11/11/2023

 

So far as I know it has never been established for certain that "My Buddy" was about a fellow Dougboy who didn't make it home -- so far as I can tell neither Gus Kahn (lyricist) nor Walter Donaldson (music) served overseas, if at all, but that is the general assumption.

Lyricist Yip Harburg and composer Jay Gorney did serve in WW the First. Harburg was a commie, but what are ya gonna do?

And for Pete's sake, if you see Mike Royko don't tell him I worked in VeteransDay. 

A moment of silence

 For those who are gone, or who didn't make it back.

"The Glorious 25th of May"

 

Then and Now

 Just found this, which I saved in 1999 shortly before my retirement, and has been taking up room on my hard drive ever since.

The Military: 1945 vs 1999

•  1945 - NCOs had a typewriter on their desks for doing daily reports.
• 1999 - everyone has an Internet access computer, and they wonder why no work is getting done.

 

• 1945 - we painted pictures of girls on airplanes to remind us of home.
• 1999 - they put the real thing in the cockpit.

 

•  1945 - your girlfriend was at home praying you would return alive.
• 1999 - she is in the same trench praying your condom worked.

• 1945 - if you got drunk off duty your buddies would take you back to the barracks to sleep it off.
• 1999 - if you get drunk they slap you in rehab and ruin your career.

 

• 1945 - you were taught to aim at your enemy and shoot him.
• 1999 - you spray 500 bullets into the brush, don't hit anything, and retreat because you're out of ammo.

 

• 1945 - canteens were made of steel, and you could heat coffee or hot chocolate in them.
• 1999 - canteens are made of plastic, you can't heat anything in them, and they always taste like plastic.

 

• 1945 - officers were professional soldiers first and they commanded respect.
• 1999 - officers are politicians first and beg not to be given a wedgie.

 

• 1945 - they collected enemy intelligence and analyzed it.
• 1999 - they collect your pee and analyze it.

 

• 1945 - if you didn't act right, the Sergeant Major put you in the brig until you straightened up.
• 1999 - if you don't act right, they start a paper trail that follows you forever.

 

• 1945 - medals were awarded to heroes who saved lives at the risk of their own.
• 1999 - medals are awarded to people who work at headquarters.

 

• 1945 - you slept in barracks like a soldier.
• 1999 - you sleep in a dormitory like a college kid.

 

• 1945 - you ate in a mess hall, which was free, and you could have all the food you wanted.
• 1999 - you eat in a dining facility, every slice of bread or pad of butter costs, and you better not take too much.

 

• 1945 - we defeated powerful countries like Germany and Japan.
• 1999 - we come up short against Iraq and Yugoslavia.

 

• 1945 - if you wanted to relax, you went to the rec center, played pool, smoked and drank beer.
• 1999 - you go to the community center, and you can play pool.

 

• 1945 - if you wanted beer and conversation you went to the NCO or Officers' Club.
• 1999 - the beer will cost you $2.75, membership is forced, and someone is watching how much you drink.

 

• 1945 - the Exchange had bargains for soldiers who didn't make much money.
• 1999 - you can get better and cheaper merchandise at Walmart.

 

• 1945 - we could recognize the enemy by their Nazi helmets.
• 1999 - we are wearing the Nazi helmets.

 

• 1945 - we called the enemy names like "Krauts" and "Japs" because we didn't like them.
• 1999 - we call the enemy the "opposing force" or "aggressor" because we don't want to offend them.

 

• 1945 - victory was declared when the enemy was defeated and all his things were broken.
• 1999 - victory is declared when the enemy says he is sorry.

 

• 1945 - a commander would put his butt on the line to protect his people.
• 1999 - a commander will put his people on the line to protect his butt.

 

• 1945 - wars were planned and run by generals with lots of important victories.
• 1999 - wars are planned by politicians with lots of equivocating.

 

• 1945 - we were fighting for freedom, and the country was committed to winning.
• 1999 - we don't know what we're fighting for, and the government is committed to social programs (used to be called 'socialism').

 

• 1945 - all you could think about was getting out and becoming a civilian again.
• 1999 - all you can think about is getting out and becoming a civilian again.

Memorial Day

Many readers will remember when Memorial Day was always observed on May 30th, and depending on where they are from, may recall it being called Decoration Day.

Disputes abound as to where it started, when the first observance was, and what date it was observed. The first well-documented observance was as a proclamation by the Grand Army of the Republic, an organization of veterans of the Union military of the American Civil War. It is said that May 30th was selected because no major battles occurred on that date.

Memorial Day, as many of my fellow veterans are wont to remind people, is the day we remember those who didn't come back, or who are now gone. This seems fitting to me. 

November 11th

And on the Eleventh Hour of the Eleventh Day of the Eleventh Month, the guns fell silent...

...Alas, all too temporarily.

In America, it's Veteran's Day, a day to remember all who served.

In Canada and elsewhere in Commonwealth nations,  it's Remembrance Day.

Don't do it

So, at one time one of my favorite songs was the theme song to M*A*SH,  which, of course, is entitled "Suicide is painless." Nice song.

