became public. ZERO coverage last night. But there was time in the broadcast for a Cincinnati Reds baseball fan lucky enough to catch two home runs in left field.

Super cheese dip or tasty sauce . . . soup?

I may have shared this before but summer is always a good time for a reminder. One of the most popular items I can offer at an informal party or barbecue is a spicy cheese dip. The recipe is simple and you can get very creative with it and it can't go wrong.

1-2 pounds of processed cheddar cheese. This is the block of semi-soft cheese you can find in the refrigerated section of the store.
1 16-ounce jar of your favorite salsa
1 small can of chilies - your choice for hotness
1 small can of sliced black olives
Lots of tortilla chips and a platter of crisp vegetables like broccoli, celery sticks, cauliflower, Bell pepper, jicama, etc.

If you have a crock pot, you don't have to worry about it at all. Just put all the ingredients except for the tortilla chips into the crock pot, set it on low and come by to stir it once in awhile as it melts.

You can also do this in a stove top pot but have to pay more attention so it doesn't burn.

You can set the crock pot right on your serving table with a ladle so people can help themselves. If you are putting it out from the stove, make sure your serving dish is microwaveable so you can reheat it from time to time.

This also makes a nice sauce for burritos or over grilled chicken. I like it over boiled potatoes for a fast lunch. I've even thinned down leftovers of this dip with milk, added 2 cups of steamed mixed vegetables and 1 1/2 cups of diced chicken for a hearty soup.

Fast and Easy Side Dish for Dinner . . .

I like to serve salads instead of a steamed vegetable in the summer. For one reason, it is usually too hot to enjoy a warm meal. For another reason, summer produce is abundant and it is nice to incorporate health and tasty in the same plate. This recipe goes well with just about anything but if you are serving Mexican food, it will be even better.

Easy Corn Salad
2 cups frozen corn, defrosted and drained (If you have fresh corn, use that!)
1/2 cup canned garbonzo beans, drained
1/2 green Bell pepper, finely diced
1/2 red Bell pepper, finely diced
1 Jalepeno pepper, roasted, skinned, seeded, and diced*
1 large tomato, diced
1/4 cup red onion, minced
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 tablespoon fresh lime juice
zest of one lime
1/4 cup chopped cilantro
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon granulated garlic
Salt and pepper to taste

Combine all the ingredients in a large bowl and mix to combine. Prepare a few hours ahead of time so the ingredients can marinate. You can bring it up to room temperature to serve or right from the
refrigerator.

*To roast the Jalepeno pepper, you can hold it over the flame of the stove until it gets a bit charred or under the broiler. Most of the skin will peel off. Slice, remove the seeds, dice, and use as directed. Remember to protect your hands because the oil from the pepper will stay on the skin and burn a bit.

On the lighter side of life . . .

"No tyranny is so irksome as petty tyranny: the officious demands of policemen, government clerks, and electromechanical gadgets."
-- Edward Abbey

"Money doesn't always bring happiness. People with ten million dollars are no happier than people with nine million dollars."
-- Hobart Brown

"Somebody has to do something, and it's just incredibly pathetic that it has to be us."
-- Jerry Garcia

The Media doesn't seem to represent everyone . . .

For a long time, the news we get on most stations doesn't always report the news as it actually happens or bother to give it much air time at all. When there is a gathering of liberals protesting something, the small crowd that actually shows up is multiplied to the thousands by the time the liberal media reports and films it for viewer consumption. However, if the Tea Party or any other more conservative faction makes a stand that is in opposition to the liberal mind set, it is minimalized or mentioned in passing as the news program goes to commercial.

This week, the Catholic Church filed suit against Washington's mandate that would force Catholic institutions to go against their teachings and conscience and provide birth control and worse in their hospitals and at their colleges. The message we get is that the Catholics hate women and want to deprive them of 'women's health' coverage.

First of all, contraception is readily available these days so why should anyone be charged and responsible for people getting birth control? Second, contraceptives come with serious health warnings so why should they be considered 'women's health' coverage? Third, the rights of Catholics to worship according to their Church Laws is being taken away with the mandatory strictures being forced upon them.

Many of the bishops and cardinals have been trying to deal with the president and the liberal powers that he to not go against our Catholic rights as citizens to no avail. For some reason, the president thinks he will get votes in November by putting down the Catholic Church and forcing it to abide by his mandate.

I imagine he and Washington were taken aback when, in a concerted effort, many lawsuits were filed against them this week. In a fair and unbiased society, this would have been more than huge news and be reported on constantly with minute by minute updates on what is happening, reactions, etc. Sadly, if you want the news, these days, the media isn't the place to go for it. In fact, one group, MRCTV, sent someone out to ask people's reaction to this amazing turn of events. Ninety percent of the people hadn't heard about it. Let's see . . . The Catholic Church sues the US Government and it isn't on the headline of every television and rado news report? It isn't on the front page of the newspaper until it is settled? It is a sad world where the media protects the government yet expects the citizens to support their newspapers and programs.

The people who do hear about this mandate against the Catholic Church don't feel it applies to them. Today, they take away the Catholic's right to live by their Faith and conscience. Do the other religions think they are safe, too? We are just the first step and they hope that once the 'big' power falls, the rest will be easy to dismiss.

I have to wonder how that massive percentage of Catholics feel about what they have helped bring about with their vote for an anti-life president back in 2008?