It’s hard to believe that as the fraught year of 2024 is drawing to a close, we are revisiting the science behind the pasteurization of milk. I don’t suppose many of us older folks are milk drinkers–although I do admit to enjoying ayran, my favorite yogurt drink–but fans of RFK Jr. should still exercise caution about feeding raw milk to their kids and grandkids. As Dennis D’Amico, animal science professor of the University of Connecticut, says, “… there’s no reason to have raw milk,” he said. “It’s a risk that is not necessary.”  Hmm, I just felt a slight tremor…Louis Pasteur must be rolling over in his grave.

The quote above appears in the Well Being section of the Washington Post in an article by Teddy Amenabar, November 21, 2024  titled, RFK Jr. says he drinks raw milk. How safe is unpasteurized milk? The subtitle states, “Raw milk is risky to drink, especially for children and older adults, food scientists say.”

I would like to think that I’m preaching to the choir. Sometimes it’s hard to tell these days when faced with full-blown and scornful dismissals of medical science and science-based institutions. Oh, I know, someone will haul out well-worn arguments pointing out the errors committed and counterindications where science and medicine have dropped the ball. So what? Mistakes occur in every human endeavor. There is no absolute guarantee of error-free progress in all of human history. Nor is there any absolutely risk-free procedure in medicine–that’s why you sign a consent form before your doctor undertakes even a small procedure on your behalf. You acknowledge that you understand the risks. But such criticism should likewise encompass the flagrant mischief committed by popular pseudoscience where false or exaggerated claims about treatments and cures are rarely subject to rigorous scientific scrutiny or real accountability. At its best it has been ineffective, at its worst it has caused harm that was totally unnecessary, but occurred because of popular gullibility. People should remember some of the nonsense that has been spread around by quackery: remember the Laetrile controversy back in the 1970s? It was touted that “Laetrile will cure cancer, but the medical establishment is suppressing it.” How many desperate people ran off to Mexico to obtain laetrile treatment at “clinics” run by quacks because it was discredited as a cancer treatment in the United States? That had tragic consequences for many cancer sufferers. Other more recent examples of quack medicine are available for examination by anyone interested. I won’t attempt go through the history of quackery, it is too tedious, and I have little incentive to do the research and collect it all. But the lineage of quack medicine and pseudoscience is a long one.

All right, next. Is there corruption in some of the mainstream institutions? Does Big Pharma have too much influence over the pricing and availability of pharmaceuticals? Do the insurance companies have too much clout in determining medical treatments? Etc., etc. Those are legitimate questions, and unfortunately the answers to some of those questions are disturbing, even scandalous. But the concerns generated by those controversies do not constitute a legitimate basis for the wholesale trashing of medical or scientific advice and the institutions dedicated to the investigation of the myriad issues in science, medicine, and human health. Such hyper-generalized criticisms–most often but not exclusively launched at government institutions–only feed the confirmation bias of certain peculiar ideologies that in themselves have no foundation in logic and rational inquiry, but rather represent a growing, popular trend: the peddling of dark conspiracies where none exist and the sowing of mistrust of any traditional or “mainstream” institutions of health, science, and education. Populism has a long history, not all of it edifying or decent, but generally it represents the response of angry swathes of the population who feel ignored and misled by their leaderships: i.e., an acute sense of disgust, disillusion, and deprivation. The answers to their problems fall properly under the categories of political reform, social policy, education, and civics, but too often they find their outlet in the adoption of absurdities peddled by unscrupulous self-promoters and opportunists.

The power of special interest groups and corporate lobbyists to influence decisions affecting the public inrerest constitutes a major problem for society in general. These entrenched interests leverage their connections to win government contracts and promote their organizations’ brands and products, and certainly their profitability. They are not easy targets for political reform–indeed, they are major contributors to their political favorites and expect tit for tat. So it will take determined long-term efforts by individuals and groups acting in the public interest to improve the situation. But the search for truth goes on. Knowledge grows with experience, and science has its fits and starts while always acknowledging the tentative nature of current theories and welcoming the process of continued discovery of new ones, validated by the scientific method. Society must not be encouraged to dismiss scientific evidence. If your conclusions are not supported by evidence, you must question them, and look for the truth. I would put it simply this way: a head in the sand invites a kick in the ass.

