Today is not only Cartoon Saturday.
It's the day on which, in 1944, many thousands of young men stormed the heavily-defended coast of occupied Normandy in the battle that has become known to history as D-Day. The heroism and dedication of these men - many of whom never left those terrible beaches - helped spell the beginning of the end for Adolf Hitler's Third Reich.
I suggest you read The Meaning of Bloody Omaha, or watch the first 20 minutes of the film Saving Private Ryan, to understand what happened that day, and why even now, 65 years later, we owe a vast and unpayable debt to those who made the ultimate sacrifice.
War is a terrible thing, but sometimes there are other things that are worse. President Obama reminded us of this during his visit to the site of the Buchenwald concentration camp earlier this week. As much as we would like to believe that everyone is rational and every problem can be negotiated away in good faith, in the real world there are some evils that can only be erased by the sacrifice of those who are willing to die for something greater than themselves.
Take a few minutes today to remember what happened on that June morning 65 years ago, and to think about how terribly different the world might be today if our fathers and grandfathers hadn't believed in something worth fighting for.
B.
4 comments:
There has been a lot of comments because the Queen was not invited.
It was very important that all who took part were represented.
Glad I wasn't in that fire-fight.
Amen
Jean-Luc: I have been mystified all along at the comments in the US press that the French wanted it to be a French-American celebration this year. HUH? Gee, and I thought it was the Brits, Americans and Candians who were in those boats, my Father among them!
I was there for 60th w/ my Dad five years ago and I hope to take him back, even if it's in a wheelchair by then, for the 70th. And I sure as heck hope the Queen is there, too.
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