Laying of the wreath

Rivers and Spires kicked off today with a wreath laying and symbolic re-lighting of the eternal flame. The flame honors our soldiers serving over seas and lights the path for them to return home. This annual remembrance kicks off three days of food, fun, entertainment, and shopping in historic downtown Clarksville, TN.

The award winning festival is organized by the City of Clarksville, Montgomery County Tennessee, and the Clarksville-Montgomery County Convention & Visitors Bureau, and is co-sponsored by many area businesses.

The evening’s entertainment started with the Can Creation Challenge at 4:30p.m. This event challenges local teams to put together sculptures based on a theme with the winning team picking a local charity to benefit from their $500 prize. Afterwards the building materials were donated to a local food bank.

Following that at 5:15 p.m. ten faculty members from APSU got to perform in a talent competition which was judged by their students.

Josh LaCount Band

Afterward the Josh LaCount Band took the stage. The band projects solid vocals, and does great things with a guitar. The band is on MySpace, Their music is available on iTunes, and you can view their music videos on Youtube.

Check out the video to Josh’s song Way down.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Andy Grammer

Andy Grammer

They were followed by Andy Grammer a young man with quite a vocal repertory. His warmth and personality draw you into the sphere that his music creates and you feel at once welcome and comfortable with his expressions and sound. He utilizes a music style that combines beat box, mouth trumpeting and vocals. His performance drew strongly from his album- “Andy Grammer Live- Soft lights on Bright Colors.” As Andy tells it, “I think from the second I start beat boxing and mouth trumpeting its clear this is going to be done a little differently!” And he doesn’t disappoint.

An iTunes reviewer had this to say:

“Andy takes pride in tackling the issues we all face in life and singing about them with “brutal honesty.” His lyrics are deep, clean, and meaningful; his sound is positive and encouraging. If you liked John Mayer in his early career, then you will love Andy.”

His EP album is available on iTunes, but to get his newest album “Soft lights on bright colors” like I just did you will have to go and visit his web site. You can also watch his videos on Youtube.

Here’s his video Second Hand Smoke

Click here to view the embedded video.

Jason Reeves

Jason Reeves

Folk singer Jason Reeves closed out the night. When you listen to Jason sing you can tell he puts his heart and soul into his music. He draws you into his music and his world. Jason has four albums available for purchase on iTunes. Each of his songs is easily capable of standing alone, you can’t say that for many artists. His MySpace page is exceptionally well designed.

In case you missed him, check out this Jason Reeves and Colbie Caillat video titled Permanent

Click here to view the embedded video.

All the acts on the opening night of the 2009 Rivers and Spires deserve a spot in your music collection, so go and check them out!

The festivities continue tomorrow at 5:30pm

Photo Gallery

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Upcoming Schedule

The flame is out -- again!

Light’s out. Again.

Just when we thought the Eternal Flame was finally going to remain lit, its blaze was doused again — on election day.

Apart from being completely irritated and totally digusted with a city that can’t seem to get its collective act together long enough to keep one itty-bitty little thing ablaze (such as a monument that honors all American soldiers), there is another irony, one that I, as an American citizen, find disgusting.

The city seems to have no problem lighting the flame for commercial events. The flame blazed when the new downtown fountain was lit. It blazed during the last three Riverfests and Rivers and Spires festivals. It blazed when nothing was going on downtown but city government as usual. Because we (Clarksville Online) check every single day, we know when the flame is lit. And when it isn’t.

It was off on the fourth of July, even as the Vietnam Vets staged a striking ceremony honoring their fallen. It was re-lit after the 4th of July passed, and blazed right up until the eve of primary election day. It has been lit while the Legion Street-turned-Strawberry Alley construction is underway. Now the city managed to keep the new streetlights ablaze throughout the daytime hours this entire week. Water continues to flow through the lovely new fountain on Public Square. Only the flame, the best and brightest of our symbols, seems eratic.

It is primarily the holidays, the last two Memorial Days, Veterans Day, Flag Day, and days related to the rights our soldiers fight and die for (like Election Day and our right to freely vote) — that see the flame conspicuous by its darkness, a collective slap in the face to soldiers and their families.

