Tomb of the Known Soldier

Over Memorial Day weekend, CNN ran a segment on an Iowa-based National Guard unit sent to Iraq. Most came from close-by, small-town farming communities, where apparently it's seen as a wonderful thing to serve in the Guard. There are brothers and sisters, fathers and sons, even husbands and wives, together serving their country. In such a place, hardly unique in America, the Guard is as much a part of the local culture as church, the Grange, or the Rotary Club.

CNN followed both the soldiers in Iraq and the families back home, highlighting the stress on everyone and how they coped with separation, the casualties, the funerals. I was saddened, later angry. There was a lot to admire about these folks. Their life and beliefs are uncomplicated; their passion for their country and trust in its leadership religious in nature, more than anything. It's almost like The Museum of the Great Generation, with all those WW II era words and sentiments carrying them through a life running supply convoys through some of the most dangerous territory in the country.

In ceremonies at Arlington cemetery every year, our President places a wreath on the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, but a few things about the body in the grave are known. He's a boy from someplace like Iowa, the salt of the earth, someone who placed their trust in the American system and paid the ultimate sacrifice. George Bush, as President, dishonored that trust and misused that faith by ignoring the heart and soul of our American values, thereby changing the deal with those our country depends on to defend it. When this President places the wreath before the grave and utters holy words of loyalty and sacrifice, it is a national disgrace.