THEY LAY AT FINAL REST

They lie in flag draped coffins
War's time for them, is done
But, for their family and friends
The battle has just barely begun.

Some may have had babies born
That they will never get to know
Some, fiancees wait to marry them
But fate, would not let it be so.

Some parents bury their children
Not right, in the scheme of things
Just one, of the many horrors
That mankind's warring brings.

They fought for their god and country
They proudly answered duty's call
Along with all their comrades in arms
But, sadly, these just gave their all.

The haunting sounds of Taps
And a three volley, gun salute
An Honor Guard in uniform
At attention, standing mute.

The flag will be folded reverently
Presented to those left behind
A small token from a grateful nation
But, relief from grief is hard to find.

Their name added to a roll of Heroes
With all those who have gone before
And there seems to be no ending
To all those to be sacrificed to war.

Del "Abe" Jones
6.19.2007

RE-BIRTH

Back at the birth of our Nation
We fought to be Free from oppression
Something unique in the World
And we learned many a hard lesson.

There was some trial and error
Although, we finally got it right
But, it seems that nowadays
Some Rights are fading from sight.

If we let them slip away from us
Even just, a little at a time
If we don't stand, to preserve them
It will most surely, be a crime.

It's government, “By and for the People!”
Not to be dictated, by a few
And it's time we take our Country back
And what we hold, “Self-evident and true!”

When Freedom was really threatened
We stood together in the fight
But, there have been those times
When those Wars, just weren't right.

We are still the greatest Nation
That this World has ever known
But, Freedom for other peoples
Can't be forced, but must be shown.

We must set the right example
And protect our own Constitution
Not let it be changed around
To suit some other's resolution.

Speaking of our great Constitution
And our Bill of Rights, too
We should take time to read them
That's something, everyone should do.

So, this Fourth, let's set a goal
To make our Founding Fathers proud
Tell our Government, “You work for us!”
“Twisting our Laws won't be allowed!”

07.01.2007

INDEPENDENCE DAY

In the year of 1776
That paper was decreed -
They were tired of oppression
And wanted to be freed .

They wrote a Declaration
So the whole world would see
This was, "the home of the brave
And the land of the free".

They signed that piece of parchment
The leaders of this land
Knowing, divided they would fall
But, together they could stand.

A new world lay before them
Untamed from shore to shore -
They swore the would protect it
If it meant going to war.

Battles have been fought
And many lives have been lost -
So sad something so basic
Has such a high, high cost.

Seems freedom is a luxury
There's some would bind us all -
Like then, together, we can stand
But divided, we will fall.

More than two hundred years
Have past by since that day
That each of us celebrate
In our own different way.

We should be proud and thankful
Pay a share of the cost -
Not take freedom for granted
For it easily could be lost.

AND, PROUD TO BE

Two hundred and thirty-one years
After we planted Freedom’s seed
After our Country’s Declaration
This World still has a great need.

Time for the Peoples of all Nations
To learn what we have always known
Since the very first and Proud day
Our Stars and Stripes were flown.

But, we can’t force Freedom on them
For if we do, it won’t be Real
It’s something that must grow on you
To change the way you Think and Feel.

We can only try to show them how
And be an Example they can follow
Stand up against those in our own Ranks
Who try to take Freedom’s we know.

We must show we have the Courage
To not let our own people take away
Any of those Rights so Guaranteed
To us, on that long past, July day.

We must Protect our Way of Life
And let the rest of the World see
That it’s something to be Proud of
When you live in a Land of the Free.

JULY THE FOURTH

I wonder what those folks would think
(Those, who wrote our Freedom’s Declaration)
Would they believe, those happenings
That have, forever changed our Nation.

Would they believe, some terrorists
Are, from our Country, homegrown
Spreading hate, death, and destruction
In the Homeland of their own.

Would they believe our “open door”
Has ushered in our enemy
Those who believe we’re evil
And don’t believe in Liberty.

What would they think, if they could see
Crime running rampant, in the street
Guns, drugs, and homeless people
And so many more, locked-in, retreat.

Would they believe, Freedoms treasured
Have been twisted all around
To where the criminals civil rights
Beat the victims, to the ground.

Would they believe, that businesses
Most of them, big and small
Treat their employees as the pawns
To reach, “the bottom line”, that’s all.

Would they believe, those voted to Office
Who we should trust, to guide the way
Can’t be trusted, most of the time
To live up to what, they say.