Evil sentiment.

You might end your own pain, but you just transfer it to those who care about you.

Instapundit » Blog Archive » PAY ATTENTION: Men’s Depression Is Subtle. But It Can Kill….

Link goes here: Bob Owens' Suicide

I never met Bob Owens.  I dropped comments at one or the other of his blogs over the years, but so far as I know he never knew who I am.

Nevertheless, we in the gun blogging and gun rights' communities have lost one of our own.

The sad thing is, I was discussing this matter the other day with a peer and colleague and friend at work, who was concerned about one of her crew. I suppose she expected me to pull some magic solution out of my ass, since he is also a retired NCO. I'm sure she was disappointed when I came up blank.

Bob Owens' Suicide

This is a man's depression.

It starts subtly, covertly. It creeps in on little cat feet.

It isn't a feeling of sadness. You're irritable, irascible, short-tempered. Often, you feel unusually tired, often achy -- it feels like you have a bit of a cold, or maybe the flu. You're not hungry, or you're hungry but nothing tastes good, nothing is appealing.

You start having trouble sleeping. Either you can't get to sleep, or you get to sleep but wake up at 3 a.m., and can't get back to sleep. Either way, you lie awake, and your thoughts start going to dark places -- replaying humiliations from your past, or fantasizing trouble in your future.

Of course, now that you're missing sleep, you're even more tired, more cranky. People start to wonder what's wrong, but they don't ask because it's not the sort of thing one does; and you know something is wrong, but you don't talk about it because you've been taught since childhood that men just pull up their socks and get on with life. Besides, it's not like anyone can do anything -- you just need to gut it out. No one said you were going to be happy all the time.

Go read the whole thing. And look out for the signs, if your buddy, your brother, your husband father co-worker neighbor whoever is showing the signs.

He may not know what is wrong.  The problem is especially acute in "macho" fields like the military, law enforcement, construction, and so forth.

I'll close with a quote of the final paragraph of Charlie Martins' essay:

If this sounds familiar, if you see yourself in this description, you may be depressed, and yes, you can be depressed and not realize it. This is a depression screener; it doesn't take long. If you're thinking those dark thoughts, the National Suicide Prevention Hotline is there, 24 hours a day and 7 days a week, at 800-273-8255. They understand, it's completely anonymous, and you don't have to be suicidal to call them. And if you're of a mind to, there is a GoFundMe for Bob Owens' wife and kids.

11/11

Mike Royko  on Veteran's Day (from Blackfive)
(And, yes, I am working today...)

"My Buddy"

Once again, Memorial Day is not about those of us who made it home, it's about those who "Gave Their All."

It's never said so in the song, but the assumption from the day it was released is that it was for a friend who never made it back from "Over There."

Lyrics are found here.

I'd never heard this version before. It may be a bit of a change from what most expect from Jerry Jeff Walker, and I think my buddy George would have liked it. There was really no reason for us to hit it off as well as we did, other than a mutual interest in guns and hunting. And Science Fiction. And a shared distrust of authority, which I suppose seems odd to those who never served, in a couple of NCO's.

But we did, and I always had a couch to sleep on if I needed to get away from the barracks, even if I needed to drive 800 miles to do it. (Long weekends. Great things, but don't tell the Army I drove that far in a night...)

Like me, George served overseas several times, but never saw combat except for on TV.

Somewhere I read that a high percentage of military, police, and fire/rescue retirees die about a year after retirement. That was the case for George; one night he stood up and then hit the floor.

Pat, his wife, told me later that when she was filing for survivor  benefits the person from the VA took one look at his retirement physical and upgraded him retroactively to 100% disabled. She also told me that he kept getting a job, and then waking out when they told him he had to join a union. He figured if he joined a union that would mean two bosses, which was at least one too many.

Eventually I lost contact with Pat and her kids. She went her way, and put her life back together. This being before cell phones, the Internet, and social media, keeping in touch meant expensive long distance bills or actually writing a letter and mailing it, and the Army was keeping me pretty busy then; even when I moved back to within a hundred miles of where they were, I met the future Mrs. Drang and was otherwise occupied.

Speaking of upgrading George's disability, this is the other sing I usually play on Memorial and Veteran's Days:

Hey don't ya remember...?

Well, that's not supposed to happen...

Members of the US military are covered under Servicemembers Group Life Insurance, or SGLI. It's a pretty good deal, considering that you are subject to going to unpleasant places and living an unpleasant lifestyle, which you may not survive.

Upon separation from the service --  discharge, retirement -- one has the option of converting it to Veteran's Group Life Insurance, or VGLI.

For years decades there has been a rumor that would periodically pop up that a "dividend" was being paid based on performance, or over-payments, or something. I don't think anyone knows how it started, I first heard it back in the early 80s. I always suspected it was part of some kind of scam that I was too naive to unravel.

Until now.

I got a refund check for overpayment. Not huge, it'll pay for a nice, but not epic, night out.

So I suspect that someone got a refund, and the rumor mill took over, and the next thing you knew...

