A sentinel at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier reprimanded the crowd after laughter was heard from a group that included Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth. On today’s episode of The Editors, Rich asks MBD about the importance of respecting military rituals.
“We’re fundamentally liturgical creatures,” explains MBD. “When we want to honor and make something sacred, we build traditions around it that protect it . . . that turn these convictions into instincts.
“You build a temple, but you also build a set of habits for how you act around it . . . and the same thing is true with the military.
“The old guard protects our soldiers in their resting place. . . . It also preserves the memory of this awesome ultimate sacrifice that people make for their country. It’s not the most natural thing in the world to lay down your life for this abstraction that we call a nation — it has to be cultivated into you by the culture. And one way of doing that is knowing that you will be honored, that you won’t be forgotten.”
The Editors podcast is recorded on Tuesdays and Fridays every week and is available wherever you listen to podcasts.
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