Myths Of Our Fathers

We call the World War II generation the Greatest Generation because of the Myth. This is not to imply that it is a myth in the derogatory sense that those that fought WW II were great. No. One of the elements of that generation's greatness was their Myth. Churchill created a myth, a hyperreality if you please, when he stated that the defense of Britain would be their finest hour. Even if the Empire endure a thousand years, this would be their finest hour. And FDR and great American people created the defense of democracy, creating it and living in it. This generation drew courage and strength from their belief, their Myth, their story; this was their history. The same phenomenon was apparent in the years following the American Civil War in which mens' souls were forged in battle and struggle. As the WW II generation gets older, we shall miss them, but even more shall we miss their spirit and their belief. They were by no means perfect. They countenanced much that was wrong. Yet we shall truly miss an entire generation that was united in Belief, for Belief is something we no longer share communally. The great advances of civilizations are done by societies bound in common Beliefs. The best are those based on good beliefs. The worst are those based on vile beliefs. We are goin nowhere now. We feel the Age of Belief slipping away from us with each passing moment.