Armistice Day

So it comes to be yet one more year of celebrating the Armistice, Remembrance, Armed Forces or Veterans Day. On the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month of 1918, major hostilities of World War I were formally ended as the Allied Forces and Germany signed the Armistice.

Roughly 20 million dead. And this was the war to end all wars.

Today, amidst all the displays of flags, anthem singing, patriotic gestures and parades I do wonder how we all are honoring those 20 million dead. Did we learned anything?

History serves as a cruel but unavoidable bill of evidence that we didn't had enough; World War II came along shortly after the "Great War" with 70 million dead, the most part of it civilians.

No generation has gone by without knowing the world at war, somewhere, somehow, someone is at war. The killing never stops.

Why do we continue on this path of wanton destruction?:

• Political reasons, which follow economic reasons
• Religious reasons (the most obscene of them all)

Honor, duty, freedom... all those are waved incessantly before our eyes since we start to gather reason of the world that surrounds us; anything that strays from that is immediately labeled as unpatriotic.

I remember studying on elementary school about the the Mexican-American War in 1847: an engagement was fought in Chapultepec in which six military cadets, ages 14–20, fought to their deaths against the invading United States Marine Corps. One of them, Juan Escutia, wrapped himself in the Mexican flag and jumped to his death rather than be captured. That event with Escutia has long been revered as a clear example on the loyalty to one's country, the ultimate upholding of duty.

Even as a 8 year old then I couldn't understand how such a sacrifice was necesary, let alone be praised - you see, right after that happened several treaties were signed off between the quarreling parts, Mexico released half of its territory to the US and many people, including many Mexicans, made their fortunes that way. Those were the ones that most vociferusly called themselves patriots. Today their types hold public office positions... they continue to brandish patriotism left and right, and are the first ones to betray it.

It happens everywhere. Here in the US we claim and shout and bumper sticker Support Our Troops. Yet, for those fortunate enough to return their attention goes by criminally ignored: Veterans services are not at the level they should be, prisoners in jails get better treatment. Why not expense the resources thrown at flag waving and nifty parades into better and decent care of veterans of war?

I think we would better honor those sacrifices by being better citizens, better residents of this land.

Force never has resolved any problems. Those 20 million dead in WWI and 70 million dead more in WWII are silent voices telling us to be wise. We are just choosing not to listen.


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