Don’t Whistle Past This Graveyard
This Veterans Day feels a little like a memorial day. We’re paying tribute to those who served in the US Armed Forces, but we’re also experiencing a political and cultural transition that sees America relinquishing its role as defenders of the freedom and democracy so many vets fought for; and even adopting some of the leadership characteristics of regimes we once risked all to keep from spreading. Part of this is a matter of timing. There are fewer and fewer people around who experienced WWII and know fascism when they see it. Part of it is a matter of our current leadership and its America First ideals that echo those of the America First Committee that sought to keep the US from being drawn into WWII. Jonathan Darman takes us to a cemetery in Margraten, the Netherlands to provide some reminders about America. “Margraten and the other cemeteries serve as reminders of the sacrifices that Americans made to free Europe. And, at a time when many Americans want to retreat from our responsibilities to the rest of the world, they offer us a warning.” NYT (Gift Article): If Only More Americans Could See This Place. “Walking through these rows of graves, you feel the sorrow the war visited on every corner of American society. A service member from Oregon lies next to one from Pennsylvania who lies next to one from Arkansas. Dumas is next to Ulander, next to Giudice, next to Smith. But in their beauty, ambition and scale, the cemeteries have also always sent a message to Europeans, a reminder of the costs Americans were willing to pay to ensure the cause of liberty in the world. These cemeteries would be permanent and so too, they seemed to suggest, would be America’s interest in Europe’s affairs. It is a message that many Europeans took to heart. At the visitors’ center at the Margraten, I was told that the large crowd in the cemetery that day was typical. The vast majority of visitors are Europeans. When I flipped through the guest book, I saw most of the entries were people from the Netherlands, Belgium and other Northern European countries. Many had written the same message: ‘Thanks, U.S.A.'”
+ “If Burford had not driven 115 miles to the cemetery, a recording would have been played instead from a speaker that fits into the bell of a bugle. The device allows taps to be played at every funeral with military honors, as is legally required, but it has also stirred a resistance. Burford is one of at least 2,500 volunteers who travel to play taps at military funerals, many distressed by the idea of a recording performing the duties. They are tweens and nonagenarians, civilians and veterans. Some are seasoned musicians with an in-demand skill. Others are lapsed players who felt compelled to restart.” The Volunteer Buglers Giving 24-Note Salutes.
