Single 19 Year Olds and Young Marrieds

In view of what is happening in Iran, we now have a current modern counterpart to Hitler's Germany. An oppressive regime that stones, shames, beats and jails those who protest. An appreciation for freedom may soon arise in America in new ways. Let's rehearse that dangerous time not so long ago, in which the entire world faced this kind of oppression.

Freedom Abounds -

Thousands of young American men, fought and died on this day and the days immediately thereafter, in Normandy, France on June 6, 1944. The initial beach landings were single guys, because the generals knew way over half would be killed or wounded in the first hours. It is always very young people and some older ones salt and peppered in who die in conflict. In the next year, the War was over. Because of this gigantic tipping point in the Fate and Destiny of the World, all of the countries on the planet were saved from an "Alternative Fate". We are all the Children of D-Day. Be proud of your heritage. And if you are not proud of your heritage, that is a sign of Freedom. And that proves you are the Children of D-Day. Your little brother is not reporting your lack of loyalty to the state. Thus, the outlandish statements you make on a daily basis, deriding the system and wishing the worst on the U.S. ARE significators that Freedom is abounding in this land.

I am not using sarcasm. Because those 19 year old boys died, and because the ones who did not die, and spent every waking hour killing Nazis for days and days on end, and brought the end of WWII in 1945, you can freely express your own individuality and be the unique self that you are. You are the Children of D-Day.

You Don't Carry Your Papers To Hand To A Guard At The State Line -

Back in the Day -- you up and decided to leave New York, drive on the interstate freeway system (which Eisenhower built as President because as a military man, he realized we could not defend our country without an interstate highway system), and then you ended up in Arizona. That was back in the 80's, and you got "detained" by an Oklahoma cop during that trip, because you were speeding and a little "loopy". And you did not have to present your papers at each border, and you were "let go" by that cop in Oklahoma, and no one stopped you from opening your little business in Arizona, which promptly failed, and you filed bankruptcy. But you went on to California, and now you are a success. You are the Child of D-Day.

No Language You Have To Speak, No Ethnic Pedigree To Meet -

The official diplomatic language of the world is English, and the old official diplomatic language of the world was French. It is not German or Japanese. So, you don't have to speak a certain official language of an out-of-country ruling Elite. The citizens of this world are the Children of D-Day.

No one is telling you who you can romance. There are no special state cameras recording your bedroom behavior. And no one is checking the pedigree of the children of your union. You are a Child of D-Day. Your bloodline and your grandparents are not a part of your papers. In fact, you don't have "papers" that you "carry" in America, other than a Driver's License or Social Security Card, or ID card. You don't have to prove or demonstrate your ethnic or religious heritage. You are a Child of D-Day.

Every Ethnic Group Has Made Contributions Through The Generations -

Your heritage is second generation Japanese, and they fought heroically in World War II in Europe. Your family is African American whose family fought in the Revolution, The War of 1812, The Civil War, the Spanish American War and World War II. You are Italian, and your great grandparents could not speak English, but your father fought in World War II. You are Irish and your grandfathers were drafted by Lincoln to fight in the Civil War, as they got off the boat in New York, and their children fought all over Europe in World War II. Your grandmother was a "Rosie the Riveter" and a Mom who saw her sons die. You are Hispanic and your grandfathers fought and died on the beaches of Normandy. You are Jewish, and your relatives are buried under Stars of David at Colleville, where thousands of white crosses surround those Stars of David. You are German and because he could speak German, your grandfather and great grandfathers were used in special missions in World War II. Your English forebears cleared the woods in the place that is now downtown Boston. Your Native American forebears kept those people from starving, as they cleared the woods. Both of those families had representatives in World War II. Your Navajo relatives provided their special language as a code in the Pacific. You are all Children of D-Day!

Teenagers in the Great Depression -

As you might be struggling with this current economy, remember that the soldiers of D-Day were born in the 20's and grew up as teenagers in the darkest days of the Depression, whose average weight was 140 pounds and had never had a whole lot of fun (not the kind of fun you would consider fun). It hardened them and made them practical survivors. And as you struggle, toast those children of the Depression and thank them that America has had decades of uninterrupted growth in this Nation of Innovators. We are all the Children of D-Day.

And in the future, if people start trying to deprive you of the freedoms that were fought for on D-Day. Let the talking begin. Talking is big in America. Talking crazy. Talking loud. Talking like a thinker. Talking like an individualist. Wearing any kind of hair. Wearing what you want on your body. And then talk some more. And vote, and vote, and vote again. Vote for the government you want in America. Watch for those hard fought freedoms to be maintained in your country. If you want to develop a greater feeling for the place that you have inherited, study history. But keep talking and keep voting and keep being an individual.

You Are Not Arrested Because...

Because of D-Day, you are not arrested because you have tattoos. You are not arrested because of your relatives. You are not arrested because your Mom won't date an official. You are not arrested because you work in a questionable company. You are not arrested because someone found out that you are 1/4 gypsy. You are not arrested because you are a declared and open Homosexual. You are not arrested because you are an out of work Jew who sings in a nightclub and attends meetings late at night where people say disagreeable things. You are not arrested because you are a Lesbian who wears unacceptable fashions. You are not arrested because you are a beautiful young woman who is taken off the street to sexually serve the local constables and military. You are not taken off the street in the middle of the day, because of any of the above. You are not arrested late at night and spirited away, because of any of the above.

Appreciate all of the above, and always remember, in America you let other people talk, and let other people vote, and let other people be individuals. Innovation and Freedom are the watchwords of America. There is also this thing called "The Rule of Law", which generally means nobody gets to take over permanently and institutionalize corruption. Who you are does not sanctify you. If you break the law, the idea is, you suffer the consequences. Appreciate the "Rule of Law", along with our Freedom and Innovation. Remember, in America people can be voted in and out of office. George Washington could have been King, but made an important historical decision that is still true in America. He stepped down. We don't have Kings, we don't have Royalty. Since you are the Children of D-Day, watch that Freedom and Innovation and the "Rule of Law" remain in America.

Remembering Seltzer's 34 -

Think of those boys that died on this D-Day, they gave you this world. As you live in it, tend to it, be a good steward of it, and allow for the idea that there are bunches of ideas bundled together in differing formats that all propose to know how to be stewards, and then allow for that dynamic, and stay a good citizen of this place -- and every once in awhile -- think of that Day, that "Longest Day".

Arthur Seltzer, now in his 80's, has a dollar bill that 36 men signed in his landing craft, before they landed on D-Day. As they landed, the bullets and shells rained down on them. The broken bodies and blood were like a butcher shop, Arthur Seltzer lived and kept that dollar bill. Later that day, his captain told him that the two of them were the only survivors. 34 of those men died that day. Arthur went on to fight in the Battle of the Bulge and then freed fellow Jews in Germany that next year. He still remembers his 34 buddies and suffers to this day from PTD. In spite of it all, he declares: "Forgive, but don't forget."

As a child of D-Day, you can't possibly imagine the horror that had to be passed through in order for the world to be saved. But what we can do is remember and tend to our blessings, those blessings that were conferred upon us by Mr. Seltzer and hundreds of thousands of others -- Those Men of D-Day, Who We are the Children of.