AIR FORCE MONUMENT
The President and the Secretary of Defense were on hand for the dedication of the new Air Force Monument. Both of them made speeches in which they assured the audience of 60,000 that the war on terrorism is definitely being won.
The President came to the speaker's platform in the middle of the ceremony. The audience was polite, but neither Bush nor Rumsfeld got enthusiastic applause (many of us kept our hands in our pockets). The President seems to have lost his swagger. Rumsfeld made jokes, but Bush did not. If Mr. Bush were a brighter man, we might consider him a tragic figure; but he lacks the intelligence and the nobility for that.
The monument is spectacular. Three tapering towers of stainless steel rise from a base like contrails rising in a Thunderbirds demonstration. Airplanes from each decade of eighty years of Air Force history flew overhead at appropriate times during the ceremony.
For finale the Thunderbirds flew in formation into a space directly above us and then went straight up, leaving the iconic contrails. The monument sits on a slight hill behind the Pentagon, a little to the south of Arlington Cemetery. I like to think of it not as a monument to war but as a symbol of my appreciation for good guys like Joe and Doug.
2 comments:
Isn't George Bush a lawyer? Hmmm. A ranter/comedian/actor from Canada named Rick Mercer got into a media scrum in your country prior to Bush's first election victory and asked the candidate Bush a mock question. (I'll see if I can find a link). The candidates response should have given everyone the heads up as to what to expect from the lawyer.
Up here in Canada, we have two good guys. Bob and Doug (Mackenzie), eh? : ) I don't know who you mean by Joe and Doug.
George Bush is not a lawyer. I doubt that he could have been focused enough to get through a legitimate law school program.
Joe and Doug are San Diego, ex-Air Force officers...good guys who see the war in Iraq as high folly...great tragedy.
Thanks, Firebird, for your comments.
Jerral
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