Anniversary

Today is the 70^th Anniversary of D-Day – the invasion of Normandy and Hitler’s Europe.  Our boys, and they were boys, stormed Omaha Beach in a great wave of courage, patriotism and determination to defend a nation and way of life they loved and that they believed was being threatened by the madness of one of the greatest monsters history has ever known.  Yes, the war was a long way from our shores, and yes we went in following Pearl Harbor after trying to stay clear of the conflict.  Nonetheless, by the time we hit that beach everyone knew that if Hitler took England the Atlantic sure as hell wasn't going to stop him.  Well, that was my dad’s story anyway, and he stuck to it.  He’d earned the right.

I've been wondering today if he would recognize our nation and way of life.  There has always been corruption, malfeasance, greed, bigotry, hate, stupid leaders, abusive judges, corporatists, lobbyists and other assorted pimps, panderers and wastes of protoplasm.  Still it seems that these abominations define our national landscape, dialogue and body politic these days. 

I really question whether or not this is the world and future he and all the others fought and died for before, during and after D-Day.  Sadly, I don’t think so.