I am so fortunate to be born in USA, in California, in L.A. County. It is my belief that many of you reading this will express the same sentiment, to varying degrees. For those who lament: Please be mindful, and relieve yourselves.
Today (June 14) marks the 250th anniversary of the founding of the U.S. Army, formed to address the despotic rule and militarization against colonists by King George. There will be a military parade in D.C. Many citizens across the nation will in alternative be attending “No Kings” protests as well, to express their discontent with recent political developments.
I did not recall what celebrations, if any, happened on the Army’s 200th birthday back in 1975. That year public sentiment was low, in the shambles of the Vietnam conflict, a war we inherited from the French whose colony had been communized. Congress made a law months before (now called the Uniformed Services Employment and Re-employment Rights Act) to protect and promote beneficial treatment of veterans. No such law existed prior to that. It passed in the wake of very low public opinion of returning servicemen, even though many in service were unwitting, even unwilling, in their conscripted service. Some speculation was that citizens, upset that congressional duty to declarative war was being superseded by executive-ordered warfare, had unfairly aimed their ire at returning servicemen. As it turns out, though, executive-ordered warfare is our standard operating procedure now. So they were right. King 1, Citizens 0.
Setting that aside, I did find some fun stuff about our armed services’ 200th anniversary back in ’75.
Time magazine had a paragraph mentioning the anniversary, where the achievements highlighted were “ceremonies and pageants” and “exhibits (that will) emphasize contributions made by the military to civilian life. These include the building of the Panama Canal as well as some lesser-known examples of Army pioneering: development of freeze-dried foods and the invention of the aerosol can.”
I also found a photo journal on Flickr by the U.S. Army Transportation museum (tinyurl.com/2s36j6t2). It provides the museum’s unique perspective, a sort of “technology of the day” time capsule. It includes steam trains.
The National Park Service has a brief history at NPS.gov written recently (June 11). It echoed the 1975 sentiment in context of the “Cold War Era,” stating “parades and public events became more subdued as debates over military policy and public sentiment evolved.” It also stated the most “notable post-Vietnam parade was the 1991 Desert Storm parade” when “President George H. W. Bush declared the day ‘a proud and happy day for America,’ signaling a renewed sense of patriotism and military prestige.”
No parades or celebrations were arranged after the longest military action the U.S. ever undertook ended in 2021, MANY years after George W. Bush’s executive order (Operation Enduring Freedom) had dictated (2014).
On a lighter note, I also found an old clip of Walter Cronkite reporting on “Salute to the Army Day” at Shea stadium, prior to a Yankees vs. Angels baseball game in 1975. I won’t spoil it for you; you have to see it for yourself: tinyurl.com/436cwkx5.
Christopher Lucero
Saugus
