The 4th of July
I heard yesterday that when asked, 40% of Americans don't know what country we are celebrating our independence from. Among the younger age group, those under 40, the percentage of ignorant bozos is even higher. They never learned that we had been subjects and were a colony of England, or that we held a revolution and won.
July 4 is the Official Warmongers Holiday. The fireworks (the bombs bursting in air), the air shows, the Star Spangled Banner, all the elected officials giving their jingoistic and patriotic speeches, and Tchaikovsky's 1812 Overture. They are all celebrations of War.
There are lots of wartime veterans who never actually saw combat. They repaired things or did the cooking. But if you meet a REAL veteran some time, one who actually was a combat ground troop carrying a gun and shooting at the enemy, try asking him about the wonderful glories of warfare. The IED roadside bombs, your best friend getting his brains blown out (and deposited all over you), the sound of that gaping chest wound sucking, or the high school athlete who no longer has legs.
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Years ago I visited Israel. Our group went up to the Golan Heights. The tour guide said that they had heard some fireworks the night before. It took me a while to figure out what he was saying. A few days later in Beirut, laying in my hotel bed, I heard some firecrackers go off during the middle of the night. Then I realized: Nope, dude, automatic weapons fire.
War is fucked. And it is bankrupting America too.
In my mind Obama is now just as culpable as that arrogant guy who didn't read books, George Bush Jr.
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