Citizen Commentary: On Patriotism

By Guest

By Ret. Brigadier General Frank LaBollita

I was 5 years old when the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, too young to understand what was happening to the world. Within a few months, when I visited my grandfather’s house, I began to notice pictures of men in uniform on his upright piano. When I asked who they were, I was told they were uncles and cousins serving in the U.S. Armed Forces; to me they were just “pictures on the piano.”

I also noticed my immigrant grandfather had a small lamp of the Statue of Liberty in the living room window with a small light for the torch, which he kept on day and night. When I asked him why, he said it was for the safe return for the men in the “pictures on the piano.”

As time and the war went on, I saw things that made a mark on me. We had blackout drills, one night an air raid warden knocked on our door to tell my father one of our window shades was not pulled down far enough. There was food rationing, and every person had a book of ration coupons — I still have mine. In elementary school, we all brought in a few cents every week to buy stamps to put in a special book. When the book was filled, you converted it to a war bond.

As I walked down the streets of Dorchester, every house displayed a small white banner with red trim and a blue star for each member of the family serving in the military. Sadly, some of the stars turned to gold to signify a loss.

It was not uncommon to see a replica of the banner nailed to a telephone pole at a street corner to honor the guys who hung around there. Even the Boston Fire Department had replicas of the banner on the sides of their engines, to show how many men from that company were serving the cause of freedom.

In 1945 the war ended, and fortunately all of the “pictures on the piano” came home physically unharmed. As I grew older and talked with my uncles and cousins, I learned of the horrors they had seen, and what they had to do to defend our freedoms. They were truly part of the “Greatest Generation.”

When I turned 18, I joined the Massachusetts Army National Guard as a private, and 35 years later I retired as a brigadier general (MA). Like countless others, my life experiences had a profound effect on me and instilled the true meaning of patriotism — it is deeds, not words.

This brings me to the proposal that the Select Board start every meeting by reciting the Pledge of Allegiance.

The short definition of the word pledge is a promise or vow to perform an action. In that regard, I propose that the board recite the pledge now and once a year when they reorganize.

Patriotism is not shown through words, but by action: defending the Constitution, adhering to the rule of law, and defending democracy. The pledge does not have to be repeated at every meeting, just as marriage vows are not repeated every morning.

If the oath of office for every town official does not contain the words “support and defend the Constitution of the United States,” it should; this would negate the need for the pledge.

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