"Memorial Day..."

Today is Memorial Day. So much more than cookouts, ballgames and day trips to the beach, lake or catching another blowout holiday sale at the dreaded local mall. Don't think so, ask any family member who's lost a loved one...

Semper fi. ~cg.

"ANC..." April • 2005

ARLINGTON, VA. Horse drawn caisson with the US Army Honor Guard sentries of the 3rd. US Infantry, known as "The Old Guard" proceeding after a military honors funeral in Arlington National Cemetery in Arlington, VA on Monday, April 18, 2005. © CHET GORDON / THE IMAGE WORKS

A story broke yesterday out of Washington about the care and maintenance of grave sites and those buried there at Arlington National Cemetery (ANC) in Virginia. As a veteran (and onetime frequent visitor to the Washington, DC area) I found the facts behind this story troubling, if not worse.

This from today's NY Times:

Inquiry Finds Graves Mismarked at Arlington

WASHINGTON — "The remains in more than 200 graves at Arlington National Cemetery may be incorrectly identified, the secretary of the Army said Thursday, as he announced a shake-up in the cemetery’s management. In some cases, remains were found in graves listed as empty, and occupied grave sites were unmarked... An Army report listed dozens of deficiencies in the day-to-day management of the cemetery, including an outdated record keeping system that may have contributed to many of the errors at Arlington, which was first designated for military burials in 1864. An inspection, which began in August 2009, found problems at 211 sites..."

Full links here and here. ~cg.

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