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This is Memorial Day weekend, 2014 and I think it behooves us all, no matter what nationality, race, creed or religion to take a moment and thank all those who have served and who are serving in the armed forces of their countries. Without their sacrifices, without them doing the job they either volunteered or were drafted into doing, we wouldn't have the freedoms and privileges we have now. Some returned from far off battlefields and some didn't, but we all owe every one of them our thanks, our gratitude. Let's also not forget the Merchant Mariners.
So today take a moment or two and Thank A Veteran. For myself, to all who returned, and with deep feelings from my heart for those who didn't return, TO EVERYONE WHO IS SERVING OR WHO HAS SERVED, THANK YOU.
Gratefully,
Catherine Linda Michel
Comments
Memorial Day
Sadly here I the UK our veterans are treated like crap, Oh I know some will say but what about "Help the Heroes".
OK so we have various charities helping the ones who fought in Afghanistan at the moment but soon they too will be forgotten.
There are approximately according to Govt sources around 70,000 ex soldiers that are homeless and living on the streets but unfortunately they have a problem with getting help and that problem is that they are White British Ex-servicemen.
Yes they fought for they're country and are now surplus to requirement so are best forgotten as British Veterans who fought in 2 world wars, Korea and all the other conflicts the UK has been involved in.
The UK is one stupidest countries when it come to Rememberance, this year 2014 they plan and the Govt has earmarked 10's of Millions of pounds to celebrate WW1, celebrations which will last five years.
Why they plan to celebrate the demise of a whole generation of young men is beyond me, we should be remembering them and the sacrifice they made.
As an Veteran myself and now a caravan and campsite manager I have planned an evening of rememberance , were we will have a bonfire and sing the songs that the servicemen of that time sang, no it will not sombre occasion except for a short prayer at the beginning at the end there will no religious aspect to it. All who attend will in they're own remember the Fallen heroes of the GREAT WAR.
Well done to our Cousins across the Atlantic who support and remember they're fighting men and women.
Remembering merchant seamen.
British treatment of merchant seamen during both world wars was appalling.
In the second world war when a seaman's ship was torpedoed and sunk, his pay was automatically stopped and if he survived the ordeal he didn't even get survivor's leave in the early years of the second world war.
In the first world war in addition to these insults, many, many seamen were insulted and abused for 'Not being in uniform and not fighting for king and country.' Merchant seamen didn't wear uniforms, nor indeed did they have dog-tags. They were taken prisoners of war and did not have the protection of the Geneva conventions because they were technically civilians. They could actually be shot as spies if they were captured because they had no uniforms to prove they were on bona-fida military duties.
When I first went to sea, there were a lot of older men who were extremely bitter about the way they were treated by the British government but by far the worst was the stoppage of pay when they got torpedoed. Many of them took months and even years to return home and all that time their pay was stopped and their wives had no wages throughout the war.
This happened to men trapped and imprisoned out in the far east by the Japanese and the men who were taken by the Germans in the early days of the war.
Merchant Seamen during WWII
It should also be noted that it was actually quite a bit more dangerous to be a merchant seaman than it was to be in the actual navy, because Naval vessels could fight back. Most merchant vessels had very poor armour (if any) and were seriously undergunned, so they could be picked off by almost anyone, including (these days) Somali pirates armed with speedboats and handheld machine guns. In the US Merchant Marine during World War II, one was more than four times as likely to die in the line of duty as a sailor in the Navy, roughly twice as likely as a soldier in the Army, and even a bit more likely to die than a US Marine, who saw extremely heavy fighting (and casualties), especially in the Pacific.
They didn't even keep good records of them, so many died without leaving behind any trace, especially those employed on ships flying "foreign" flags of convenience. It was and is a shameful history of indifference.
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Cheers,
Puddin'
A tender heart is an asset to an editor: it helps us be ruthless in a tactful way.
--- The Chicago Manual of Style
Nothing I can say...
...could ever express my gratitude to those who paid the ultimate price; nor could I thank enough all of those who remain in peril so that I might be free. I saw this today:
Thanks to my friends here who have served and my gratitude to those who paid that ultimate price who were friends and family of all here as well.
Love, Andrea Lena
I am scandalized,
to hear of the cavalier, seemingly uncaring treatment of Veterans and Merchant seamen in the great nation of the United(?) Kingdom! It shocks me that a country which has such a standout reputation and history as the U.K. would treat it's vets and seaman in such a way!
Trust me when I say that, as an American, WE still remember and thank ALL the U.K. vets, seamen, and countrymen of the U.K. for all they did to be invaluable allies and without them, the wars would have been much more difficult or even impossible to win. That goes for the Aussies as well. It seems that here in the U.S. we think of ourselves as the "saviors of the world," but we never would have done as well without our allies, and I, at least, freely acknowledge that fact.
On behalf of all of us in the "Colonies," please allow me to extend our grateful thanks to all the servicemen and women, and to the Merchant Seamen of the U.K. and Australia, and ALL our allies, who gave just as much as any other country. Without them all, we here in the States would very much the poorer.
God Bless all you vets.
respectfully,
Catherine Linda Michel
As a T-woman, I do have a Y chromosome... it's just in cursive, pink script.
vets are dying waiting for healthcare
This doesn't even begin to tell the horror stories our vets are facing from lack of care
http://weaselzippers.us/187127-gop-rep-house-passed-a-dozen-...
http://michellemalkin.com/2014/05/23/how-america-treats-ille...
Oklahoma born and raised cowgirl
I have to say,
that although I too have seen the horrific headlines recently regarding veterans dying, waiting for appointment times to be met, I have received nothing but the very best of care at the Buffalo N.Y. V.A. Hospital. this includes transgender care which the V.A. is not particularly noted for giving. Apparently the class of care varies WIDELY between different V.A. facilities.
HOWEVER... this blog is about thanking the Veterans, NOT necessarily about the standards of care at the facilities, and I reiterate MY thanks to ALL veterans of ALL countries for all that they gave. As a quote I've seen recently states, "ALL GAVE SOME, SOME GAVE ALL."
God Bless ALL Veterans for their sacrifices.
Catherine Linda Michel
As a T-woman, I do have a Y chromosome... it's just in cursive, pink script.