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Walking to work from the subway this morning, I pass the route for the Veterans Day parade.

Some woman stops a police officer. "What's going on here?" she asks, in that entitled way New Yorkers get -- there's a party or disruption, why haven't I been personally notified.

"Veterans Day," the cop says, clearly non-plussed.

"Oh," the woman says, clearly even more non-plussed.

Really? Really? Could you not tell from the Vietnam-era jeeps on the back of the flatbed you're standing next to (and there are signs labeling them), or the two really pretty girls in their air force uniforms having a coffee behind you? Did you somehow miss the all the guys in their desert fatigues?

Seriously, I know it's early, I know it's cold, and I know most people don't give a crap, but jeez.

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How about it's November...Veteran's Day...annual observance...

Wow.

Sigh. So many days to commemorate our troops, and yet people forget they're there.

ION, I will be going to that concert tonight - sounds like a chance for some lovely music.

I will see you there then (presumably, Patty had a rough night last night with some sort of migraine/stomach thing, so I may be summoned home).

And yeah, it just blows my mind. I'm hoping to write something more about today later, but this is one of those topics that's weirdly complicated for me because of a weird mishmash of personal history.

I know that we have a very hard divide between military and non-military people in this country (I'm on the not-military side, myself), but I'd like to think that people haven't entirely forgotten them. :(

know that we have a very hard divide between military and non-military people in this country

That's so true, and it borders on the absurd, because I think it's gotten to the point where we don't even know how to talk about it.

It's particularly absurd when there's actually a war on.

When I was in Michigan (and flew back and forth to California all the time) I was constantly seeing parents putting their 18 year-olds on airplanes to go overseas. Now that I fly less (and in live in San Francisco, where all the bases have been closed), I never even see them.

When we flew into Atlanta (and I mentioned this, but I should really write about it), we saw these old vets, like Korea and even some WWII manning this sad little table to welcome home soldiers who couldn't have anyone there for them in the airport. And there's this huge display further down in the airport of WWII-era medals and models of planes and stuff -- and I was very moved/engaged by it all, but I always find myself wary of other people's reaction to that response because my very pacifist friends can easily blame any number of my pop culture obsessions, which, actually isn't true.

The Chicago airport was a bit like that too, but less intense, more matter of fact. But then it's O'Hare and it's too busy for sentiment.

airspaniel and I couldn't contain our fascination with the exhibit in Atlanta.

The only reason I managed containment was I'd been up for about 40 hours by that point.

Do you remember the wooden heart pin with Army Mom on it in rhinestones?

Do you remember the wooden heart pin with Army Mom on it in rhinestones?

I think I missed that.

Depending on my mood, that would have either made me laugh or weep.

Edited 2008-11-11 15:38 (UTC)

"I always find myself wary of other people's reaction to that response because my very pacifist friends can easily blame any number of my pop culture obsessions, which, actually isn't true."

I presumed that it must go the other way (that your interest in the military directed your pop culture obsessions).

Thank you -- having just written about it -- it's an obvious mishmash of stuff, filtered through my rather batshit family, but my point, I suppose, is that at the end of the day, it probably doesn't matter why, if it makes me more decent towards and more aware of these men and women who serve.

When

rm and I were at O'Hare this summer, we saw those kids.

It was very poignant, especially for me because it was something I'd never seen before. (I'd never been to the midwest, outside of six hours spent on the Oberlin campus for a concert.)

Honestly, every time I used to see them, I wanted to grab them by the arm and tell them how much I wanted them to come back and finish growing up. Naturally I didn't do that - but I did wish them luck if they were at my gate or whatever.

My country is coming to a halt for two minutes today, and the streets of London are lined with people, and we've already discussed Australia.
Your country is strange.:(

I think some of it is that we haven't fought a war on our own ground since the civil war. Not to excuse us, but that makes it abstract for most citizens of the US.

Canadians have not fought a war on their own soil since 1814.
Australia and New Zealand never have.

Darwin got the crap bombed out of it in WWII.

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