Gracefulness in high places

May 10, 2013

The ability to say the right thing at the right time is a gift.  Sometimes it’s an earned gift, but a gift nevertheless.

Britain’s Prince Harry visited wounded U.S. soldiers in Washington area hospitals today, and he paid a visit to Arlington National Cemetery where he laid a wreath of remembrance at the grave of a soldier who died in a recent war.  Scott Simon of NPR was there.

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Posted by Ed Darrell

Veterans Day 2012 – Fly your flag today

November 11, 2012

Veterans Administration poster for Veterans Day 2012, “Honoring All Who Served” (Click for link to high resolution download version)

Fly your flag today for Veterans Day 2012.

Veterans Day’s falling on Sunday will complicate local celebrations that conflict with local religious services, but national celebrations most often will continue apace, particularly the ceremonies at Arlington National Cemetery in Virginia, at 11:00 a.m. (in honor of the original armistice that ended World War I, “at the 11th hour, of the 11th day, of the 11th month”).

Voice of America gave a brief but thorough rundown:

November 11 is Veterans Day in the U.S. – a federal holiday to honor all military personnel who have served the U.S. in all wars.

This is the first Veterans Day since the last U.S. troops left Iraq in December. The holiday this year is also a chance for Americans to thank the rapidly shrinking population of World War Two veterans.

The U.S. president places a wreath every Veterans Day at the Tomb of the Unknowns at Arlington National Cemetery.

Communities across America traditionally hold Veterans Day observances and ceremonies. Federal offices will be closed Monday in recognition of the holiday.

Veterans Day – originally called Armistice Day – was first observed in 1919. One year earlier, on the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month, an armistice between Germany and the Allied nations took effect.

Veterans Day honors all veterans of U.S. military service, living and dead.  The U.S. flag should be flown at full staff for the day.

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Posted by Ed Darrell

Great tribute to Mike Mansfield

July 3, 2010

If you come here often you may remember my views of my first real boss, Sen. Mike Mansfield, D-Montana.

Senate Majority Leader Mike Mansfield, oil on canvas painting by Aaron Shikler, 1978 - Wikimedia image

Senate Majority Leader Mike Mansfield, oil on canvas painting by Aaron Shikler, 1978 - Wikimedia image

For Memorial Day, author James Grady (Six Days of the Condor) wrote a tribute to Mansfield for Politics Daily.  Grady makes the history sing nicely, I think — and he included a key photo taken by his son.  You should go read the piece, and maybe save it, if you have any tributes to veterans coming up in your future.

But, particularly, it’s interesting to read about the Majority Leader under whom the late Sen. Robert C. Byrd, D-West Virginia, rose to power.  Both men were great in their own right.  Mansfield opened the doors and knocked down a few barriers so that Byrd could succeed.  Without Mansfield’s gentle handling of Byrd, especially through the crush of civil rights legislation in the 1960s, could Byrd have so masterfully crafted his life?

Thanks for the Mansfield history contribution, Mr. Grady.

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9 Comments | Biography, Heroes, History, U.S. Senate | Tagged: , , , , , , | Permalink
Posted by Ed Darrell