So why have I given this post a title in German that translates as, “Against stupidity the gods themselves contend in vain”? To answer that, here’s an explanation I copied from Wikipedia, “… the quote is from Friedrich Schiller’s play Die Jungfrau von Orleans (The Maid of Orleans), written in 1801. It’s a powerful line that reflects the struggle against human folly and ignorance.”  

We have a cultural tendency to throw babies out along with bath water. We want simple answers to complex problems, no matter how unproven or absurd, and we rush to adopt those that conform to what we want to believe, facts notwithstanding. We admire and praise those who purvey them, whatever their reputation, and hasten to support their agendas and follow them: Education and Experience Not Necessary, Apply within!

“What fools these mortals be.” Ah, Puck! Whither art thou gone”?

It seems to follow me around from my mirror to my bath: the signs of seniority (but not senility yet, I hope). I am the cranky, uncooperative victim of the march of time. I keep thinking I should follow Dylan Thomas’s advice: Do not go gentle into that good night, Old age should burn and rave at close of day; Rage, rage against the dying of the light.

Today (October 3) marks another milestone on that dreadful march: the marking of 82 years. Tomorrow begins the third year of my ninth decade. How does one make sense of having survived more than half of the twentieth century and almost one quarter of the twenty-first?

I started this post two weeks ago, but left it unfinished. I post it now just to put it out there. My thanks to all of you who sent me birthday greetings. And I’ll try to address my own question (above) later on.

…the world held its collective breath as the Allies undertook the long-awaited invasion of what the Nazi dictator Adolf Hitler called his Fortress Europe. D-Day cost the lives of thousands of American and Allied soldiers, and it was only the dogged courage and perseverance of those troops that drove them to fight their way off the slaughterhouses that were the Normandy beaches that fateful day, June 6, 1944. Earlier in the war, Churchill had said of the British victory in November 1942 over German forces at El Alamein, “Now this is not the end. It is not even the beginning of the end. But it is, perhaps, the end of the beginning.” But after D-Day, one could imagine that it was, in fact, the beginning of the end, and from that foothold in Normandy, the Allies pushed on to the final victory in Europe almost one year later. On May 8, 1945, with Germany’s surrender, World War Two officially ended in Europe: Victory in Europe, V-E Day!

About D-Day, most Americans need to be reminded…a few still remember that day. For most Europeans, it lingers in their collective memory what it was like to live under authoritarian regimes and suffer the brutal occupation of what once were free societies. Eerily, it feels as though that once-crushed viper of fascism has slithered out of a dark hole and is at large once more. The new generations who have grown up in an era when messaging is instant, and in too many cases extremely insular and uncircumspect, have less and less exposure to disturbing realities that have gone unrecognized, and truth has become the victim–indeed, even the notion of what truth consists of, and how it is genuinely arrived at. The philosopher George Santayana warned that “Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.” America hovers perilously at that critical point, and what is at stake is our democracy, our republic.

Authoritarianism has found renewed vigor and is rearing its nasty head all around the world, and–unthinkably–even in the United States of America. Every American should feel a sense of obligation to our past, to our defenders who fought so valiantly to vanquish the ugly fascist scourge that menaced Europe decades ago, and now threatens us again. Do not stand by and curse the darkness. Shine light on big lies that self-serving demagogues and shameful hucksters propagate for the sake of power and personal gain. Mischief and chicanery hate the light. Keep faith with our traditions and our great past generation. They are counting on us to safeguard their legacy. Don’t let them down.

In Honor Of (uncles, father-in-law, father):

George Marrash, US Army, WWII, DOW France, 1944

Tony Marrash, US Army, WWII

Sam Sadie, US Marine Corps, WWII

Louis Gramesty, US Army, 8th Air Force, WWII

Elias T. Marrash, Auto-Ordnance Co., Thompson Submachine Gun makers, WWII

I have few words to offer on this day. Every year we celebrate, and every year we offer the same platitudes about our honored dead. Yet the list of those grows every year as more of our serving military lose their lives in turbulent, hostile places across the globe. Many have died over the past year. More than likely others will follow as these brave men and women faithfully carry out their critical missions: their stalwart presence helps to assure that we can continue to live in a world governed by respect for the rule of law. That respect is waning; nevertheless, United States of America remains the indispensable nation for preserving and defending that world order–the legacy bequeathed to us by the generation that defeated fascism in World War Two. We must not fail to preserve and defend that legacy, and that duty begins right here at home.

