Non Sui Ipsius

Mission Statement of The American Legion Auxiliary:

In the spirit of Service Not Self, the mission of the American Legion Auxiliary is to support The American Legion and honor the sacrifice of those who serve by enhancing the lives of our veterans, military, and their families, both at home and abroad.

For God and Country, we advocate for veterans, educate our citizens, mentor youth, and promote patriotism, good citizenship, peace and security.

Pua's Personal Statement

Paragraph one is the reason I serve. Paragraph two is the one I struggle with, beginning with the first two words. I'm right there with ..."we advocate for veterans, educate our citizens, mentor youth." But I have to be honest, I have not seen a whole lot of good citizenship, peace, and security at the American Legion lately. I have not seen a whole lot of "Service Not Self". What I HAVE seen are personalities, egos, bullies, bullying, and general SELF-aggrandizing, SELF-motivation, and SELFishness. All under that banner of "For God and Country", which again, I struggle with. Don't get me wrong, the "patriotism" overflows in that cubbyhole of "America-ness" and "Truthy-ism". That's to be expected. But the mention of deities slays me every damn time. Further, the behavior of some people who make that pledge...well, that's one of many reasons Charlie and I very easily walked away from organized religion and everything that goes with it decades ago.

The God I once knew would have nothing to do with any of the nonsense going on there. Moreover, I honestly doubt that anyone that truly is trying to honor their omniscient, omnipotent benefactor-creator would behave the way they do if they really believed they were motivated by a pledge that includes "For God and Country" without some sense of guilt, hypocrisy, or irony.

I have to re-evaluate my level of participation. A resignation may be in the works.