A Toast They Will Say

“Here’s to the foolish”, were the toasts by our peers,

As they laughed and they taunted the gullible volunteers,

“Here’s to the fortune and wit of those safe in our dorm”,

As they partied and chanted, - nope, they wouldn’t conform.

They undermined war efforts, gave comfort to our enemy;

Ensured our efforts would be twice as costly and declared their enmity;

As all wars do, this one wound to its end.

The boys coming home were returning as men.

The witty then threw new shame and new blame;

“To the baby-killers, murderers and thugs coming home”;

They spat, called vile names, to the veteran as he roamed.

Their voices were lifted again and they began a new chant;

“Nam-vets- dangerous, quiet, eerie and gaunt”

They’re a threat to society, unhinged, they would taunt.

Over time facts and evidence showed very clearly,

The Nam-Vet had served bravely, endured and paid dearly.

Decades later came toasts with different flavor and hue,

Suddenly being a Nam-vet was claimed by everyone that you knew.

A finite number had stepped forward, took the chiding and blame.

Decades later those ‘veterans’ are hugely different, in number and name?

Now, how easily the names of campaigns, villes, valleys and bases

Come off the tongues of those never known to have been in those places.

The Warriors with real fear, trauma, horror; were once again victim,

To the witty, the ‘fortunate’, who now claim to have been with ‘em. 

‘I always supported you’ is now a common phrase;

“Really our chanting and demonstration was just ‘a phase’.”

We Warriors have all had our phases and battles;

We can see through the smoke and the noise to know what matters;

So let’s raise OUR glasses, those who have really been to war.

Let those witty ones… figure out how to revise it some more!

“We Brothers have Mates and family on The Wall.  Raise our Glass to them All!

All Gave Some, Some Gave All…….!”

Ken “Wish” Hargrove

Vietnam: December 1968 thru August 1970

©December 2013

I refuse to apologize for my eyes welling up whenever I see the Flag waving in the air and people saluting Her. So many have fought and died for Her and every moment of respect for the Flag is respect for a life or a lifetime of Service.

I refuse to apologize because I miss the days when being patriotic was a ‘good thing’, I’m not talking about my generation (we ‘baby-boomers’ are the culprits that began disdain for patriotism), but those of my parents and their parents, the Last Great Generation.

I refuse to apologize for my Heroes not being able to act a whit,  carry a tune, they don’t speak in expletives, they don’t talk about themselves and they probably don’t wear the latest in fashion.

I’m not sorry that I resent ‘politically correct’ speak, what about saying what you mean and meaning what you say?  How can you tell the ‘good guys’ from the ‘bad guys’ if everyone covers up what they really mean with PC language?

I’m not sorry that no one who makes a living pretending to be someone else carries any weight with me on what they think about life, politics, morals or family.

I’m not going to apologize because I say a prayer when I’m afraid for myself or for anyone else.  Not going to apologize for the prayers of thanks also!

I refuse to stay quiet when a wrong is being committed or when you cut in front of someone to take advantage.

I’m not sorry that I resent the progressive re-defining of our Constitution; it is just too convenient for those who don’t want to do what is currently right to redefine what is right. The Founders of our Country were pretty darn specific about just about everything. The only confusion comes when someone wants to redefine what “the meaning of the word ‘is’ is” or “what they really meant to say” or “if they only knew”.

I’m not sorry that I don’t calculate what is in it for me before I answer a question about how I feel on a subject. Right is right regardless of personal impact.

I AM SORRY that these traits cast me as an outsider and an extremist; this demonstrates just how far our Country has detoriated…….in but a short 50 years.  Progress?  I think not.

Happy Veterans Day? I looked around and hoped to see something to make it seem to be a Happy Veterans Day, I use this day every year as somewhat of a report card in America. I take a reading of the times with ceremony and respect; or a sign of the times with less fanfare, more controversy, less respect. Was it a Happy Veterans Day…no, just a Veterans Day.  “

“I hear Xxxxxx (fill in the restaurant name) will let you have a free entree if you bring two other paying customers with you and can show you are a veteran with an acceptable form of proof of such”….

same Run from the Road Guard perspective

Run For The Wall 2012- 500 motorcycles strong

Just completed Run For The Wall 2012- a 10 day motorcycle Run from Los Angeles to D.C. to support veterans, current military and bring awareness to the POW/MIA situation in the USA.  Did you know that PFC. Bowe Bergdahl was captured in Afghanistan 3 years ago?  Did you know that he is still alive and there are almost no efforts going on to bring him home? Did you know that inside our strategic ally Pakistan is where he is being held by Al Qaeda?  DID YOU KNOW THAT HE ESCAPED ON HIS OWN LAST OCTOBER? Evaded his captors for 3 days inside of Pakistan, no help from them, thank you very much!  Did you know that he was re-captured, beaten, tortured and is still being held inside Pakistan? How does this match the America you expect? We're currently contemplating holding up our $1.2Billion supplement that we send to Pakistan EVERY YEAR because the Pakistan judicial system convicted the Pakistani doctor that aided us in pin-pointing Usama Bin Laden for treason....How about we don't pay them their money for hating us if they don't return Bowe???

Yeah, we've got a lot more respect in the world today don't we....?

Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl's father Bob Bergdahl promises prisoner-of-war son "will come home"

at recent Rolling Thunder 2012 motorcycle demonstration in DC on Memorial Weekend

 

The current administration is proposing that we swap some Guantanamo Al Qaeda prisoners for Bowe, at least that's movement after 3 years, but makes you wonder if this is for the purpose of bringing Bowe home or implementing the elimination of Guantanamo Bay as wrestled with by the administration for years?