Well readers, it’s Memorial Day in America, meaning that you’re almost certainly going to stumble over one of these pictures today…
These have a habit of rearing their heads from the depths of the internet whenever a holiday rolls around. Memorial Day. Veteran’s Day. Our sense of patriotic duty and military sympathy is so strong that we’ll even claim Labor Day “isn’t just a long weekend.”
And regardless of where you stand on the political spectrum, your Facebook feed is almost certainly going to be drenched in emotional “tributes” to the armed forces.
And it’s that last one there that really irked me. “The real meaning of Memorial Day.”
The “real” meaning of Memorial Day.
Because apparently everyone’s been grossly incorrect about what Memorial Day means. Because the “real” meaning- like the city of Atlantis or the paintings of Botticelli- has been lost to mankind. Because it must mean something. It can’t be just a day for BBQs, right?
Well readers, yours truly has undertaken an intrepid journey into the heart of American culture to uncover that legendary “lost meaning.”
Here’s what I’ve discovered. Continue reading
Culture War Reporters 