On this Memorial Day, I am proud to thank all of those who served our country defending our freedom and rights as we know them today. While it is easy to thank them it is even more important to understand the long-term effects their fighting spirit had on our nation, freedom. While Memorial Day honors those who died, we should remember to respect their sacrifice every day, for it was for them that we are here.

Names of Vietnam veterans at Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C.
photo Hu Totya via wikipedia

Famous Quotes

1. As I approach the gates of heaven;
   St. Peter I will tell;
   One more soldier reporting sir;
   I’ve served my time in hell. -Mark Anthony Gresswell
2. The dead soldier’s silence sings our national anthem. -Rev. Aaron Kilbourn
3. So long as there are men there will be wars. -Albert Einstein
4. For love of country they accepted death… –James A. Garfield
5. On thy grave the rain shall fall from the eyes of a mighty nation! -Thomas William Parsons
6. The cost of liberty is less than the cost of repression. -W.E.B.Dubois
7. A hero is someone who has given his or her life to something bigger than oneself. -Joseph Campbell
8. A hero is one who knows how to hang on one minute longer.-Novalis
9. And I’m proud to be an American,
   where at least I know I’m free.
   And I won’t forget the men who died,
   who gave that right to me.
   -Lee Greenwood
10. In war, there are no unwounded soldiers.  -José Narosky
11. The tragedy of war is that it uses man’s best to do man’s worst.  -Henry Fosdick
12. Some people live an entire lifetime and wonder if they have ever made a difference in the world, but the Marines don’t have that problem. — Ronald Reagan
13. Courage is fear holding on a minute longer. -George S. Patton
14. It is not only the living who are killed in war. -Isaac Asimov
15. In the beginning of a change, the patriot is a scarce man, and brave, and hated and scorned. When his cause succeeds, the timid join him, for then it costs nothing to be a patriot. -Mark Twain

Mount_soledad cross at War Memorial photo by Jay Buffington public domain via wikipedia

Links to  War Memorials

American Revolution

War of 1812 historic sites

Mexican-American War Memorial website (there is not a national memorial)

National Civil War Memorial

African-American Civil War Museum and Memorial

Spanish-American War

World War I Memorial

World War II Memorial

Korean War Memorial

The Vietnam War Memorial

Persian Gulf War- a website showcasing various memorial’s around the US