Ever since the American Revolution, soldiers have fought and died to protect and preserve our freedoms, including our right to vote, one of the most basic rights and privileges we as Americans cherish. Or used to. We seemed to have lost that concern.

So here we stand, on the brink of still another presidential race, and what happens? People in their thoughtless, mindless apathy fail to vote (as an 11.86% turnout indicates), and the soldiers who have for centuries fought to preserve such rights, and help establish them for other nations, stand dishonored by that apathy. The darkened flame mirrors both voter ambivalence and the loss of a sense of honor.

On Thursday night, as I left the Riverview Inn in the shadow of the unlit flame and in wake of the narrow defeat of Tim Barnes by incumbent Rosalind Kurita, I thought of a larger issue, that of individuals who care enough to take up the challenge and run for public office, and the individuals who have the courage to work tirelessly behind the scenes for both challengers and incumbents, who face daunting tasks in the running of America at every level. The ability to hold office, or to run for office, the bloodshed it has taken over centuries to secure and sustain those rights, are tied to that flame, the one that was out, again, Thursday night. The blackened space at the top of ‘Pillar of Fire, Pillar of Clouds’ is an embarassment to the city — and we, its residents.

I don’t want to hear the lame excuse that “the wind blew it out” (that’s been used before by a city councilo representative on a windless witless day). I don’t want another round of pass the buck by city officials who apparently are too incompetent to fix the problem permanently — they are solidifying the “top spot” in that. If the city can’t cut it, maybe some business that makes its living off the backs of military paychecks in Clarksville will step up and address the problem. Or just maybe, citizens, veterans included, could make enough noise that the city will have to take successful action. Don’t apologize to me, to the people of Clarksville, to the soldiers of Fort Campbell. Just fix the darned flame.

Fort Campbell troops might consider posting a soldier a day — an honor guard — to stand downtown at the base of the flame with a candle and sign that reads “Thank you Clarksville for failing to honor us and our fallen brethen for our dedicated service.” Maybe some military wives, husbands or mothers with family deployed in Iraq and Afghanistan might want to take turns sitting at the flame during the day, every day, until it is re-lit PERMANENTLY. Maybe guilt or public embarassment will fuel the flame.

I am ashamed that more folks are not stepping up and deluging city hall with complaints, writing letters to the editors of local media, or otherwise showing some pride and honor towards our troops and the freedoms they fought for.

What will it take for Clarksville to keep one simple symbol ablaze to honor our troops and our military history?

As the Independence Day weekend moves on, the smoke from fireworks has dissipated and the residue from our recent fireworks show have been cleared away. The traffic jams cleared up, and we each go on our merry way. Yes, the city’s celebration was quite a sight. And as noted in previous coverage here, the Pillar of Cloud, Pillar of Fire Eternal Flame Memorial was burning bright and strong at 11:30PM on July 3rd. The flags at City Hall were still sadly un-illuminated but the eternal flame did shine for that night. Hallelujah!!!

Alas, it was too good to last. It was not burning during the daylight hours on our nation’s birthday, and when the evening of July 4th dawned upon us the flame was still NOWHERE TO BE SEEN. It was AWOL again! We took date stamped photographs to verify this.

Are our public officials really committed to keeping our pledge to light the flame, and in doing so honoring our fallen military personnel? Or is this just a “showpiece” there only to be utilized during special promotions and city events?

The Eternal Flame was kept lit for the entire run of ‘Rivers and Spires.” Every day and night it was there. But the flame ceased burning a mere three days following the close of that festival. It stayed that way until two weeks before Memorial Day.

But strangely the flame was once again unlit for the entire Memorial Day weekend. As the Vietnam Veterans Association held their candlelight vigil on Public Square that Sunday, the absence of that flame was conspicuously felt as the names of Tennessee’s MIA were called off. Apparently their sacrifice did not warrant the flame. It was only veterans and MIA service members, after all.