I have little to add, so I will close with the message I sent in my Memorial Day ecard to my mailing list.

______________________________________________________________________________________________________

To Family, Friends, and Veterans of every era,

Remember to take time out of your weekend of holiday activities, picnics, barbecues, and beach time to reflect on why, in a world filled today with war and devastation, we have the freedom to enjoy such leisure, unhindered and unsuppressed. We owe a debt of gratitude to those men and women, who in every major challenge to our nation, paid the ultimate price for us. Our Republic and its freedoms stand because of their willing sacrifice. Let’s pause, and remember them today.

Have a wonderful holiday this weekend,

Richard and Adele

In Memoriam: George A. Marrash, Pvt. US Army, 23d Inf. Reg., 2d Inf Div., Died of Wounds, France, 1944.

I haven’t posted to the blog in several weeks, but I can’t let April depart without mentioning a few dates important to me and my lovely lady, Adele. First off, a joint occasion that, happily, does not refer to income tax; rather, on the 12th day of this month, Adele and I celebrated our forty-fourth wedding anniversary. It was a simple affair, just she and I along with our friends from next door, Greg and Ramona. We had been itching to try the menu at the Thai restaurant not far from us in Oro Valley, and so we invited our friends to join us. Reviews we had read were mostly full of praise for the service and the food, so we were excited about discovering another good place to dine. What a sad disappointment! We had the worst meal in decades, greasy messes of noodles all glued together with mere tiny fragments of the meat or fish that the dish was supposed to contain. Appalled, we felt terrible for our guests, whose meals were as bad as ours, or worse. And as though things couldn’t get still worse, the inferior red wine they served (the choices offered were meager) was warm! Not room temperature, but warm! As though having sat in the sun for hours. The chilled wine glasses did nothing to improve that warm, bodiless fluid. The evening was nearly a total bust, and we left with profuse apologies to our guests for the terrible dinner, while unhappily I was reminded of T. S. Eliot’s opening to his poem, The Wasteland, “April is the cruelest month….” But Greg came to the rescue, and had us stop in at one of his favorite pubs a few doors down from the Thai restaurant. After a couple of very generous Old-Fashioned cocktails and some nice conversation, my depressed mood dissipated, and we ended the evening on a happier note. All thanks to the intervention of our thoughtful dinner companions.

But there’s more. This past Saturday we celebrated Adele’s 75th birthday. Her birthday is actually tomorrow, April 23, but the weekend was more convenient for our guests attend. Our daughters, Leila and Mona, came down from Chandler, and our old Connecticut friends Miki and Jay who live in Tucson, and their son and daughter-in-law, joined us, as well as several of our friends and neighbors from all around Del Webb. The sangria was flowing (the fruit was as potent as the drink), and the beverages ran the gamut from Rieslings and Cabernets to Stella Artois and Guinness Stout. But the food! Oh what a different dining experience was there this time! We had a feast catered by The Persian Room, delicious and plentiful: savory dips and crudites started us off, followed by beef and chicken kebabs with stewed tomatoes and onions, saffron rice, hummus bi-tahineh, flat bread and mixed salad with feta cheese and olives. We have ordered from The Persian Room before, and dined there several times. They do not disappoint. Dessert was prepared by Adele herself consisting of absolutely scrumptious trays of knafeh with walnuts, a sweet and tasty Middle Eastern delicacy. Although we missed a few friends who were unable to attend, the music, games, camaraderie and conversation, and our daughters pitching in to entertain, serve, and clean up, made the evening a complete delight. It was indeed a very happy birthday for Adele.

That same Saturday, the 20th of April, was important to me for one other reason. It was the anniversary of my mother Mary’s birthday–born April 20, 1921 in Soueidieh, Syria, then still a part of the Ottoman Empire. And I remembered her with a silent prayer. As we say in the Orthodox faith, + Memory Eternal +.

