To those .45%: thank you for standing beside me. To those that went before us: thank you for giving us something worth defending.

...From this day to the ending of the world,
But we in it shall be remember'd;
We few, we happy few, we band of brothers;
For he to-day that sheds his blood with me
Shall be my brother; be he ne'er so vile,
This day shall gentle his condition:
And gentlemen in England now a-bed
Shall think themselves accursed they were not here,
And hold their manhoods cheap whiles any speaks
That fought with us...

-William Shakespeare "King Henry V" Act 4, Scene 3, Lines 59-68.
http://shakespeare.mit.edu/henryv/henryv.4.3.html

I've been watching "Vietnam in HD" for the past couple of days.
If you've missed it, you really should be on the look out for the repeat showings and watch it.
Happy Veterans Day and thank you!

The Bard penned that speech so very long ago and it has never passed out of style or impact.

So often people forget amongst all the bickering that takes place, that the ability to speak your mind freely and without unjust repercussion is one of the freedoms we take for granted.

From the earliest days of the militia armies, when each man who stood to defend his very home from the oppression of the British Empire, to the high-tech soldier of today who often never sees his enemy eye-to-eye, their purpose has always been a singular one, to defend the idea that is The United States of America.

Before we had a Flag as a standard of Our Country, before we had a National Anthem, before the Pledge of Alligence,there was the idea of a country based on freedom and the ability to govern ourselves.

To each man and woman who has given the last full measure of devotion to that idea, and to each who has served and lived to tell of the honor and bravery of their fallen comrades, to tell of the victories over oppression and injustice,and most of all to hear the cries of a grateful nation, we give you our deepest thanks. Never have so few given so much for the benefit of so many.