All of last week, workmen were busy installing a new eight or new nine foot diameter water fountain on Public Square. (This is not the fountain that is still planned for location on Legion street). It became functional last Thursday. Thursday night the water was freely flowing, and the interior lights were shining brightly. It is admittedly a lovely sight. Too bad the Eternal Flame couldn’t have been blessed with the same good fortune. It has remained unremarked in the darkness at the other end of Public Square. while the fountain has remained fully functional every day and night since it was turned on.

Recent coverage on Clarksville Online has highlighted the glaring failure of many local government and business entities to properly illuminate our national flag during the hours of darkness. Once again our own City Hall is in violation with two towering flag poles, front and rear, each over thirty feet tall. Neither of which are properly illuminated at night. Perhaps there is a pattern at work here; one of a blatant disregard for our nation’s flag, and for a memorial honoring our serving soldier’s and military fallen.

Despite all our public officials pretty speeches and their placing big yellow ribbons on the sides of our city’s buildings, could it be that deep inside we really just don’t care? Maybe Clarksville’s true claim to the title of “Tennessee’s Top Spot” is for our elected officials disrespect for our nation and the sacrifice of it’s soldiers. You be the judge.

We at Clarksville Online have tried over and over again to get our elected officials to do something about keeping the flame lit, with no luck. If each of you take a moment to email or call our elected officials and tell them to light the flame, and keep it lit! Perhaps at long last they will get the message! Light the flame already! Because if not we will hold them to account the next time they are up for re-election!

One by one, as a bell tolled a single chime and the words “Absent, not forgotten” were spoken by people in the viewing stands, Vietnam veterans carried thirty-three empty chairs draped in the black and white POW-MIA logo, carrying the names of Tennessee soldiers still missing from the Vietnam War, to “center stage” and saluted.

To the side, another veteran lit a candle for each name called. Gery Ezell read the roster of the missing. Reverend Elijah Oliver gave the benediction for this vigil.

Dozens of Vietnam veterans and their families gathered in Public Square Sunday evening to honor their fallen comrades, Tennessee’s 33 POWs and MIAs of the Vietnam War. The event was sponsored by Chapter 396 of the Vietnam Veteran’s of America, who launched this annual service in 1989 when the fate of forty-three Tennessee soldier serving in Vietnam did not return. In the intervening years, 10 soldiers have been returned, the most recent in 2005.

State Representative Joe Pitts was the speaker for the event, noting not only those who have fought in past wars but those who currently serve in Iraq and Afghanistan. “They should be honored,” he said. Senator Rosalind Kurita and James Patterson of the State Veteran’s Service were also present for this solemn ceremony. Neither the mayor nor any city councilors attended.

The Wester family opened the service with three songs: our National Anthem, God Bless America and America the Beautiful.The Montgomery County JROTC posted the colors and a single chair was placed close to the speakers, symbolizing those who could not be there.

Members of the Vietnam Veterans Motorcycle Club, the Legacy Veterans Motorcycle Club, and the 2nd Brigade Motorcycle Club, turned out in large numbers for the vigil, lining the bikes in precise rows not unlike parade rank. As each of the clubs’ members carried their soldier’s chair to the front line, they paused to stand at attention and salute. For so many of us who have lost loved ones to Vietnam or other conflicts, it was a poignant moment.

The bikers, dressed in jeans, many wearing sunglasses and sporting beards, wearing vests emblazed with their club logos, were also symbolic of an era of protest, of soldiers honoring their pledge to fight for the United States even as protests over the war erupted stateside. They stood together, unified, in solidarity with the fallen friends.

The ceremony has been expanded to honor every American who has served their country in the military, said Maryanna Christy. Christy and several audience members noted that at the time the flag was raised to begin this event, the city hall doors began opening and closing, and didn’t stop until the ceremony ended.

Though inspirational and moving, there was one “sore spot” noted by virtually all who attended. Once again, the city’s Pillar of Fire/Pillar of Clouds, designed as a perpetual tribute to America’s soldiers, was unlit. The veterans in attendance were “not happy” with that omission. Clarksville Online has documented the fact that this is the second Memorial Day that flame has been out. It was also out on Veteran’s Day.

