Remembering the Fallen in Photographs | Picture This: Library of Congress Prints & Photos

May 25, 2018 by Kristi Finefield

Grave decorated on Decoration Day. Photo by Arthur S. Siegel, 1943 June. //hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/fsa.8d30357

One of the most enduring traditions of Memorial Day is the decoration of the graves of fallen service members with such items as flowers and American flags.

This annual day of commemoration was at one time referred to as Decoration Day because of this practice. My grandmother grew up in the deep South, where tradition held that you took an annual pilgrimage to your family cemetery, which in their case required a road trip to southern Arkansas, to clean and decorate the graves of all of your ancestors.

This tradition may have inspired the post Civil War movement to decorate the graves of those who died in military service. While the holiday was referred to as both Decoration Day and Memorial Day for decades, Memorial Day was declared a federal holiday in 1971 and is now celebrated on the last Monday in May.

Gestures of respect and commemoration on Memorial Day are made in acts both small and large, personal and ceremonial. Gratitude for the sacrifice and service of millions of American men and women takes place in all parts of the world, in countries where service members fell fighting as well as at memorials in the United States. Journey to the graves in Arlington National Cemetery, in small rural cemeteries and in foreign lands, and travel to battlefields and memorials where many are named and remembered through the images below.

Source: Remembering the Fallen in Photographs | Picture This: Library of Congress Prints & Photos

The best summer books, according to our readers – The Washington Post

By Stephanie Merry, May 27, 2021 at 6:00 a.m. PDT

(The Washington Post illustration)

Summer reading means different things to different people.

Case in point: The subscribers to our Book Club newsletter answered a recent call-out to share the books they’d recommend for the months ahead, and let’s just say this isn’t your typical roster of beach reads.

Gilgamesh and Herodotus were among the cerebral choices that made the cut, among an eclectic crowd of others.

Source: https://www.washingtonpost.com/entertainment/books/summer-books-reader-recommendations/2021/05/26/9067cc96-b741-11eb-a5fe-bb49dc89a248_story.html

Best and worst states for military veterans | Atlanta journal-constitution

Georgia News | May 24, 2021, By Nancy Clanton, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Photo by Pixabay on Pexels.com

This coming weekend is about honoring our military personnel who died serving our country, but we can’t forget about those who retire and return to civilian life.

Even without a pandemic, retirement from the military is always difficult, with many retirees facing major struggles that include post traumatic stress disorder, disability and homelessness.

These veterans must also consider how state tax policies on military benefits vary, along with the relative friendliness of different job markets and other socioeconomic factors, when choosing a state in which to settle down.

In order to determine the best and worst states for military retirement, financial website WalletHub compared the 50 states and the District of Columbia across three key dimensions: economic environment, quality of life and health care.

According to WalletHub’s analysis, the best state for military retirees is Virginia, with a score of 61.05. South Carolina, Florida, South Dakota and Alaska, in that order, round out the top five.

Georgia finished No. 19 overall, with a score of 53.18. Although the Peach State was No. 8 for economic environment — coming in fifth for most job opportunities for veterans — and No. 19 for quality of life, it was No. 34 for health care.

Continue reading Best and worst states for military veterans | Atlanta journal-constitution

2021’s Best & Worst States for Military Retirees | Wallethub

John S Kiernan, Managing Editor, May 24, 2021

Photo by RODNAE Productions on Pexels.com

As military personnel retire this year, some of whom will be the last American forces withdrawn from Afghanistan, they may find it difficult to readjust to civilian life.

For example, the U.S. is still dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic, which has killed more Americans than World War II did. Plus, the high unemployment rate caused by COVID-19 may stand as an obstacle to any former military personnel looking to get civilian jobs.

Even without a pandemic, retirement from the military is always difficult, with many retirees facing major struggles including Posttraumatic Stress Disorder, disability and homelessness.

These veterans must also consider how state tax policies on military benefits vary, along with the relative friendliness of different job markets and other socioeconomic factors, when choosing a state in which to settle down.

In order to help ease the burden on our nation’s military community, WalletHub compared the 50 states and the District of Columbia based on their ability to provide a comfortable military retirement. Our analysis uses a data set of 30 key metrics, ranging from veterans per capita to number of VA health facilities to job opportunities for veterans.

Screenshot from article…

Source: 2021’s Best & Worst States for Military Retirees

How Cultural Anthropologists Redefined Humanity | The New Yorker

A brave band of scholars set out to save us from racism and sexism. What happened?

By Louis Menand, August 19, 2019

The celebrated cultural anthropologist Margaret Mead, photographed in 1930.Photograph from Irving Browning / The New-York Historical Society / Getty

Editor’s note: Includes audio of article…

Not that long ago, Margaret Mead was one of the most widely known intellectuals in America.

Her first book, “Coming of Age in Samoa,” published in 1928, when she was twenty-six, was a best-seller, and for the next fifty years she was a progressive voice in national debates about everything from sex and gender to nuclear policy, the environment, and the legalization of marijuana. (She was in favor—and this was in 1969.)

She had a monthly column in Redbook that ran for sixteen years and was read by millions. She advised government agencies, testified before Congress, and lectured on all kinds of subjects to all kinds of audiences.

She was Johnny Carson’s guest on the “Tonight Show.” Time called her “Mother to the World.” In 1979, the year after she died, President Jimmy Carter awarded her the Medal of Freedom.

Source: How Cultural Anthropologists Redefined Humanity | The New Yorker

How the ‘Culture War’ Could Break Democracy – POLITICO

Thirty years ago, sociologist James Davison Hunter popularized the concept of culture war. Today, he sees a culture war that’s gotten worse—and that spells trouble for the future of the American experiment.

By ZACK STANTON, 05/20/2021 05:30 PM EDT

POLITICO illustration; Photos: Getty; AP

In 1991, with America gripped by a struggle between an increasingly liberal secular society that pushed for change and a conservative opposition that rooted its worldview in divine scripture, James Davison Hunter wrote a book and titled it with a phrase for what he saw playing out in America’s fights over abortion, gay rights, religion in public schools and the like: “Culture Wars.”

Hunter, a 30-something sociologist at the University of Virginia, didn’t invent the term, but his book vaulted it into the public conversation, and within a few years it was being used as shorthand for cultural flashpoints with political ramifications.

He hoped that by calling attention to the dynamic, he’d help America “come to terms with the unfolding conflict” and, perhaps, defuse some of the tensions he saw bubbling.

Source: How the ‘Culture War’ Could Break Democracy – POLITICO