Why we remember.

[Feathers268]

But, in a larger sense, we can not dedicate -- we can not consecrate -- we can not hallow -- this ground. ... The world will little note, nor long remember what we say here, but it can never forget what they did here. ... It is rather for us to be here dedicated to the great task remaining before us -- that from these honored dead we take increased devotion to that cause for which they gave the last full measure of devotion -- that we here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain -- that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom -- and that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth.

This was taken from the Gettysburg Address delivered by President Lincoln at the end of the Civil war on the site of what was a truly horrific and tragic battle. At the same time, it can be spoken about the men who stayed in the Alamo and fought to the death against overwhelming numbers, or the soldiers and sailors caught on that Sunday morning in 1941 when the Japanese attacked the Pacific fleet in Pearl, and of course for the military who died at the Pentagon and the thousands of civilians, and the heroic efforts of the FDNY, Police, and Port Athority personel who ran into those towers knowing that they might not be coming out again.

So, why do we as individuals as well as a nation choose to keep digging up the past and remember such things? In one sence, it gives us the resolve to see though what must be done to right the wrongs perpitrated against us. "Remember the Alamo!" was the battle cry that sought vengance against Santa Ana and gave our troops something to fight for. The Attack on Pearl Harbor united a nation divided on whether we should enter WWII and gave us the resolve to see it though to victory over Germany, and the Japanese Empire. And 9/11, it reminded us yet again that evil does exist in the world and the freedoms we enjoy here in America requires vigilance against those who would take it from us.

We also remember the sacrifice of those who, as President Lincoln so eloquently put, gave their last full measure of devotion. The men inside the Alamo who knew they were already dead and kept up the fight for as long as they could. The men and women who died, as the Japanese unleashed Hell all around them, trying to help the fallen, or stayed at their posts trying to fight against a surprise attack that left them and our Navy broken in the face of a new world war. And of course we remember the people who's only crime was getting up on a Tuesday morning and simply going to work or getting on a plane.

Finally, we remember the actions that were perpitrated against us. Those who fail to learn from history, are doomed to repeat it. A good example of this would be United flight 93. Upon learning of the fate of 3 other planes that morning, they decided to become the first soldiers in the war against terror by not allowing their plane to become the 4th weapon and sacrificed themselves, rather than passively allowing the hijackers from killing countless others.

The common theme amidst all of this, is the people. Those who saw that there can be something greater than themselves. That by standing up in a time of unspeakable horror they helped save the lives of people they did not know, and the helped people of a great nation preserve their greatest asset, their freedom.

Edited September 6, 2009 by Feathers268 (see edit history)

[chilton747]

BRAVO!!

[Feathers268]

With tomorrow being September 11, I couldn't let this fall to page 2, and state once again,

We Will Never Forget

Edited September 11, 2009 by Feathers268 (see edit history)