Patriot Graves

Gary Bauer, Contributing Author: Monday marks Memorial Day, a national observance first known as Decoration Day. The first Memorial Day was observed on May 30, 1868, on the orders of General John Logan, commander of the Grand Army of the Republic. Flowers were placed on the graves of Union and Confederate soldiers at Arlington National Cemetery.

Initially meant as a time to remember and honor our Civil War dead, the holiday's significance has been extended to honor all those who paid the ultimate price for our nation. This year, as they have done every year since 1948, soldiers of the 3rd U.S. Infantry Regiment will place flags at more than 260,000 gravestones at Arlington National Cemetery. Soldiers of the 3rd U.S. Infantry will remain at Arlington National Cemetery throughout the holiday weekend making sure that the flags remain upright.

There will be similar observances at national cemeteries around the country. In Fredericksburg, Virginia, local Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts will place candles at more than 15,000 graves at the Fredericksburg and Spotsylvania National Military Park.

Over time, Memorial Day weekend has become more of an occasion for relaxation than for reflection about our patriots' graves and the values for which they gave "the last full measure of devotion." This weekend, I hope that we can learn to do both -- relax and reflect.

Go the ballgame, have that picnic, hug your kids and have some fun at the beach. But let's also remind ourselves, and our children, about what happened at Concord Bridge, on the fields of Antietam and the beaches of Normandy. Let's explain to them why there was a Berlin Wall, what happened at Okinawa, at Ground Zero, over the fields of Shanksville, Pennsylvania, and the price that was paid to stop fascism and Soviet communism.

Let's take a moment this weekend to teach our children and grandchildren to love the things we love, and honor the things we honor. Finally, let's remind ourselves as well as our children that all liberty is a gift from God, and that each generation has paid in flesh and blood to preserve it. As General George Patton said, "It is foolish and wrong to mourn the men who died. Rather we should thank God that such men lived."

I invite you to tune in to the Patriot Channel on Sirius/XM Radio Monday. Throughout Memorial Day, the Patriot Channel will feature a tribute to our fallen heroes. A special Bauer & Rose Show will air from 8:00 AM to 9:00 AM and re-air throughout the day. Tom and I will discuss Lincoln's Gettysburg Address, Franklin Roosevelt's D-Day prayer and Ronald Reagan's Pointe du Hoc speech on the 40th Anniversary of D-Day.
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Gary Bauer is is a conservative family values advocate and serves as president of American Values and chairman of the Campaign for Working Families.

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