Salute to Veterans

Who would have thought 200-some years ago that an everyday person like me could write whatever I wanted for anyone in the blogosphere to read. If you are entertained occasionally, great. If you are offended now and then or you've had to suffer through my attempts at humor, I guess that's too bad. You certainly are not required to read this blog, are you?

What a shame it would be if we didn’t occasionally enjoy our freedom of speech! On Veterans Day, let’s think again about those freedoms established in the Bill of Rights back in 1791 and the countless men and women in service who have defended them since. They deserve our salute.

Although my father did not serve in the military, I had some uncles who did, along with my brother, two nephews and my father-in-law. I have the utmost respect for them and enjoy visiting museums, watching movies or reading books to learn more about our country’s involvement in various conflicts (including our own Civil War).

The artist sketches and photographs are spellbinding, too, and I wanted to share one with you. This incredible picture, suitably captioned “the human statue of liberty” was taken in 1918 and has been circulating around the Internet and in e-mails the last few years. It is thousands of men preparing for war in a training camp in Iowa.

As the Web site of the of the Iowa National Guard explains, the picture, formed by 18,000 posed soldiers, was taken in July 1918 at Camp Dodge, Iowa, as part of a planned promotional campaign to sell war bonds during World War I. It states: “On a stifling July day in 1918, 18,000 officers and soldiers posed as Lady Liberty on the parade [drill] grounds at Camp Dodge. According to a July 3, 1986, story in the Fort Dodge Messenger, many men fainted – they were dressed in woolen uniforms – as the temperature neared 105 degrees. The photo, taken from the top of a specially constructed tower by a Chicago photography studio, Mole & Thomas, was intended to help promote the sale of war bonds but was never used.”

Isn’t that amazing that the photo was never used? How unfortunate. It moves me to see all those servicemen standing at attention in the shape of what they are fighting for. Don’t forget to salute our servicemen and women on Veterans Day and every day!