How I Spent My Memorial Day Weekend
Okay, this idea may be too radical for some, but it worked for me. Last week, when I was planning out Memorial Day weekend with my kids, it became obvious that everyone would be happiest if we stayed close to home, didn’t plan any long drives, and took advantage of locally-available entertainment. I had to admit, using the bare minimum of gasoline on Memorial Day weekend seemed a perfect way to honor our men and women in uniform, so many of whom are in danger in Iraq right now fighting for oil.
So, instead of filling up the tank and driving across the state for the three-day weekend, we found things to do right in our own backyard, and I made a bet with myself that I would get through the weekend with only the eighth of a tank of gas I had in my car. What did we do? Well, relying heavily on our own personal motive power, we took advantage of the community farmers’ market, the annual “Buckskinners Rendezvous” taking place in the park next door to our house, the tennis courts across the street, the community bike path, and the river a block away. Oh yeah, and the Weber grill, the local ice cream stand and a deck of cards! In the course of three days, we got around on our bicycles, our canoe, our rollerblades, and, last but not least, our feet.
Okay, we did cheat a little by going to the drive-in movie theater on Saturday night, but that’s only six miles away… In the end, I won my bet with myself, and didn’t have to buy gas all weekend. And you know what? We all had a great time, we all got plenty of sunshine, fresh air and exercise, and we didn’t miss driving the car one little bit…
May 27th, 2008 at 3:38 pm
What about those brave men who are in Iraq not fighting for oil, but for your freedom to write this article!
May 27th, 2008 at 3:45 pm
Our troops(my son included) are not fighting for oil but to give us the freedom to disagree on the reason we are in Iraq and Afganistan. We are fighting terrorism that would be in your and my backyards if we were not taking the fight to their backyard. I(ex-army airborne) enjoyed a backyard holiday weekend with my daughter(ex-army nurse) and her family and a phone call with her brother( my son) an Army Blackhawk pilot.
May 27th, 2008 at 4:13 pm
I for one am glad they’re over there, fighting for my freedom to disagree with asinine posts like these two.
Yeah, I’m sure if it weren’t for George W., those “terrorists” would have been over there suicide bombing your bar-b-q, Lloyd. Because they hate your freedom! Right?
God gave you a brain to use, not to mindlessly parrot whatever b.s. Bush and Cheney are feeding you. God Bless our troops and give us the wisdom not to waste their lives needlessly.
Being a patriotic American means having some balls, and standing up to the idiots running our government, not meekly bowing to them and giving them a blank check to bomb whoever and wherever they please.
Afghanistan clearly supported the 9/11 terrorists, but Iraq had nothing to do with those attacks–even the administration admits it now–but enough gullible pawns like YOU TWO bought Bush and Cheney’s song-and-dance, and more than 4,000 have paid the ultimate price because people lacked the guts to stand up and say it was wrong.
Let’s try to remember why we are sending our best young men and women out to die and be maimed for the rest of their lives. And let’s make sure it’s for a damn good reason.
Oil ain’t it.
May 27th, 2008 at 6:54 pm
You’ve been duped is apparently too small to leave his name (as required). While I will agree that hindsight indicates the decision to enter Iraq was not as well thought out as it might have been I would ask you to consider one question. Why is it that no one in any political party is willing to pull all of our troops out at once? Is it because of the potential loss of life for the Iraqi people? No, it is because of the political turmoil which would result and the instability that would only increase in that part of the world. Much of the world relies on the oil that comes from this region, not just us. Potential global economic chaos is what an unstable middle east represents.
While the culture that exists in the middle east is not going to change overnight it takes a lot of balls to be willing to stay and clean up the mess which I agree we made. I also beleive that the terrorist threat would be greater if Saddam were still in power.
Bush and Cheney will be gone in 7 months. Your solution is?
May 28th, 2008 at 12:56 pm
I think we must acknowledge and accept the various viewpoints on the War in Iraq, the fight for freedom, and the very brave service our armed services provide. One way to support the troops is to conserve, both by using less gasoline and staying close to home and family, or by cutting down on electricity by doing simple things like turning off lights when we leave a room, or installing energy efficient light bulbs and purchasing energy star appliances when we upgrade our homes. I commend anyone who uses less fuel, saves money in the process, and uses the extra time and money towards family activities.
June 3rd, 2008 at 12:45 pm
My son, daughter-in-law and daughter have all been over to Iraq or the Persian Gulf. I support our troops. Most people agree that we as a nation went about this the wrong way, but that is no reason to turn tail and run. Let’s fix it and then leave with our heads held high. Most of the oil we use does not come from there, it comes from Canada, Mexico and S. America. Our military should not have to buy the fuel we need to protect Iraq, they should supply it at not cost. I think there are things the government could do to help with the oil prices, but won’t because there is too much money involved, especially lining their pockets. I wish the people that hate this country so much would go to Mexico or France and see if it’s better there.