Although having missed posting in February and March, I do pledge to post again in May, at the very least for Memorial Day. So for now I will close, with the thought that maybe T. S. Eliot was wrong, April hasn’t been such a bad month, after all.

I don’t mean to throw a damper on the enthusiasm with which most people have greeted the new year. I should celebrate the anticipation of a happier year full of hope and expectation. But I have to be frank, this year has opened with little to be enthusiastic about. Once again, a government shutdown is looming and might happen as soon as the coming week. Whether it will be full, partial, permanent, or temporary remains to be seen, but if it happens, it will disrupt the nation’s business. The Congress has failed to approve the new federal budget plan, presumably a resolution worked out on a bipartisan basis. There are veiled threats to remove the new House Speaker, Michael Johnson unless he rejects the budget compromise that he has already agreed to. The intransigent tail continues to wag the feckless dog in the Republican-majority House of Representatives, and the legislative dysfunction goes on because a vociferous minority refuses to cooperate in governing responsibly. Obstruction? Yes, they have mastered that tactic, but honest collaboration? Not a chance.

Are there legitimate complaints behind some of their objections? Yes. The immigration crisis at the southern border is the central one. The issue has cried out for reform for decades, and the need for action at the border has become desperate. This problem is neither new, nor its urgent requirements unfamiliar, but you wouldn’t know that from the way the issue has been hyped and exploited across the last two White House administrations. The previous one, with Republican control of both houses of Congress, promised to fix the problem, one-two-three. It didn’t happen. The current one, with its minority party in the House, cannot obtain Congressional agreement even to alleviate the problem–it needs budget approval for the proposed increase in the ranks of the border patrol, immigration officers, and immigration court judges. That wouldn’t eliminate the problem, but it would be a start. Additional policy initiatives are required, and comprehensive reform of immigration policy must be the goal. But the loud voices denouncing the current budget proposal are insistent, they will have their way or else. Fix the border, they say, or there will be no support for Ukraine or Israel. Those foreign policy concerns are shelved unless the Freedom Caucus can get its way one hundred percent. So all other areas of the national interest are held hostage awaiting their kind indulgence.

Freedom Caucus, how ironic! Freedom only for that mischievous little group to get what it wants, and to hell with anybody else who disagrees with them. What is really frightening is how narrow and unreflective the members of that group are. Their extreme right ideological position so completely saturates their minds that their most often-demonstrated characteristic is the lack of any capacity for appreciating complexity, nuance, collaboration, compromise, and most of all, the principles of American democracy. Or perhaps they are not so obtuse, but choose instead to pander to their most extreme constituencies–those who themselves have so often been misled by the bombastic political and ideological voices they have trusted without reservation. They appear to have forgotten or have chosen to ignore the indispensable role America has played and continues to play in international affairs. The post-World War Two world became a saner place largely because of American leadership. The twenty-first century world is fraught with fresh challenges and risks, and it needs more than simplistic solutions and cheap platitudes to keep our country safe, relevant, and competitive. Constructive legislation and statecraft require mature, responsible statesmen who can manage in a complex world, rather than self-serving ideologues and opportunistic demagogues. The former have grown scarce in our politics.

So what do we see before us in this new year? Millions of Americans who believe absurdities, who blindly and unreservedly support political charlatans from the incessantly mendacious Donald Trump to the cynical purveyors of completely debunked lies about fraud in the 2020 election. Those determined underminers of confidence in our democratic institutions along with media con men exploit their fears, refuse to tell them hard truths, and are cavalierly willing to dispense with the very principles that brought this nation and its blessings into existence. The ominous rumblings of authoritarianism remind us of what began in Europe a century ago, and ended in Berlin in 1945, only after so much devastation, death, and sacrifice. But it ended with the triumph of democracy and freedom. America was the exemplar of that triumphant worldview and the model for the liberal democratic world order that has kept us safe for over seventy years. In this election year, attacks on the foundations of American democracy and our national institutions occur daily through disinformation and demagogy. The legacy of the Greatest Generation hangs in the balance, and the endurance of America’s experiment in democracy can no longer be taken for granted. This year think, reflect carefully on American history, read widely and consider all points of view, but bear in mind, not every idea is worthy or valid. Inform yourself and apply reason and careful judgement. Then in November of this year, vote!