What would they think, would they rewrite
And would they take exceptance
To what we did, with what they wrote
In The Declaration Of Independence.

IRAQI INDEPENDENCE

We should have waited till the Fourth
To have handed over Power
Then they could have shared that day
When we had our Finest Hour.

They could have Declared Independence
Like we did in Seventy-six
And if they’d have asked us all about it
We could have shown them a few tricks.

We could have told them, "Watch the Feds!"
So they wouldn’t go "that" way
To be "owned" by special interests
While all the Common People pay.

So they would have the Retirement
They’ll work all their lives to get
To treat all of the old and sick
That our Medicare hasn’t yet.

So they wouldn’t have the homeless
We force to live out on the street
And have places to fight addictions
And those retarded, we mistreat.

So they could take care of their Veterans
Those, who survive a shooting war
And for families of those who Give All
Take care of them too, even more.

Oh, we could give them an earful
About the Best Country on this Earth
To help make theirs even better
Than we have made ours worth.

We declared our Independence
On the Fourth day of July
And we will always remain Free
If we don’t forget the reasons, Why.

Del “Abe” Jones
07-02-2004

I was very honored to receive an award from Tony Pahl, The Aussie Bard.. Please visit http://iwvpa.net/jonesd/index.php for some more of my work as well as other great writers.

Kinda proud about "THEY LAY AT FINAL REST", soon to be published here. http://www.oldguard.org/dwabout.html

"Opinion: Beyond Yellow Ribbons and Parades

By Bradley S. Barton
National Commander
Disabled American Veterans

We've all seen those "Support Our Troops" signs and yellow
ribbon car magnets, and soon there will be patriotic parades and
celebrations marking our nation's independence. Those are great ways to
show appreciation for our brave men and women in uniform---those in
Iraq and Afghanistan, as well as veterans who served before them.

But what about when they come home? Many of them have life-long
disabilities, lives forever changed by their service to our country. We
need to make sure their service and sacrifice are not forgotten.

The types of injuries, most notably from improvised explosive devices,
and the high survival rate among the casualties in Iraq are
unprecedented. For every soldier or Marine killed there, 15 survive
injury or illness.

According to a recent Associated Press article, as many as 53,000
Americans have been wounded or injured in Iraq, including more than 800
who have lost an arm, a leg, fingers or toes. More than 100 have been
blinded, many more have been disfigured by burns and thousands have
brain injuries or suffer other psychological wounds.

Both the military and the veterans health care systems are struggling
to cope with the influx of casualties. But despite the Walter Reed Army
Medical Center scandal and some reported lapses elsewhere, for the most
part the injured are getting very good care. The most seriously
wounded---complicated cases with multiple injuries---often are assigned
to one of the polytrauma centers run by the Department of Veterans
Affairs. There they are swarmed over by a team of specialists unlike
anywhere else. This holistic approach to treatment and rehabilitation
is one of the great success stories of modern medicine.

However, the less visible wounds of war, often go untreated. An
estimated 2,000 cases of traumatic brain injury have been treated, but
doctors think thousands more have gone undetected. The Defense
Department's Mental Health Task Force report released in June and a
Washington Post series on post-traumatic stress disorder among soldiers
at Walter Reed exposed many problems in the current response to
veterans with mental health needs.

Without proper intervention, these psychologically wounded veterans and
their loved ones can be sent into a downward spiral that often leads to
substance abuse, violent behavior or suicidal urges, ultimately ending
in tragedy.

Political pressure brought on by the ongoing war has forced the
military, the VA and Congress to address these weaknesses, at least in
the short run. A number of commissions have been set up to assess the
current state of medical and mental health care and make
recommendations to the administration and Congress. Of course, Capitol
Hill is awash with legislative proposals accompanied by
self-congratulations and press releases about supporting the troops.

But our policy makers must do more than just talk about supporting
American service-members and veterans. Both the Defense Department and
the VA must implement a comprehensive, coordinated system of medical
and mental health care to meet not only the immediate but the long-term
needs of returning veterans.

More than one-third of the half-million eligible veterans of Iraq or
Afghanistan have gone to the VA for health care. They and those who
follow will join the more than seven million veterans already enrolled
in the VA health care system. While the current fiscal outlook for
veterans health care is promising, it is absolutely vital to ensure
guaranteed full funding for the VA to care for the men and women who
have served and sacrificed for our nation well into the future."