American Dream
US Army 82nd Airborne Division, advancing in a snowstorm, Battle of the Bulge, WWII (PD-US federal govt.)
It is once again Memorial Day, a day honoring the men and women who gave their lives for this nation. We can and should give speeches in their memory, plant flags on their graves.
But the patriots who froze at Valley Forge, who landed on the beaches of Normandy, the heroes who lost an eye at Khe Sanh or a leg in Mosul, who gave their lives at Pork Chop Hill were not fighting for empty words.
They were fighting for their wives and children, for their brothers-in-arms. They were fighting for the American Dream – a colorblind dream of freedom and equality, a fair wage, sweat equity in a three-bedroom colonial or ranch, and the chance for their children to rise in the world.
That is a dream worth dying for. The rest of us will be the ones to decide whether or not it has become a pipedream.
“Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord, The people He has chosen as His own inheritance” (Ps. 33: 12).
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A Lawyer's Prayers 
A very powerful message. Thank you.
Thank you, Anna, for your Memorial Day Message. My family heritage has been in almost every war that America has been involved in; Revolution, Civil, WW1, WW2 (in both the Pacific and Europe), Korea, myself in Vietnam, and my son in the Iraq war. Our freedom as Americans has had a real price attached in my family. What bothers me is how easily this current generation who has paid nothing for what has been handed them, throw away what has been fought and paid for for many generations. More and more we are watching America turn into a totalitarian state with congress becoming nothing more than a rubber stamp to powerfully rich special interests and not the people who elect them. We have become a soft people who quickly give up our heritage and personal freedom for a politician’s promise of a free handout. I think that Benjamin Franklin saw this coming when he wrote,
“They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety.” ”Those Who Sacrifice Liberty For Security Deserve Neither.”
I share your concerns, Michael. We have a great heritage. But every generation must cherish and defend it.