Remember Benjamin Franklin’s response following the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia in 1787 when asked what kind of government the delegates had established: A republic, if you can keep it.

Most Americans born after 1950 will not remember the holiday called Armistice Day. That’s because Armistice Day, which was celebrated to honor the end of the First World War, the conflict that President Woodrow Wilson called “the war to end all wars”, was changed to Veterans Day by act of Congress and signed into law by President Dwight D. Eisenhower on 1 June 1954. Thereafter, not just the service of veterans of the “Great War,” as it was called then, but that of all veterans of the armed forces of the United States would be honored on that date: November 11, the date in 1918 when the armistice was signed between the victorious Western Powers and a defeated Germany. In Europe, the United Kingdom and several other nations continue to celebrate Armistice Day.

Subsequent history has shown how naively aspirational President Wilson’s hope was. The United States, which until its entry into World War I was temperamentally isolationist, has become inextricably involved in global affairs, and has frequently had to project military force, wisely or unwisely, to protect its vital interests, deter aggression, and maintain a liberal world order that seeks to establish the rule of law and promote democracy. That project has not always worked out, as the Vietnam War and the wars in the Middle East have shown. The world is a complex place. There are so many variables to consider: history, society, economy, language, culture, religion, as well as international alliances and rivalries. It is quite difficult to get it right. It is often the case that we get it wrong. The practice of diplomacy and statesmanship requires intelligence, rational reflection–and patience. And faith in our American values doesn’t hurt.

Over the years, since the change from Armistice Day to Veterans Day, there have been critics who strenuously objected to the replacement of Armistice Day by Veterans Day. One critic, a former US Army ranger who left the military as a conscientious objecter, wrote, in an article in The Guardian on Veterans Day in 2014, that the holiday placed its emphasis on military valor and war heroes rather than on the establishment of peace and remembering the pain and suffering of war. The latter, he said, had been the focus of Armistice Day. Writer Kurt Vonnegut, a World War Two veteran, also criticized the change to Veterans Day. In 2018, he said, “Armistice Day has become Veterans Day. Armistice Day was sacred. Veterans’ Day is not. So I will throw Veterans’ Day over my shoulder.”

Each individual can choose for themselves how to interpret the significance of Armistice Day versus Veterans Day. One might lean more toward honoring the making of peace and the grief that accompanies the end of bloody and brutal military conflict; another might prefer to emphasize the courage and sacrifice of the warrior who has often had to assume a fearsome duty. Whichever alternative one values in finding the “meaning” of such commemorations, it cannot be denied that all those who have stood the watch on remote frontiers or borne the burden of perilous conflict deserve our praise and our gratitude. For without their willigness to serve and defend our freedom, we would be a lesser nation, and meekly subject to the will of authoritarian and totalitarian entities whose belligerence and predations have defined international relations since ancient times. Freedom is not free. As Thomas Jefferson said, “the price of liberty is eternal vigilance.”

On this day, whether you prefer Veterans Day or Armistice Day, let all Americans, united in the dream that has inspired us since the founding fathers declared that we “are, and of right ought to be, free and independent states,” express our pride and gratitude for the faithful service of the men and women, past and present, of the Armed Forces of the United States of America. God bless the USA.

Well, it finally happened to us. Adele and I tested positive for Covid-19 a couple of days ago, and we have been quarantining and taking the prescribed treatment, Paxlovid, since. So there it is, even after receiving the two initial vaccinations followed by two boosters, as it turns out, we could not elude this nasty disease. All through the worst of the pandemic we followed all of the CDC advice, wore our masks, kept our distance, and went unscathed. But there is a newly evolved, highly transmissible variant, BA.2.86,  currently making the rounds, and our previous vaccines offer only a little protection from it. But even some protection is better than none especially when it comes to Covid-19. When the new vaccine becomes available, we plan to take it. How did we catch it? The likelihood is that we became infected during our recent travel back to Connecticut about two weeks ago.

