This Memorial Day, I'd like to focus on those wonderful members of our military who didn't wind up underneath a somber white marble cross as depicted above. For every fallen soldier, sailor, airman or marine there are 10, 50, or perhaps even 100,000 comrades who served honorably and survived.
For some of these fine Vets, death would have been a mercy - far too many have come back horribly maimed, both physically and mentally. The lucky ones get the care and treatment they deserve and need - but again, far too many simply slip through the cracks, and spend the rest of their lives just trying to cope with the day-to-day stuff a lot of us take for granted. Fortunately, we do have the Veteran's Administration to help look after all surviving Vets, but to be brutally frank, it really isn't enough when weighed against the sacrifices made.
The VA is one of the very few Federal programs I wholeheartedly support, and it's my opinion that they should be granted a permanently open-ended budget; a small price to pay, all things considered. We honor our dead Vets well enough; it's high time we did more to honor and care for our living Vets. The VA aside, there's plenty more we can do for our Vets; everything from a simple "Thank you" to exercising our right to vote in every election. I mean, said right is what all our Vets died or got wounded trying to protect and preserve, after all. Absolutely no excuse for apathy, here.
Let's make this Memorial Day special by going the extra yard or three for our surviving Vets, as well as honoring the fallen ones. Even if it's a small token like buying a Vet friend a beer down the local tavern, do it. They deserve it, and you'll feel good doing the warm-fuzzy thing. I feel very fortunate indeed to number quite a few Vets as close friends, over and above all my relatives who served. I may not always vocalize my deep gratitude, but I try to show or demonstrate it every chance I get - and not just twice a year on Memorial and Veteran's / Armistice Day. Honoring my Vets is a year-round thing like maintaining both Christmas and Easter spirit, if you catch me drift.
May God Bless and Keep all our Vets. More shortly.........
No, not my Uncle Pete.
"Uncle Pete" is a nickname coined by railfans for the Union Pacific railroad, which celebrated its' 150th birthday on May 10. Chartered {along with the Central Pacific} by none other than Abraham Lincoln in 1862, it is one of the longest-surviving American businesses still in existence under its' original name, and still conducting the same business it was created for.
The UP and the CP {which later became the Southern Pacific railroad, and still later merged into the UP} were the original "transcontinental railroad," and as such literally opened up the western 2/3's of the United States for settling and development. Once completed, it was possible to ship goods from the East coast all the way to California in just under two weeks - rocket-like speed, in 1869! Over the course of its' first fifty years, Uncle Pete grew from a humble single-tracked wilderness road into a robust, multi-tracked transportation path, and also "tamed" an awful lot of Western real estate.
By the 1930's, Uncle Pete came to symbolize the American Spirit itself; there was no mountain tall enough, or river deep enough, or challenge difficult enough to thwart its' forward progress. The UP had the three largest classes of railroad locomotives ever manufactured; the famous Big Boy steamers, the 8500 horsepower "Big Blow" gas-turbines, and the 6600 horsepower Centennial diesels. Each could move trains of enormous size fast, and each did much to contribute to the UP's excellent bottom line during their service lives.
Uncle Pete pioneered the concept of streamlined passenger trains with the M10000 {pictured above} in 1934, and concurrently, the use of diesel locomotives in high-speed, mainline service. It was an early advocate of automation, as well as constantly improving its' basic services. But most of all, the UP was {and still is} a firm believer of the notion that railroads are THE ultimate freight transport-mode. True, today's UP is a diversified holding company, but the railroad remains its' central component, and largest money-making endeavor.
No other American transport company can boast of a lineage that spans a timeline from Civil War origins to the Space Shuttle and beyond; and no other American transport company was so instrumental in opening up - often even creating - opportunities for commerce. Any kind of bonanza you could imagine, from gold to wheat, to oil and lumber, and just about everything in between - Uncle Pete was always there to ensure swift and efficient transport. In the latter half of the 20th century, UP continued growing into the colossus it is today, outlasting each and every one of its' competitors, and accommodating new competition. It continued to open up and create commerce opportunities, this time on an international scale, what with the freight-container revolution of the 1980's and '90's.
Like any business, Uncle Pete has had his share of corporate shenanigans; everything from anti-trust and rail-baron lawsuits, to a couple World Wars, to destructive sabotage and cruel bouts with Mother Nature. Through it all though, the trains kept a-rollin', and the profits kept a-flowin'. Is it any wonder that the red-white-and-blue Shield is as familiar an American icon as the Golden Arches, the Coca-Cola script, or the IBM logo?
But the best fact of all is that Uncle Pete became a success story with virtually NO assistance from the Federal Government, save for its' original charter. No bailouts. No tax-breaks. Not one bloody dime of Federal money - 100% private funds built the UP, and 100% private funds continue to run it to this day, unlike both the Interstate highway system, and every airport large or small which are heavily if not totally Government-subsidized. In short, the Union Pacific - like any other railroad in the US - is THE great American Success Story. There will be nothing else like it in my lifetime, but I'd dearly like to see the beginnings of other true American Success Stories before I go; there's been way too much emphasis on big-business scandal and failure in the last 25 years, IMHO.
For now though, I'll quietly rejoice every time I see the good old Armour Yellow, and Harbor Mist Gray {and of course that lovely tri-color Shield}. Uncle Pete still puts on a magnificent transport-show, and our nation is the better for it. Long may the UP endure!!!!
Things are picking up, boys and girls. This week I begin the transition into a new, much more lucrative job. As such, I will finally be able to get back fully on my feet once again, without all the worry and hassle I've been coping with over the last year or so. It's been sixteen months since my Mom's passing started all the changes, and for the first time since there is actually a glimmer of daylight at the end of the tunnel.
As is so often the case with my life, the switch comes about just as I was approaching the point of total burnout. I'd progressed about as far as I could with the current situation, and was merely treading water rather than continuing with forward progress. A change was inevitable, and a solid month of pursuing other options has finally paid off. My new gig promises full-time hours and benefits, plus I'll have the werewithal to revitalize the music once again.
The next couple weeks therefore look to be rather busy and hectic, so don't be surprised if there's another lapse in blog activity for a bit. Once I'm over this last hump things will settle down into routine, and I'll be able to get back to regular writings again. There's plenty to talk about; I just need a bit of time to get things in order, and adjust to the new situation. The regular fun and games will resume in due course.
In the meantime, you lot ought to know the drill by now - lay back and ride the groove for a while. Full spring is a good time to do just that, although here in Cornhusker-land, we've already had a couple potent shots of summertime weather, as well as a batch of STRONG thunderstorms and tornadoes.
It's all good though, and seems to be getting even better. Sit tight and be of good cheer, All - I'll be with you again shortly.................
{BTW - RIP George "Goober" Lindsey, at age 83. Always did like good ol' Goob whenever I saw him. Proof-positive that the best comedy is clean and genuinely silly............}
