Is patriotism dead?

Opinion

Discussion

November 10, 2009

Anonymous The Jacksonville Daily Progress Tue Nov 10, 2009, 11:52 PM CST

Through every war we’ve faced, our nation’s fighting forces have never failed to show up and get the job done, selflessly sacrificing themselves for the safety and freedom of us all.

But in the midst of the current war, patriotism is hard to find.

Today of all days, flags should be flying from every flagpole, home and business across this great country of ours. Everyone who knows a veteran — regardless of branch or time of service — should thank them.

But you can’t even find a Veterans Day card in most smaller stores these days.

Nor are stickers or note cards displaying a flag to be found on their shelves.

Just try to find a small U.S. flag to give to a veteran on Veterans Day — you’ll be hard pressed to find one.

For a time after 9/11, our country was draped in the colors of the stars and stripes. Americans were proud of our nationality and our soldiers, and patriotism flowed deep in our souls.

Gone are the days of “the great wars,” when women who knew nothing of the workforce picked up whatever skills and tools they could find in order to “fill in” at factories and wherever else they were needed while the men were at war ... and when young men, not even yet out of boyhood, lied about their age in order to go off and fight for their country.

These days, war has become a four-letter word — a pawn in the game of politics.

Ask any mother whose son’s only dream was to fight for his country, and when he did, his blood was shed on foreign soil. For her, our soldiers aren’t toys for politicans to use for their own gains.

They’re heros, plain and simple.

As the greatest nation on Earth, we should collectively be ashamed for allowing what was once our greatest asset — our belief in ourselves as a whole and our never-say-die attitude — to fall by the wayside.

The Pledge of Allegiance has been dropped from public ceremonies because the words “under God” might offend someone.

The greater offense should be that we rarely pledge our allegiance to the flag or to the republic for which it stands.

It’s time for every one of us to remember what makes our country great — and more importantly those who protect this great country.

Every parent, grandparent, aunt, uncle, and other adult in our nation needs to make a concerted effort to teach our children about our veterans and what patriotism truly means.

Schools should have veterans in to talk to our kids and show them what a true hero is, and not on just one day a year.

And each of us should remind ourselves that it isn’t the number of guns or planes our nation has that make us a formidable power — it’s the men and women behind the weapons who sacrifice their lives so that we all can remain free.

Liberty and justice for all has come at the highest price to a few — don’t let their sacrifices be in vain.

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