So we have now joined the latest crop of Covid-19 victims, and are suffering the familiar respiratory symptoms associated with it. While we feel miserable, we are, nevertheless, both quite grateful and fortunate that, at our ages, we have been spared the devastating effects of the disease that has tormented and taken the lives of so many unfortunate souls. Our neighbors have been quick to look in on us and generously offer their help. And with the prayers of our relatives and friends, we will get through this painful period.

The moral of this story: the pandemic might be over, but Covid-19 still lurks about, evolving new forms, looking for new hosts. The best defense against this nasty culprit: maintain a healthy lifestyle, and when the need arises, follow sound medical advice. Above all, be sensible and inform yourself properly about the virus from trustworthy sources. Avoid nonsense, rumors, and the wrong-headed malarkey purveyed by self-styled “medical experts” on social media. Here’s wishing you continued good health.

Today marks the start of the Battle of Gettysburg one hundred sixty years ago, a bloody engagement that went on for three days. Most historians see this battle as the turning point of the American Civil War, a war to save the Union, a war to end slavery. It is imperative today that we do not forget the values and principles that so many died to protect and defend. Yet many of the attitudes and actions current at the time of the Civil War continue to resonate in our contemporary social interactions. The political turmoil we face today would not be very surprising to citizens in 1863. Sadly, we have yet to fully learn the lessons of that bitterly strife-torn era. And as the old adage goes, if we fail to learn the lessons of history, we are doomed to repeat them.

Recent attempts to dismantle our federal republic, piece by piece, through various special-interest programs and the unabashedly partisan actions of state legislatures and opportunistic state executives, should give all of us pause to consider what was achieved at Gettysburg, at a dreadfully high cost. The “states’ rights” advocates of that era would not countenance any interference with their “peculiar institution,” their slavery-based economy, which they defended on the basis of their long-standing traditions, their perceived economic necessity, and their self-serving interpretation of the Bible. The reemergence of a latent nostalgia for that “lost Confederate cause” coupled with feelings that America’s institutions, from government to healthcare and education, are corrupt and have been insidiously marshalled against “real” Americans, has pushed the polarization of the American polity to the brink. Emotions are running high, and resentments are so acute that a disturbing number of our fellow citizens now regularly vilify those they disagree with and justify changing government and society by any means necessary–including violence. The danger to our democracy has seldom been greater.

All American citizens have the right, guaranteed in the US Constitution, to express their views as vigorously as they wish, and no one must be discouraged from participating in the political process. Likewise, all citizens have the duty to respect the law and defend the institutions of government that have been established by that venerable document. That means there is a definite line that must not be crossed. Upon the ratification of the Constitution, one of our great founding fathers, Benjamin Franklin, was asked what kind of government we had. He replied, “A republic, if you can keep it.”

That is our solemn obligation, to keep our republic. Despite those who would disgracefully violate their oaths of office, or manipulate laws to satisfy narrow-minded political objectives, or provoke resentment and mischief against the very foundations of our democratic order, this republic will stand, just as it stood throughout that great conflict one hundred sixty years ago. I am confident we are resilient enough to endure these misguided incursions against America’s founding principles and its hard-won freedoms. Prior to the Civil War, references to America used the plural: “these United States are.” Following the restoration of the Union in 1865 and ever since, reference has been in the singular: “the United States of America is.” We had truly become one nation, not simply a conglomeration of states, each seeking solely to further its own interest. Now we truly had a common interest.

Obligations and responsibilities, not only rights, come with our federal union. And that is how we must go forward, respecting the brilliant legacy that our founding fathers created and willed to us. What we have achieved as a nation has become a beacon for the world. It is why desperate human beings the world over continue to flee from oppression and tyranny and seek refuge here to become part of this democratic society and share in the American dream. Throughout most of our history we have received legions of “huddled masses yearning to breathe free,” the “tired and poor” from the teeming shores of several continents. All in their time have integrated productively into our society, enriching it with a plethora of diverse cultures and ethnicities. No one denies that there were times when the newcomers faced serious difficulties blending in, but together we worked to overcome them–compassion, fairness, and good will are American traits, too. And today we are all Americans.