June 3rd, 2008 at 2:27 pm
As a Vietnam era vet, when you join the armed forces you do so for a reason, whether it’s a freedom issue, paid education, travel, occupational education, and many other reasons. You do it at the risk of being sent to war. You do not sign up with the exclusive clause that lets you abdicate if you do not agree with where you are sent, why you are sent, or if you should be sent. You do not get to have it both ways. This is the trade off. It isn’t always fair nor is it always just. Other people have commented on the fight for “oil” and the fight for “freedom”. There is truth to both sides. Was Saddam a threat? Sure he was, but he was a threat on our “side” who also was a threat to Iran and the rest of his neighbors. You have to admit that when the Middle East fights among themselves they have less time to spreadout. Remember a house divided cannot stand. I also remember that after 911 there was a national consensus for “payback”. Do people not understand real war but only what the papers tell them? It really wasn’t until after the loss of life started to climb that people began to take issues. As with everything political, and you can be sure that sending troops to war is always political, there are many facets. My 2 brothers and I were all in the service. On memorial day we remembered those who have bravely fought and died for our freedom; not only here but around the world. Those of prior years and those who have died fighting now. Memorial day to me is a day of peace and rememberance. This day has fuzzed out over the lest couple of decades to be a day of remembering all service people; dead or alive. If you feel you are honoring our brave forces by conserving fuel that’s great. This is not a day of conflict as to the correctness of that idea. It’s a day of honor. It is about ALL peolple who have laid down there lives for the freedoms we enjoy in this great country called the UNITED STATES of AMERICA. As a soldier you do what you are called upon. Sometimes this means dieing. Memorial Day should be what it says. Nothing more and nothing less. You people (including Mr. Duped) have the other 364 days of the year to fight, let’s leave this day for its’ original intention.
June 4th, 2008 at 10:26 am
My family spent the day in honor and remembrance of those who served and are serving, and those who died, both family members and fellow Americans.
Our nation was founded by those escaping religious persecution, and of the 40 or so conflicts around the world today, most are being initiated by radicals of a religion that desires world domination, and it is not Christianity. Be willing to acknowledge that what is happening in Iraq is not “the war”, but one of the many battlefronts of a war against terrorists who wish to bring under control, through conversion or destruction, over 20 moderate Muslim nations first, then western civilization.
June 5th, 2008 at 4:24 pm
If you want to support the troops, go visit a vet at your local VA hospital, donate money to the Wounded Warrior Project, Special Operations Warrior Foundation, or any of the many other great service organizations out there.
Supporting the troops requires your action and sacrifice. Saving yourself a few bucks on gasoline might make you feel better but does nothing for one who served.
Thank God for those willing to go in harms way - as the quote goes, we sleep safe in our beds because rough men stand ready in the night.
June 9th, 2008 at 7:05 pm
I’m also ex-82nd Airborne (1/504th PIR). I have the utmost respect for our troops. I’m sure our troops genuinely believe they are fighting for our freedom and to protect us from terrorists. Unfortunately, they were sent there to protect our access to oil. “Freddom and democracy” were afterthoughts used to justify the war to the American public. Ask yourself: if the Iraq and the rest of the Middle East did not have oil, if it was just another third world country in Africa, would we be spending not just billions but several trillions of dollars there? I don’t think so. As for protecting us from terrorists, the only reason there has not been a terrorist attack in the US since 9/11 is because no one has wanted to carry out such an attack. Anyone with even the least amount of skills could carry out a bombing attack in this country. Israel is a small, relatively closed country, with arguably the best counterterrorist system in the world, and they get hit almost every day. Just think how much easier it would be in this large, open country. No, we went into Iraq for oil. That said, I don’t want to minimize the terrorist threat. But what is the best way to fight the terrorists? By occupying a country and giving them a rallying cause? I find it interesting that people won’t buy a Japanese car because we fought a war with them 60 years ago, even though the Japanese have been among our strongest allies ever since; but these same people think nothing of driving a gas guzzling car, with the money from the gas they are consuming going to countries that are funding the terrorists we are supposedly now fighting against. Want to stop the terrorists? Stop buying gas, and stop their money supply!
June 10th, 2008 at 3:55 pm
If the only reason we are there if because we are “fighting for all that oil” why are we paying $4/gallon? We should be paying next to nothing - guess it’s not about oil afterall…
June 10th, 2008 at 5:28 pm
Unfortunately, “fighting for oil” doesn’t necessarily mean “fighting to make gas cheaper for the average person”. Check out ExxonMobil’s profits - they are doing quite well, thank you. That’s what the war was about.
June 11th, 2008 at 3:58 pm
Since when is it wrong to make a profit? How much did it cost you in expenses ($93 Billiion)? When you deal in big numbers (expenses) your profit margin will also be in big numbers. The oil companies are making around 7% - most businesses make around 15%. If you made $100 and you had $93 in expenses, would you be happy with $7 you were left with?