posted on January 5, 2003 02:18:57 PM new
Just finished the second volume of her biography by Blanche Cook (very good reading, by the way).
In about 1936 or 1937, she spoke at an Armistice Day rally. She first quoted the poet Richard LeGallienne's poem, "The Illusions of War":
War
I do abhor;
And yet how sweet
The sound along the marching street
Of drum and fife, and I forget
Broken old mothers and the whole dark butchering without a soul.
"Eleanor ended with the startling suggestion that Americans remove all glamour from war, end 'the strutting of the living' that did little to memorialize the dead during
Armistice Day observances. As slaughter once again appeared in Asia, Ethiopia, and Spain, ER suggested that rather than look back 'to the world's greatest mistake, why can't we train our energies on what is to come? Even by a display of sincere respect for the war dead we somehow dignify what should be a matter of gravest shame.'"
posted on January 5, 2003 05:15:33 PM new
'Tis true, Roadsmith. War is not Glory, it's gorey. There is no Honor in War, only the horror. Leaders who resort to War first should be beaten to death, IMO. Leaders who surround themselves with Death as Patriotism should die at the hands of patriots. War is a last resort, not a first. There should be no parades, no honors, no glorification in the media about our Wars. How many young people recently, both men and women, have I heard them say how much it is that they want to go get into the fighting in Iraq. How sad that is, when our young are taught that War is Fun and is a first choice. Solve your problems with violence first; lash out at anyone who gets in your way; crush those who oppose you; beat them into the dirt. Is that what Jesus taught?