“I was at the original installation [of this monument]. At that time the City of Clarksville said the flame would burn 365 days a year. The facts is, it burns occasionally. It is almost never lit when there are ceremonies honoring veterans.” — Maryanna Christy

Christy said is the unlit flame is a slap in the face of every veteran

Vietnam Veteran David Nemirow called the omission “an embarrassment. The flame should NEVER be out.”

In a second emotional and unpatriotic hit, a number of American flags at McGregor Park were in disarray, partially torn away and hanging loose in the wind. One veteran said that if the city puts up these flags, they have a “responsibility” to maintain them. “Otherwise, why bother to put them up.”

Given that Clarksville is home to Fort Campbell, which has hundreds of its troops deployed in Iraq and Afghanistan, these omissions have hit doubly hard and triggered significant dissatisfaction among attendees, who see the unlit flame and the dangling flags as “unpatriotic” and “irreverent.”

The city’s omissions were a complete contrast to the meticulously planned and beautifully managed ceremony sponsored by the veterans themselves.

This highly visible flag at Riverside and Commerce remain partially untethered as the Memorial Day weekend unfurls.

Vigil and Flag photos by Bill Larson

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Lighting a flame is just too much to ask. Even during Memorial Day Weekend, the flame is out. Yet “We support the troops!” claims and stickers are everywhere. Who’s foolin’ who?

Yet another national observance dedicated to honoring the nation’s debt to its military forces, past and present, is upon us. Flags are flapping in the wind. Boy Scout Troops are preparing to descend upon various cemeteries to place small flags at veterans graves. Politicians gear up to make patriotic oratory praising America’s military forces and the noble sacrifices made by them and their families, past and present. Even the president has reminded us to remember the veterans as we celebrate this weekend. All of these annual gestures of reverence are expected and applauded

But there is an affront to all this staged posturing in our community. For quite some time now, Clarksville has been playing footloose and cheap with its symbolic gesture to military honor and sacrifice- the eternal flame on Public Square. The flame has been unlit for most of this year. Citizen inquiries have resulted in a myriad of replies, to include being told that, “Surely, the wind must have just blown it out!”

The city made a commitment when that memorial was erected. Eternal Flames are meant to be just that- burning for all time, at all times, eternal. Such is not the case with Clarksville’s Eternal Flame. As of Saturday night, the flame was unlit. Unlit on Memorial Day Weekend and our Fort Campbell forces suffering injuries and death this very week!

The flame was lit during Rivers & Spires, but is off again. This Bill Larson Photo shows what the flame is supposed to look like at all time.

There were supposed to have been provisions taken to procure the necessary fuel for the flame’s endurance. The city had, at one time, a natural gas purchasing team in place to pursue favorable long-term gas purchase contracts on the city’s behalf. This structure fell victim to apparent political machinations and was dissolved. However nothing was put in its place and Our Flame Has Been and Remains UNLIT! OUR WORD, OUR SOLEMN PROMISE FALLS EMPTY, BROKEN.

The dead can’t break their promise, they can’t withdraw their sacrifice. The living have an obligation to those dead. A serious effort to fulfill it should be established and soon. After all, more soldiers die everyday in Iraq and/or Afghanistan. Is a flame really so much to ask?

And while all of that is true, we need to take the time to remember and honor the reason we have this holiday: our veterans and our soldiers on active duty.

War has littered America’s historical landscape, beginning with the Revolutionary War that forged the democracy we live in. The Civil War bloodied our own soil in a way that World Wars I and II, Korea and Vietnam, did not, though those wars took an enormous toll on American soldiers and their families. There have been other battles along the way, inclduing the much more recent and controversial Gulf Wars I and II (a.k.a the Iraq war).

Memorial Day, though, is not about plans or policies or civil disobedience. It is about honor. Respect. That is the starting point of the day.

