Memorial Day: The Past and the Present

Reporter's Notebook

Does McCain Have a Vets Problem? ()

On Thursday, the Senate updated the GI Bill, with $2 billion in new education benefits for veterans. John McCain, who comes from a military family and is considered a war hero by political friend and foe, opposed the measure as being too expensive. He offered a different version, which precipitated a nasty exchange between him and Barack Obama. Friday, the bill sponsored by Vietnam vets Jim Webb (D-VA) and Chuck Hagel (R-NE) passed with Obama's support. Gordon Lubold is Pentagon correspondent for the Christian Science Monitor.

Guests:

• Gordon Lubold: Pentagon Correspondent, Christian Science Monitor

Main Topic

Origins of Memorial Day; Honoring Our Fallen Soldiers ()

Memorial Day began after the Civil War, which killed 600,000 Americans, North and South. But the first day of remembrance wasn't really about them.  It was started by southern women, mourning what they called the Lost Cause: the Confederacy. When the northern states got into the act, it was all about commemorating the soldiers who died for the Union. We bring the history up to the present holiday—which is also about barbeques, three-day weekends and the beginning of summer. Does America do a good job of remembering war dead? What about grieving families and living veterans?

Guests:

• Caroline Janney: Professor of History, Purdue University
• Jim Sheeler: Reporter, Rocky Mountain News
• Michael Sledge: freelance writer
• Nadia McCaffrey: Gold Star Mother
• Alex Horton: Senior Advisor, VoteVets.org

Links:

• Janney's 'Burying the Dead but Not the Past'
• Sheeler's 'Final Salute'
• Sledge's 'Soldier Dead'