At the eleventh hour, of the eleventh day, of the eleventh month...

...the guns fell silent.

In Flanders fields the poppies blow
Between the crosses, row on row,
That mark our place; and in the sky
The larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce heard amid the guns below.

We are the Dead. Short days ago
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
Loved and were loved, and now we lie
In Flanders fields.

Take up our quarrel with the foe:
To you from failing hands we throw
The torch; be yours to hold it high.
If ye break faith with us who die
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
In Flanders fields.
LTC John McCrae

In America, of course,  this poem is usually reserved for Memorial Day; however, what was once known here as Armistice Day is still known in most commonwealth nations as simply "Poppy Day", and serves the same purpose as Memorial Day here. Especially since the poem was written by a serving Canadian officer, I felt it was appropriate.

Also, FWIW, if I did the time conversion correctly this will post at 1100 AM UTC -1, Paris, France time.

A Good Guy Needs Help

You will no doubt have heard that yet another beta male crawled out of his Mama's basement long enough yesterday to try for his 15 minutes of fame down in Roseberg, OR.

Since the campus of Umpqua Community College is a Designated Victimization Zone he managed to rack up a fairly significant score before the local constabulary cleansed him from the gene pool.

One of his victims, Chris Mintz, is an Army vet who reacted to the threat by charging it in an effort to save others. Chris survived, but he was shot seven times and is in the hospital.

A Go Fund Me page has been set up to help pay for his medical care and also to support his family while he is recovering: Chris Mintz - UCC Shooting Survivor by Derek Bourgeois - GoFundMe.

Yeah, about that...

People keep saying "We need a president who served in the military!"

Especially if they're support (or are) a veteran running for president.

About that...

William Henry Harrison, great president there...

Ulysses S. Grant, too, highly successful administration.

Ditto for his predecessor, Andrew Johnson.

And then there were those great statesmen Lyndon B. Johnson, Richard M. Nixon, and Jimmy Carter.

So, yeah, let's drop that idea, shall we? I'm looking at you, Governor Perry.

Every year about this time...

...I find myself biting my tongue rather than sound like a snippy old schoolmarm or something, pointing out to people that Memorial Day, FKA Decoration Day, is the day we remember those who did not make it back from the wars, NOT when we thank those who happen to have worn a uniform, whether they went anywhere and did anything particularly onerous.

That one is Veteran's Day, FKA Armistice Day.

This year, it is apparently also necessary to point out that Memorial/Decoration Day is an AMERICAN holiday.

US of A.

Veteran's/Armistice Day is also known in Commonwealth nations as Poppy or Remembrance Day; the custom of using poppies to commemorate the dead is a reference to the poem Flanders Fields, by Canadian Lieutenant Colonel John McCrae.

And now I am seeing people post photos of Lancaster bombers and Spitfire fighters buzzing a field of poppies, urging Americans to observe Memorial Day.

Dream on, bureaucrap

SayUncle » How to tell which veterans have what guns

The Best Veteran's Day Post Ever

Some punk at work was chortling about working today "because Holiday Pay!"

I can pretty much guarantee that the only uniform this kid ever wore involved the equivalent of flippin' burgers and dippin' fries, So the great Mike Royko would have approved of his working on November 11th, although he would probably have been disgusted by the thought of his getting "holiday pay."

So, without further ado, The Greatest Veteran's Day Article Ever:

***

Mike Royko's Veterans Day Column, 1993

I just phoned six friends and asked them what they will be doing on Monday.

They all said the same thing: working.

Me, too.

There is something else we share. We are all military veterans.

And there is a third thing we have in common. We are not employees of the federal government, state government, county government, municipal government, the Postal Service, the courts, banks, or S & Ls, and we don’t teach school.

If we did, we would be among the many millions of people who will spend Monday goofing off.
{More after the break  --DWD}

Earworm, 11/11 Edition

This popped up on the satellite radio "40's" station on the way home from work:

One thing that impressed me was that it was correctly labeled "The Duckworth Chant."

Here's a period recording of the Duckworth Chant, recorded at the post where Private Duckworth made it up; it included a lengthy intro.

(The Wikipedia article about the Duckworth Chant quotes that page; it has more info on cadences in general, though.)

I am impressed that the brass seem to have been OK to references to Jody from the start...


My favorite renditions:

At one time I had quite the rep for knowing all the good Jodys. 

Here's some more info: Cadences

Soup's on!

Mrs Drang and I helped Soldier's Angels serve lunch to vets at the American Lake VA Center south if Tacoma today.

(Minor editing applied, primarily to layout.)

Chow donated by the Olive Garden restaurant of Tacoma.  (And picked up by us*.)

Tray pack spaghetti! :-p

 

*As a follow-up to my previous post, it took us half an hour to get to Tacoma to pick up the chow! 

The Best Years Of Our Lives

In the article linked to below, I learned that the classic movie The Best Years Of Our Lives, about what happened to three members of The Greatest Generation, and their families, when they came marching home, is on Turner Classic Movies tonight.

The Best Years of Our Lives | Power Line

Its an interesting "making of" article, too.