Bloody Soldier Meme

I saw a facebook meme where someone had took a picture of a soldier with blood on his face and then wrote about how the soldier and his buddies were bleeding and dying so that folks back home could burn flags when they don't like the President and kneel at the singing of the National Anthem at football games. We were all supposed to feel real bad for being so naughty - or I suppose more likely, feel really bad about those who were being so naughty.

Now me, as a veteran, I think that we bleed and die for our buddies and so that fat, old men in power back home can make more profits. But that's just me, what do I know?

I also think that saying such things in a fashion as to suggest that the soldiers are all Republican voting conservatives is a bit presumptuous. The oath of a soldier is to the Constitution, not to any one particular leader, and there are soldiers of every kind of political persuasion you can imagine serving. But again, that's just me, what do I know?

Oh, here's what I know - I know that to the extent soldiers are protecting "freedom" that it MUST be the freedom to speak upon unpopular things and in unpopular fashions.

It would be absurd to say that we die for those back home to have the "freedom" to Heil Hitler or salute the flag or sing the leader's praises, or sing about how great the nation is.

Every dictator in history has given his people the "freedom" to do those things.

No, the freedom that some hypothetical soldier may be fighting for can only be the type of freedom where the lone German - however privileged some may feel him to be - folds his arms and refuses to salute Hitler.

Or the athlete - no matter how wealthy he is - kneeling instead of standing.

Or the student - the child of wealthy parents or not - burning a flag instead of saluting it.

Or any who march down a public street to express their frustration - with or without a permit telling them which street they can use.

Free speech is free to be annoying, or it's not free at all. And soldiers, to the extent they are killing and dying for it, can only be killing and dying for that kind, or their deaths are a mockery, and they are dying only for whichever government wants a nation of "yes men".