Many of us have veterans in our families or in our ancestry. My own uncle was a WWII prisoner of war who never understood my opposition to war when Vietnam changed the face of conflict. Nor would he have understood my current anti-war activism. Yet one of the things he and all of our soldiers defended was our constitutional right to disagree. I was proud to be at his side when he passed on, some fifty years after the ravages of war irrevocably altered the rest of his life. I passed his medals on to the next generation — my children and grandchildren. To remember.

Ceremonies, services and vigils are being held around the city, across the country, at various monuments or parks and by various groups, even as 150,000+ American troops continue to put their lives on the line in Iraq and Afghanistan. Regardless of whether we support the current war or not, we should pause and honor the fallen, and those who serve on the front lines as well. We also need to consider the fate of our emotionally, spiritually and physically wounded veterans.

As we move through the weekend, pause and remember, take a moment of silence to honor the fallen men and women of our armed services.

Rivers & Spires Festival orginated in 2003 as a tribute to the soldiers of the 101st Airborne Division who, at the time, were returning from a deployment. Since then, it has continued to honor the community’s heritage by paying special tribute to Fort Campbell soldiers, many of whom are are currently deployed overseas, and their families.

The 2008 event opened with a re-igniting of the eternal flame on Public Square. Before the ceremony, I was reassured by City Councilor Geno Grubs that the flame, which has been off more than on over the past year, had been snuffed by a mechnical problem, and not by a city trying to save money or “the wind blowing out the flame.”

An impressive ceremony was held at the Pillar of Clouds, Pillar of Fire monument,with a color guard and numerous city and Fort Campbell officials present.

Thursday evening was also designated APSU night, one of the main highlights was the fact that DJ $crilla was to present a song written for Austin Peay State University. He was chosen last fall by the Govs Programming Council to write an original song for APSU. He has written songs for other universities, including George Washington University, Louisiana State University and Vanderbilt University. $crilla also performed other original songs written in honor of various Greek organizations. University President Tim Hall attended the performance.

Austin Peay State University was also one of the signature sponsors Rivers and Spires this year. Many of the volunteers are APSU students, faculty and staff.

Also performing Thursday night was singer/songwriter Josh Phiffer, who grew up in a musical home immersed in his parents love of music. Now 21, Josh brings this history to the stage. His rich musical heritage and wide range of influences is evident in his melodic songwriting, his tasty, adept guitar playing and on-stage presence. He has an uncanny knack for putting the audience at ease and welcoming them into his world. Over the past year, Josh has been touring around the U.S., playing over 150 shows, opening for such bands as Rookie of the Year, This Day, and Age, Making April, Foreverinmotion, Long Since Forgotten, All the Day Holiday, Get Your Guns and A Plea for Purging..

Cypher Addicts Crew, a group which is composed of APSU students also was one of the spotlighted performers of the evening.

Schedule and map

The schedule of events, performers, and a map showing the location of each of the 6 stages is available on the Rivers and Spires official web site.

Photo Gallery for Thursday

As many of you know, I have in the past written articles strongly disagreeing with the Iraq war. I still oppose it and will continue to protest until it is finally ended, and the last American soldier has safely returned home. Now that we have made that clear, I must make something else clear.

 I have nothing but the highest respect for the dedication and the totality of the sacrifices that the soldiers serving our country make. As someone who has served in the military I understand that those who serve in our military are not granted the privilege of being able to cast a moral judgment about the legitimacy of the wars they are ordered to fight, and they share none of the blame so richly deserved by those who intentionally lied us into this conflict.

So on Saturday around dusk I went to Public Square in downtown Clarksville Tennessee in order to conduct what amounted to a one person vigil honoring those lives which have been lost in this unjust and immoral war in Iraq. I said my silent prayers for the souls of those no longer with us, and my continuing prayer for the safe return of those who are still in harms way.

After I was finished, I went for my camera. It is frequently said that a picture speaks a thousand words, so I will let the picture I took speak loud and clear, “Someone has a lot to answer for!” Fuel the flame; honor our soldiers.

Saturday, November 10, was a day of parades, ceremonies, and memorials, flags, uniforms and speeches honoring the veterans of American wars, including the current conflict in Iraq. Sunday, November 11, was the actual holiday, the Holy Day of Days for veterans across the country. So what happened in Clarksville on this Veteran’s Day?

