[Animayhem]

To all those who have and currently are.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5MtdIO23MKM

[EdinSumar]

For those less enthusiastic about the American militarism, for one reason or another, I'd like to draw attention to another reason that today is important.

Today, 1887, the Haymarket Martyrs lost their lives to the injustice of the US "justice" system.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Haymarket_Riot

We remember the sacrifice of the anarchists and socialists August Spies, Albert Parsons, Adolph Fischer and George Engel, executed by the capitalist state. Their contributions to the labor movement resulted in much of the good that we enjoy today, like the weekend and 8-hour work-day. While the Red Scare has marred their memory among the less politically conscious, they will always be remembered by radical workers everywhere, and the red and black flags still fly for them. On Mayday we remember their lives, and the contributions they gave the labor movement, even though the capitalist state has attempted to de-politicize the day as the generic "Labor Day" and thus instill within it an illusion of non-ideology. On this day, however, we mourn the loss of these fine men.

Power to the people, Evviva il socialismo e la libertà!

[Animayhem]

With respect to your post Edin, regardless of whether wars we should or should not have been in, men and women have given their lives many gone unknown or acknowledged to allow you and me to speak as we do since before our official birth in 1776.

We have many players who are and and have served. I work for and with Veterans.
I have seen what they experienced after service the good, the bad and ugly.
I am not a Veteran nor do I think war is the answer and have had many family in the various theaters. I make no judgments on why they served. They did what they felt they had to do.
I am lucky to be able to give some small service back, this post being one of them.

I hope this does not turn into a heated debate. It was not my intention.

Peace

[EdinSumar]

This is not an American forum, not all people here are American. I don't know how others feel about this issue, but I don't particularly feel inclined to be reminded of the days dedicated to an imperialist force serving an imperialist national entity. It has very little relevance to my day, as I am sure being reminded of all the socialists who have bled and died for the working class has little interest for you. The army of America does very little to preserve my freedom, and on a worldwide scene has contributed much more to the erosion of freedom than anything else (referring here specifically to places like Chile, Vietnam, etc).

Anyways, I'd rather not make this a heated debate, either, but I can't allow you to make obviously militaristic and US-centric posts as if it was something we should all just find acceptable, without somehow making a counterpoint. I have a very good first-hand, and many second-hand and third-hand reasons to believe that the American army is not a force for "good" in this world, least of all a force for preserving some ethereal sense of "freedom" in it. Your posts might not be intended as political propaganda but that's the effect they have, and they serve to normalize American military culture as being something we should celebrate, and there are very few good reasons to celebrate American military culture.

Culturally and politically, so much of the world is already a subject to American imperialism, I'd prefer not seeing it on forums dedicated to my recreational activity, and if it does rear its head I feel like I have an obligation to make clear that I do have objections to it. I don't really flaunt my political and ideological viewpoints on the forums whenever there is a chance to do so, even though the forums (as far as I know) does not have a policy against political and ideological viewpoints being expressed on it, I only introduce them to counterbalance other expressions of ideology.

With that said, respectfully, I'll stay out of this topic now, in the interest of not making it heated.

[Purulent Carcass]

Anyone, in any country that has had to serve in the military can be remembered and given a nod of aknowledgement. Plenty of people join the military in the hopes of bettering their lives and the lives of their families and friends. There is nothing wrong with taking a day out to do that, no matter where you are. So while this may be an official US holiday and seems to have no bearing on the rest of the world, we all know exactly how much bearing the US military actually DOES have on this world, and those of you not from this country might consider that the people that serve in that imperialistic military are .. just people. Most of them coming from mid to lower economic brackets and are by and large decent folks who joined that imperialistic military to make a diffrence. I see no problem with someone voicing a shout out, one day a year on this forum because we actually have players here, who are veterans.

[kta]

Since I indeed see this might after all turn into a heated debate I am going to close this topic.

KTA