Monday, July 5, 2010

Remembering the Greatest Generation

This morning, I was privileged to march in the local 4th of July parade with my daughter and her Y-princess tribe. My wife and younger daughter watch on the side, so they saw the whole parade, including something amazing.

A group of WWII veterans, all of whom must be in their 80's or older, rode a float, re-enacting the scene in the famous photo from the battle of Iwo Jima. These elderly gentlemen, in the blazing sun, held pose for the full two plus miles of the parade, for all to see. These amazing men, who a lifetime ago perhaps fought that very battle, or certainly one like it, then came home to re-tool and rebuild a nation.

Last week my grandmother died, at age 89. My grandfather passed away 20 years ago in his early 70's. Of course I'm saddened by losing her, even though her health over the last few years had made that an inevitable reality.

I remember the stories she shared with me over the years, of how her family had so little growing up. How she raised my aunt, who was stricken with polio, while my grandfather fought in the pacific. How they worked so hard after the war, raising a family, while my grandfather worked long hours in the steel mill. The stories of how they went without during strikes. How my grandfather did not own a car until he was 47 years old. Real sacrifice.

What strikes me mostly though, is I've lost the tie my family had to 'The Greatest Generation', as it's come to be known. In my family, my parents generation is now elevated to that 'patriarchal' level. It's perfectly natural, circle of life and all that.

But here's the thing. That 'Greatest Generation', we are nothing compared to them. That generation, born or raised in the Great Depression, hardened by World War II. Then building the great industrial giant that would be the United States in 20th century. Those remarkable men and women of vision who set out to go to the moon, then went. Who brought us most of the technologies we rely on every day. A generation that Boldly Went.

They, as a society, set out to do things, and did them. They WON wars. They went to the moon. They put a car in every driveway. They had a vision of the future and made it happen.

The generations that have come since got nothing on them. My own included. We have vision, sure. We do not have the drive to see that vision through. We let a bunch of baby boom era politicians screw it up.

This is not meant to shed a light of disrespect on the baby boom generation. My Aunts and Uncles were incredible role models for me, and helped teach me the value of hard work and education. After my parents split in the mid 80's they, along with my grandparents helped turn me from a boy to a man. The politicians on the other hand, are not about hard work. They are about poor leadership and entitlements.

Think about it. Who was the last President that was truly respected. Bush Sr?, Reagan? Bring on boomers like Clinton, & GW Bush, and there's no respect. Not like there should be. And nothing gets done. Does Obama qualify as a boomer? Probably not, but the congress who's bidding he does (Pelosi, Reid, etc) is. I wish President Obama would stand on his own, but he does not. He does their bidding on every issue, further dividing our great nation. Boldly going nowhere.

When President George W Bush addressed the nation after the 9/11 attacks, we all seemed ready to sacrifice. All ready to do whatever we had to in order to protect our nation. All ready to commit our nations resources to eliminating terrorism around the world. Until the politicians and pundits decided it wasn't popular anymore. So now we've half hearted war efforts, that despite the sacrifice of our troops are not well represented by our elected leaders. Men dying for our freedoms, working to liberate rogue nations and fight terrorists. It doesn't get much more red blooded GI Frakkin' Joe American than that. Our elected leaders and media pundits have turned it into a circus.

When it really came time to buckle down and make sacrifices, by and large, we didn't. Our politicians complained about the costs of war. Our media outlets turned fallen soldiers into a spectacle. What has the average non military American really sacrificed in the war on terror? Another buck or two a gallon?

The Greatest Generation sacrificed. They sacrificed to survive, from the time they were born, to the time they died. Born of the depression they had little to begin with. Then while the men went off to war, the women raised families and retooled our nation to build weapons of war. The war ended and our veterans retooled our nation into one of the greatest manufacturing societies in history. They accomplished amazing things, and sacrificed to do it. Raising large families in tiny bungalows, working through labor strikes and race riots. That generation's sacrifices shaped our futures.

So to those great men, holding the flag this morning, and to my grandparents, and and all those heroes of the Greatest Generation, Thank You. Thank you for so many things you did, and lessons we should have learned.

Maybe, just maybe my generation or the next can get us back on course. Maybe then, we can Boldly Go!

This entry dedicated to the memory of my grandmother, Martha Allie.

No comments:

Post a Comment