Terminal Lance “Unexpected Guest II: Memorial Day”

Oh Chesty, making his 2nd appearance in Terminal Lance.

Of course, Chesty has a point. I talked about this quite a bit last year, and frankly I still feel the same way. Memorial Day is a national holiday dedicated to remembering the fallen. This much is true and should be regarded with absolute respect. With that said, I think every Marine I’ve ever met would rather see me spend the day enjoying my freedom–a gift bestowed upon me through the sacrifice of good men–then spend all day on Facebook trying to make people feel bad. I think a moment of silence, a thought of remembrance, a deep breath in solemn respect for those that gave their lives, is enough for any ghost of Marines past to feel satisfied.

Memorial Day, like other military holidays, usually brings with it a hefty amount of derp from civilians and and military alike in the realm of social media. On one hand you have idiots who never served saying that our fallen brethren don’t deserve respect. On the other, you have vets and active service members alike witch-hunting and upsetting themselves over it.

I mentioned this previously, but a free society is a double-edged sword. On one hand, you have absolute freedom to say and do whatever you want. On the other, you have the absolute freedom to say and do whatever you want. An undereducated civilian with a lack of perspective is an unfortunate truth in our society, and he or she has the freedom to be this way because of the sacrifice given to them by the brave. While I fully support an effort to remind them of the price paid for their first world problems, I also think most people would be better off just taking Memorial Day off the internet and using it to reflect in their own way on the freedoms we cherish. It would probably be better off for everyone involved, at least.

Anyway, a late update today, because like most people I spent Memorial Day enjoying myself rather than working. I took my dog to the park, and he played in the water. How can you not love that?

That’s my dog–he’s my best friend. I’d fight for that.