Memorial Day Remarks 2019

THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA began as an idea.  And those who died so the idea may live--and become a reality--are remembered today.

     The price was high in revolutionary times.  "And for the support of this Declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of Divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our lives, our fortunes, and our sacred honor."  The same is still true.  For we take an oath to support and defend the supreme law of the land--"against all enemies, foreign and domestic."

     The Declaration and the Constitution remind us of the demands of citizenship.  Yet only a few bear the burden, only a few pay the price.  But George Washington--the man who was Commander in Chief of the Continental Forces and in the field with his troops--had something else in mind.  As President, he directed Secretary of War Henry Knox, a former artillery officer, to send a report to Congress in support of Universal National Service.

     The two oaths--"our lives, our fortunes, and our sacred honor" and "So help me God"--are about duty.  Thus, Memorial Day is for those who gave the last full measure of devotion.  And Memorial Day is an opportunity for all Americans to remember the demands of citizenship, especially those who aspire to leadership of the Republic, as the Knox Report reminds us:  "Therefore, it ought to be a permanent rule, that those who in youth decline or refuse to subject themselves to the course of military education, established by the laws, should be considered as unworthy of public trust or public honors, and be excluded therefrom accordingly."

     May God bless all the members of the Armed Forces, the Intelligence Community, and the Diplomatic Corps.  And may God bless the United States of America.

(c)2019 Marvin D. Jones.  All rights reserved.