Re: [at-l] Veteran's Day Observations

[bullard@northnet.org]

At 08:31 PM 11/11/99 -0500, hopefl@juno.com wrote:
>I also want to say thanks to all the Vets. I want to say that it bothers
>me that our country pays lip service to Veteran's Day. In some ways, I
>can understand how America  can have very mixed emotions on this topic. 
>
>Before I start, I'll stop and just say "Thanks" to all the Vets but
>especially to my fellow Vietnam Veterans. Hopeful

I recently finished reading "Liberty", the story of the American Revolution
based on the PBS miniseries (which I didn't see). If it's any consolation
to my fellow vets, those who won our independence from the English throne
were even less appreciated than Vietnam vets. Many of them never even got
all their back pay. Congress was broke because the States wouldn't give it
any power to raise money and the soldiers were given promissory notes when
they were discharged. Most traded the notes to speculators for a pittance
in order to buy a new set of clothes and go home. They weren't necessarily
appreciated back home either and often found that their property had been
destroyed by the British or Loyalists so they had to start all over (no GI
Bill either). It's not trail related, I know, but it was a great read. I
wish the history book I had in school had been half as interesting.

Saunterer
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