Celebrating America and what makes her so great

Senator Zell Miller, who I quoted Friday, said it best at the 2004 Republican National Convention:

“Never in the history of the world has any soldier sacrificed more for the freedom and liberty of total strangers than the American soldier. And, our soldiers don’t just give freedom abroad, they preserve it for us here at home.”

Indeed. Thank you, veterans, both past and present. Today is the “official” day we honor you, but everyday should be Veterans Day, in my opinion. Update: Make sure to check out this Veterans Day must-read from Rick Moran.

I see Google has finally seen fit, after 8 years of ignoring Veterans Day, to finally create a custom logo for for it:

Google's Veterans Day logo

It’s about time.

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US Marine CorpYesterday was the 232nd birthday for the US Marine Corp. Jimmie at The Sundries Shack wrote a great post honoring our brave Marines here. Semper Fi! Here’s to many, many more birthdays :)

And speaking of the Marines, I’m on the Marines team for Project Valour-IT and now would be a good time to mention that, if you haven’t yet, you can still make a donation to PV-IT, a worthy cause which benefits troops who have suffered hand or arm injuries, or in some cases, amputations, while serving their country in Iraq and Afghanistan. Donations to Project Valour-IT helps to provide those troops with voice-controlled equipment which enables them to use a laptop to communicate. To make a donation, click here. Today Monday is the last day of the friendly competition between the service branches.

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fall of the Berlin wallOn Friday, we saw the 18th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin wall. No dicussion of the fall of the Berlin wall would be complete without remembering President Reagan’s key role in making it all happen and, of course, his famous “tear down this wall” speech, made on June 12, 1987. I’m sure you’ll remember this part quite well:

“Are these the beginnings of profound changes in the Soviet state? Or are they token gestures, intended to raise false hopes in the West, or to strengthen the Soviet system without changing it? We welcome change and openness; for we believe that freedom and security go together, that the advance of human liberty can only strengthen the cause of world peace. There is one sign the Soviets can make that would be unmistakable, that would advance dramatically the cause of freedom and peace.

General Secretary Gorbachev, if you seek peace, if you seek prosperity for the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe, if you seek liberalization: Come here to this gate! Mr. Gorbachev, open this gate! Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall!”


Photo courtesy: J. Scott Applewhite, AP file

Sigh …. **==

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Vietnam WallThe Vietnam Veterans Memorial turns 25 on Tuesday. MSNBC wrote Saturday about how all the personal tributes that have been left at the Memorial over the years are being preserved as museum pieces. (Photo courtesy of the Wall-USA website)

The Democratic Congresses of the 70s, which choked off any hope of victory against the Communist North Vietnam, may not have remembered the thousands of sacrifices made by our troops in the Vietnam war, but we do, and always will.

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We are unitedLast but not least: In addition to our brave men and women in the US military, who have over the years helped spread the message of hope and freedom so eloquently expressed by great men like President Reagan, another thing that makes America so great is the steadfast support and strength of her staunchest ally, the UK. Excellent British blogger Mike McNally blogs today about Remembrance Sunday, in which the Brits are pausing to honor the sacrifices made by their military heroes in wars past and present.

PM Update: ST reader Karl has a thoughtful post up about Veterans Day at his blog Leaning Straight Up.

And this post has rec’d a nice link from Memeorandum. Thanks!

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