Dear Editor:
Did I see 16 military vehicles, some with mounted guns, parading down Washington St. on Saturday? Is St. Patrick’s Day about war? One army truck stuffed with revelers got great applause from the onlookers. Is war a party?
What are we celebrating here? There was more Army and UMAC presence this year than I can remember. At what point did homage to Hoboken’s Celtic heritage turn into a display of force? It’s one thing to support the troops, another to applaud militarism. We’ve got two unpopular wars going that are busting the domestic budget. The Pentagon loves to use local occasions like this to stoke public support and project the impression that what it does makes us safer. And revel in the spectacle people did. “USA, USA, USA!” chanted puppets down the block. Is this what America is about? And what’s Irish about any of it?
No applause came from my windows. Remembering what an older resident once told me about the German Bund marching down Washington St., banners flying, and knowing that the Northern Command now has powers to mobilize against American citizens, I was chilled to see a convoy down there – even more by the happy clapping as if it was all a game. Soldiers and veterans know it’s not. Hoboken needs to get back to celebrating the best of Celtic traditions in its annual parade and leave the military PR back at the base.
Janet Larson