As we celebrate our nation’s independence, we are reminded of those who fought, and died, for our freedoms. Massachusetts colonists, beginning with its Minutemen, were on the front lines of the American Revolution. Military records indicate that throughout almost every year of
the Revolutionary War, the majority of Continental Army soldiers hailed from Massachusetts.
The first regiment to report to DC, from any state, in response to President Lincoln’s call for Civil War Union soldiers, was the 1st Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry. Young members of “the 1st” are among the veterans interred at the Massachusetts National Cemetery in Bourne on Cape Cod (Bourne), one of two “open” national cemeteries serving New England, operated by the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA).
The Commonwealth ranks third nationally in the
number of Medal of Honor recipients who called Massachusetts home, two of whom are laid to rest at Bourne. From our nation’s founding, and throughout the world, Massachusetts citizens have fought, and died, for principles including equity, diversity and inclusion. After fighting for
peace, many of them sought to rest in peace on the “hallowed grounds” of a national cemetery.
Federal law designates national cemeteries as “shrines.” Among the benefits earned via military service is final rest in a dignified, beautiful, serene setting befitting a “shrine.”
In violation of both federal law and VA’s “sacred trust,” the Obama-Biden VA desecrated Bourne’s “hallowed grounds” with a massive wind turbine. The Biden-Harris administration refuses to remove the noisy, unsightly structure, citing alleged savings and lack of opposition. Neither
cost nor public opinion has any bearing on our nation’s benefit obligations to its veterans.
Regardless, the turbine will never pay for itself, and opposition to its presence is fierce. The turbine’s close proximity to public areas raises safety issues; it is not sufficiently “setback” from grave markers, roadways, a POW-MIA memorial and funeral cortege waiting lanes. The
turbine also triggers traumatic memories for visiting military and veterans (e.g., its blades resemble Vietnam-era Huey rotors), and it emits sounds that exacerbate war-related health conditions (e.g., PTSD, Tinnitus).
Despite space limitations underlying Bourne’s current
expansion, an entire section was dedicated to a massive industrial wind turbine. The Obama-Biden administration desecrated Bourne to address climate change and “lead” in renewable energy, including wind. However, there are no turbines depicted in the architectural renderings of the Obama Presidential Library to be built in the windy city of Chicago. President Biden considers climate change so consequential as to justify the desecration of a national cemetery, while making repeated round-trips “home” to escape the “gilded cage” via fossil-fueled Marine One, Air Force One and motorcades. (He reportedly opposed silent cell towers in Catholic cemeteries in Delaware, where his first wife and two children are buried.)
President Biden described his VA Secretary, Denis McDonough, as a “staunch advocate” for veterans. Only the second non-veteran to head the agency established for the sole purpose of serving veterans, Secretary McDonough testified under oath that he would “fight relentlessly”
for those who have served. His refusal to remove the turbine displays a lack of compassion for relatives and comrades visiting Bourne, similar to the treatment hostage families received when Mr. McDonough served as President Obama’s Chief of Staff. Responding to allegations that
hostage families were threatened with prosecution should they negotiate with ISIS for their sons’ release, Mr. McDonough cited the government’s obligation to “uphold the law,” but he now condones the presence of a wind turbine which violates the law.
A wind turbine was erected at Bourne on President Obama’s watch, but its continued presence is condoned by our current Commander in Chief’s VA. President Biden should be standing with the USMC and the Green Berets, not surrendering to AOC and the Green New Deal. The
ongoing desecration at Bourne calls to mind a line from the war poem, In Flanders Fields: “If ye break faith with us who die, we shall not sleep.” Stay tuned for details about how you can help New England’s patriots return to sleep in a setting befitting a national “shrine.”
Carole Julian

