Bill Sykes' - In Retrospect XV.
(Christmas 2008)

Bill Sykes looks back in retrospect at material which has been published in previous editions of "View from America", in an attempt to determine whether the subject matter written then is still applicable in today’s world.

Introduction to Article #15.
My wife, (Sheena), and I wish all the readers of this newsletter a very Happy Christmas, and a healthy, prosperous New Year of 2009. May I suggest that you the reader open the Christmas card, (Courtesy of Ashland University), and don’t forget to follow the instructions and turn on your sound system.
The e-mail address is, http://ecard.ashland.edu/index.php?ecardYear=2004adm
You will notice that the e-mail address is dated 2004 so obviously I may have used it in a previous news letter, so if you have received a previous copy I hope that you will bear with me as I’m particularly fond of this particular Christmas card.
 
I had intended to follow the usual path of briefly taking a look back in retrospect to the events that had taken place during the year, but after researching some of the articles which have been published in the past year, I found that many of the events were so depressing that I came up with the idea of challenging the "devil incarnate" and his entourage of warmongering administrative personnel in Washington D.C. with a twenty one gun salute. Of course all the guns on my side of the fence were large artillery weapons, (fully loaded with twenty-five pounder shells), and incidentally were aimed in the direction of shall I say, for want of a better description, the infidels.
This was a dream of course and obviously although it may seem totally unfair, I had the large artillery at my disposal and they, the Beltway Bandits, only had the old fashioned muskets that were used as far back as the War of Independence, (otherwise known as the "American Revolution"), when the colonists and their allies overthrew the colonial British rule of America in 1775.
Now it was my turn to change or challenge past history and with my superior weaponry I obviously would have the upper hand and British rule would be re-instated, (which I’m led to believe would be much against the will of many of the British people), and the make up of the new Congress would be revised accordingly. As I said this was only a dream.

So feeling totally justified that I had become the savior of the American people from the totalitarian rule that had been forced upon them over the last eight years, I erased all the work that I’d done for this Newsletter and decided that, "goodwill to all men and women", (well most of them anyway), should be my Christmas 2008 theme and I re-wrote the whole shebang which turned out to be a little more satirical than my usual versions.
A little tedious of course, but well worth the time that it took to re-write as I succeeded in getting rid of the revolutionary thoughts that I had been dreaming about, with the exception of the twenty five pounder artillery shell battle where I relished the thought of being able to defeat the incumbent semi-dictator who currently holds power in the White House - but Barack Obama had already beat me to it. 
So for what it’s worth I decided who better to get some recognition this Christmas than the soldiers who are currently fighting and dying in the Middle East wars and at the same time give recognition to the soldiers of all ages and nationalities who have fought, and in many cases have died, or have come back home with shattered bodies, in order to make this world a better place to live in.

In recognition of all military men and women, (soldiers, sailors, marines, and airmen,) who have fought to overthrow the evil that certain members of the human race have perpetrated against humanity over many, many, years.
As this year of 2008 grinds down to a dismal and undistinguished end, I have decided to honor as best I could the young men and women, of both the American and allied armed forces, who currently are fighting and dying in far away countries, and at the same time give recognition to all the service veterans that have fought against tyranny and oppression in the many, many, wars of the past century.    
In their honor I intend to offer, if I may, a poem courtesy of  A. Lawrence Vaincourt, of Canada, which is entitled: "So that they never may be forgotten" - "I saw the soldiers marching".
The words may appear in some people’s minds to be a little ancient and out of place, but I encourage you to read on, as although my choice of this particular poem may appear to be a little obtuse I’m sure that you the reader will eventually get the message that I’m trying to convey, which is a tribute to the soldiers of today from the soldier’s of the past.

I saw the soldiers marching, one drear November day,
Those heroes bold, from wars of old, in countries far away.
I heard the drums like thunder, the sound of marching feet,
As men of ancient valor marched down our little street.

I heard the skirl of bagpipes, the blare of brasses bold,
As heroes from another time relived the days of old.
The old, the halt, the lame, the slow, they marched with solemn pace,
To honor comrades fallen at another time and place.

I felt the tightness in my throat, the tears that burned my eyes,
As I watched the quiet dignity of old men marching by.
The fine young men, and women too, in battles long ago,
Who gave their youth and some, their lives,to fight our country’s foe.

On this day will be remembered by comrades who remain,
And by the heavens, weeping, with softly falling rain.
The medals softly jingling on every passing chest,
In memory of companions who’ve long been laid to rest.

There are some unfit, and some who sit, in wheelchairs, row on row,
While they recall what price was paid to turn our country’s foe.
And some will stand with tear-dimmed eyes, and some with faces grim,
While all repeat the solemn vow,
"WE WILL REMEMBER THEM."

Disclaimer:
I’m adding the usual disclaimer although in this instance it may not be required, or even apply to the text provided.
Some of the information gathered for this newsletter has been gleaned from American and International Media sources, (Including the Internet), and as such is quoted as accurately as possible. I try to obtain confirmation on each subject from several outlets, so the text is a mixture of composite news items and my personal comments and therefore the reader must make his/her own judgment as to the reliability and degree of accuracy of the subjects discussed.

Eric (Bill) Sykes. (Southern California).
December 2008.

 We welcome feedback about any of the contents of these articles. Please send all correspondence to bill_sykes@huddersfield1.co.uk