And we have more to do. Our unfinished national task (Abraham Lincoln spelled it out for us at Gettysburg in 1863) is to pledge ourselves to keep striving to “create a more perfect union,” and by staying faithful to that commitment, I am convinced that America the beautiful “will have a new birth of freedom, and that government of the people, by the people, and for the people shall not perish from the earth.”

Here we are, 79 years later, pausing once again to remember that pivotal episode of the Second World War: the Allied invasion of Adolf Hitler’s so-called Fortress Europe to begin the restoration of a continent brutalized by nazism. The cost has been sufficiently described by many different writers and commentators, but this month The American Legion’s website features an article that recounts an inspiring visit in 1984 by Lieutenant General James Gavin (“Jumpin’ Jim“) to a gathering of veterans of the 82nd Airborne Division on the Normandy battlefield to honor the achievements of the troops who fought there on 6 June 1944. The article, The heart to do what others cannot, by Col. Keith Nightingale, U.S. Army, retired, describes how much General Gavin’s speech meant to the contemporary troopers who attended the gathering. Jumpin’ Jim Gavin led the airborne assault on Normandy on D-Day. The article is an inspiring read, and talks about how today’s battle-hardened airborne soldiers continue to identify with and to be moved by the valor and ingenuity of their predecessors, highlighting the continuity of a tradition shared by brothers-in-arms. I recommend checking it out on the website.

While we’re on the subject, I would like to recommend another article, appearing in the June 2023 edition of The American Legion magazine, intitled, OUT of ORDER: We are at risk of losing all that America and its allies built in the wake of World War II. The author, Alan W. Dowd, a senior fellow with the Sagamore Institute Center for America’s Purpose, describes the foundations of what “some call the ‘rules-based democratic order,’ and others the ‘liberal international order.'” He goes on to say, “These terms may seem esoteric, but they are just descriptions of how America and its allies have tried to make the world work in the decades since World War II.” After describing the goal of the rules-based democratic order the free world was aiming at, he writes, “Contrary to those who dismiss the liberal international order as some gauzy outgrowth of 1990s globalism, key American statesmen considered it an essential part of America’s security throughout the postwar era.” He then reports the efforts of those statesmen and leaders to achieve that goal and what will happen if the enemies of that goal are allowed to have their way. “If the free world proves unable today to follow the example of those men, hostile regimes will replace the liberal order with something less liberal and less orderly.” Dowd then reviews the actions of illiberal regimes like Putin’s and Xi’s, not to mention that of Kim Jong Un, and the threat to world order posed by dictators like them: “…these regimes are working together to destroy the liberal international order.” He goes on to answer the critics of the present world order—most of whom rail against the costs of maintaining our global alliances—and then concludes by citing what those responsible for our defense have said. “There are costs to maintaining a liberal international order. But the costs of a world that’s out of order are higher. As Milley (Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Mark Milley) recently detailed, the collapse of the liberal order would mean doubling U.S. budgets and likely ‘an era of great-power conflict’.” Then he cites Milley’s review of the horrendous cost in lives and destruction that characterized the frequent periods of armed conflict prior to the establishment of the liberal international order, and Milley’s conclusion, “That’s what this international order that’s been in existence for seven and a half decades is designed to prevent.”

Dowd concludes the article with a statement from General James Mattis, “The postwar, rules-based international order is the greatest gift of the Greatest Generation.” Dowd closes with “The free world has the power to preserve this precious gift. What remains to be seen is if it has the will.”

So now, let’s remember what this day truly means. Political activity meant to debate, discuss, and critique different approaches to economic and social issues are welcome. Diversity of opinion envigorates discussion and is essential to solve problems; we eagerly support that. The founding fathers praised and advocated the free martketplace of ideas. But political activity that arrogates to itself alone the right to determine and constrain what others should believe, think, and do, and directs its efforts both rhetorical and actual at dismantling our rules-based democratic system promotes only resentment and chaos and will result inevitably in the destruction of what our Greatest Generation fought so valiantly to defend. Fellow Americans, let’s not let that happen. Let’s not forget.

[In memoriam, Pvt. George A. Marrash, 23 Infantry Regiment, 2nd Infantry Division, DOW, 17 July 1944]