It's been bothering me...

for a couple of days now....

Almost everywhere I look, the 4th of July is all about "Celebrating the troops"...the Pittsville parade today..the theme was, "The Home of the Free Because of the Brave" Would someone like to tell me WHEN this happened? When did we quit celebrating our independence and turn this into another Memorial Day?

and then there's tonight....we'll be seeing fireworks displays on tv and also live ..."bombs bursting in-air" to martial music...a pseudo celebration of war? When the pyro-technic ground display lights up a flaming replica of the flag, will the spectators chant "US-A, US-A, US-A"?

Personally I'd prefer to celebrate the day learning of the struggles of Hamilton, Adams, Jefferson, and Franklin in shaping their vision of freedom. But if it must be a "martial" celebration, I think Kurt Vonnegut had it right...(by way of THE RUDE PUNDIT)

"I do not mean to be ungrateful for the fine, martial show we are about to see – and a thrilling show it really will be…"He looked each of us in the eye, and then he commented very softly, throwing it away, "And hooray I say for thrilling shows.

"We had to strain our ears to hear what Minton said next."But if today is really in honor of a hundred children murdered in war," he said, "is today a day for a thrilling show?

"The answer is yes, on one condition: that we, the celebrants are working consciously and tirelessly to reduce the stupidity and viciousness of ourselves and all mankind


Thank you Rude Pundit....that actually made my 4th of July

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on edit: the above picture is actually of Ft Sumter during the Civil War but I thought it was a pretty patriotic picture of what lengths men have gone through to "preserve the Union"....enjoy