"On the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month in 1918 the guns fell silent. The Great War, The War to End All Wars, was over...for a couple of decades."
It's Veterans Day and across the state, Florida blogs are busy celebrating it, some with remembrances of veterans in the family, others with ideas for what to do to show your appreciation, and still others by honoring the values veterans fought and died for. There's even a pretty good joke one student invented.
- Sticks of Fire has some good suggestions for what to do on Veterans Day. At the top of the list: "Many assisted-living facilities are stocked full of elderly veterans who would love some company. Bring books or magazines to read to them or just sit and talk."
- For good reason, Pure Florida is spending the day remembering "a shy kid who loved little horses." It's definitely worth a read.
- Out In Left Field is taking her dad to lunch. (Let's hope she passes along some of his veteran's memories.)
- Bark Bark, Woof Woof salutes his father, uncle, cousin, and other veterans who "gave up a part of their lives and futures in service to our nation." He's also wondering at the "mad karmic coincidence" of yesterday's U.S Senate vote to suspend the constitutional right of habeas corpus for those imprisoned at Guantanamo. Are we "exporting so much freedom and democracy to places like Iraq and Afghanistan that we have to give up some of it here?" he asks.
- Deep Something is thinking similar thoughts about Senate majority leader Bill Frist's indifference to news concerning the CIA's secret torture sites around the world.
- Why Now? today is remembering the origins of Veterans Day:
The red poppies of Flanders fields became a symbol of that war and the veterans that returned from it. Known as Remembrance Day in much of the world, the poppies will be in evidence. * * * First called Armistice Day in the United States, the name was changed to Veterans Day, and its purpose changed to honoring those who are serving, or have served in the military.
- The Cinco Bayou web site generously concedes "Not all Republicans hate veterans" and for proof he links to Fort Walton Beach's Colonel George "Bud" Day's web site known as Class Act Group -- still fighting for promised veterans' benefits that the Bush administration refuses to grant.
- Tiny Little Dots and T. Rex's Guide to Life disagree. Republicans do hate veterans, they say. To prove the point, he and Tiny Little Dots both link to news that --
On Tuesday — three days before Veterans Day — House Veterans’ Affairs Committee Chairman Steve Buyer (R-IN) announced that for the first time in at least 55 years, 'veterans service organizations will no longer have the opportunity to present testimony before a joint hearing of the House and Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committees.'
* * *
The Disabled American Veterans ... issued a scathing release calling the move 'an insult to all who have fought, sacrificed and died to defend the Constitution.'
- Discourse Net is sharing "a very funny joke" that one of his students made up. As with most jokes, timing is everything. To achieve the proper effect be sure to go to the main page today while the joke is still at the top. (Later visitors will have to use the permalink and use a forearm or something to hide the punchline for a moment.)
- Not so funny is this scary news from It's Recess Time: "President George W. Bush and the current administration have now borrowed more money from foreign governments and banks than the previous 42 U.S. presidents combined... ."
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