Good Morning my friends. Somewhere here I have another post ready to go for you but I just looked at my calender and realized what today is. Armistice day, Remembrance day, Veteran’s Day. Originally to observe the day that World War One ended. Here is what Wiki has to say about today..

Armistice Day (which overlaps with Remembrance Day and Veterans Day) is celebrated every year on 11 November to commemorate the armistice signed between the Allies of World War I and Germany at Compiègne, France, for the cessation of hostilities on the Western Front of World War I, which took effect at eleven o’clock in the morning—the “eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month” of 1918. While this official date to mark the end of the war reflects the ceasefire on the Western Front, hostilities continued in other regions, especially across the former Russian Empire and in parts of the old Ottoman Empire.

In other words, that’s when the war ended for The United States. This was the ‘war to end all wars’ and until several years later, didn’t even have the One in it’s title. While I’m certain that those who were fighting this war, much of it for the USA bogged down in a french trench opposite the Germans, were happy for it to end, the novelty and the tragedy of the timing, doesn’t escape me. That is, I’m certain beyond doubt, that between the time the Armistice was signed, and 11am November 11, 1918, people died. It is my understanding that it was less than 6 hours, the final signature on at 5:20am, the actual armistice between Germany and the Allied forces, was effective Nov 11, 1918. For other fronts, the war continued. Negotiations of terms of course began months earlier.

The United States did not enter the war with a declaration until April 1917. Again, from Wiki…

On April 2, 1917, Wilson asked a special joint session of Congress to declare war on the German Empire. “We have no selfish ends to serve,” he stated. To make the conflict seem like a better idea, he painted the conflict idealistically, stating that the war would “make the world safe for democracy” and later that it would be a “war to end war.” On April 6, Congress declared war. In the Senate, the resolution passed 82 to 6, with Senators Harry Lane, William J. Stone, James Vardaman, Asle Gronna, Robert M. La Follette, Sr., and George W. Norris voting against it. In the House, the declaration passed 373 to 50, with Claude Kitchin, a senior Democrat, notably opposing it. “Almost all” of the opposition came from the West and the Mid-West.

make the world safe for democracy..

How many times has that line been used on the American public as an excuse to go to war? Is Democracy safe yet? Nearly 100 years later?

war to end war.

I’m sure the families of the dead from WW2, Korea, Vietnam, Desert Storm, and this most recent fiasco we find ourselves in, will be happy to know, that war was ended in 1918 for the USA. Obviously, that is probably the most asinine statement I’ve ever made. Let’s not forget that some of these conflicts weren’t even wars. They were Police actions. Our government, didn’t even have the decency or the balls to tell us what these really were. MY definition? If you have people in two locations lobbing bullets, dropping bombs, at each other for a prolonged period of time, it’s a war. Declaration or not.

I don’t want to get into a debate about the hows and whyfores of being involved but I’d lay good money on the idea that 1: They are always about money and 2: Each one can be traced back to whatever Armistice was drafted and agreed to by our illustrious Elected, leaders. It is my opinion that if our men and now, women, are going to be asked to lay down their lives, we damn sure better be there to win, and win decisively.

The photo shown above was taken 11/11/11. It has nothing to do with World wars, these are Michigan’s fallen during the Civil war. Probably another war to end all war. These fine people and those who followed after WW1, have each fought in a war to end all war and are the reasons that this is also called Veteran’s Day and Remembrance day. While the war ended at 11am Paris time, I’m ending this post at 11AM New York time (Eastern time) asking you, to remember our fallen, thank them, thank their mothers, fathers, brothers and sisters for the sacrifice made by their loved ones so we can continue to bicker about some of the stupidest shit I’ve ever seen argued about.

Is the world safe for democracy yet? I don’t even think our own country is.

Good day.