The light went out. An unheralded extinguishing of eternal flame in downtown Clarksville, a flame that is supposed to be a blaze of fire in the night sky over the city. This darkening should be considered an insult to every person serving in the military today, and to every citizen of this country. The darkening of the flame (which has happened before with no fanfare) is also a slap in the face to the vets of Vietnam, Korea, both world wars, and every other war in our history. The fact that it happened on Veteran’s Day and as Christmas lights are being illuminated citywide just magnifies the force of that slap.

Clarksville brags about being home to Fort Campbell and the 101st Airborne, with its a huge population of soldiers and their families, many of whom have endured multiple deployments, some of whom have paid the ultimate price, many others who returned wounded, fractured in body, mind and family. They may be silenced on issues relating to the war in Iraq, but if I were a soldier or a military spouse I’d be screaming. Especially when the number of US soldiers killed is moving to 4000 in Iraq alone.

I am an anti-war activist and an avowed peace monger, and I want to scream about this flame out. I was upset the first time I saw it out several years ago, before I was immersed in the community. I was upset the second time it was out (and that was long period of time). On Sunday, all I could say was “here we go again.”

I e-mailed Mayor Piper, all 12 City Council members, Veterans services for the county and the Gas and Water department to ask a simple question: Why?

I received three replies (as of 11 a.m Tuesday): one from Ms. Hickey at Gas and Water referring me to the Economic Development Council who passed the buck back to the Mayor’s Office; and notes from three City Councilors.

Ward 11 Councilman Bill Forrester wrote,

“I do not know the answer to your question, however, I will find out tomorrow and rectify the problem for now and hopefully for the future. Thank you for bringing the problem to my attention. I must admit that the public should not have to bring problems such as this to our attention.”

Ward 2 Councilwoman Deanna McLaughlin wrote,

“I have to agree with you. Of all occasions, the flame should be burning on Veteran’s Day Weekend. I will call the Mayor’s Office tomorrow to see what the problem is. Thanks for contacting me…”

Councilwoman Barbara Johnson wrote,

“I will certainly get with the people responsible for keeping the flame going. I am sure no one put the flame out on purpose. “

I support the troops by working to raise public consciousness about the war and am active in political action to bring them home. I work on issues of political and social policy. I’ve taken care of soldiers suffering through the aftermath of wars long since ended, and for 27 years was legal guardian to a WWII POW irrevocably damaged by that incarceration. Like tens of thousands of others, I lost friends — many friends — to Vietnam, and older family members to the ravages of World War II. I’ve been to the cemetery to clip the grass around the bronze plaque at my soldier/uncle’s grave (a WWII prisoner of war). I’ve touched names on the wall in Washington many times.

I am not ashamed of my opposition to the current war, and I would do anything to help a soldier or their families; I respect them. But quite frankly, every time I have seen this memorial unlit, the sky blackened where a beacon of light should shine, I am ashamed of the city I live in now.

When a beautiful, inspirational monument such as Gregg Schlanger’s 30-foot high Pillar of Fire, Pillar of Clouds is commissioned and constructed as a symbol of peace, and intended to honor all soldiers from all services and all wars, one would think the city, its leaders and the businesses that profit from the paychecks of thousands soldiers every day, every week, all year long, year after year, would be standing in line to make sure this tribute is bright and visible every hour of every day. They should be standing in line to underwrite this beautiful memorial, which stands tall over the Cumberland River for all to see, and ensure with due vigilance that the flame never dies.

I was informed that in the case of the last longer term “extinguishing” of the flame, the gas that fuels the flame was too expensive to run, ergo the flame was extinguished. And it was out for a long time. It re-appeared sporadically for festivals such as Rivers and Spires and for singular events such as Memorial Day, though this summer and until Sunday, the flame remained lit. Thankfully lit.

This random pattern of snuffing out the flame is an insult to those it was intended to honor. Or has the definition of the word “eternal” been rewritten?

Driving across Public Square Sunday, a friend called me just after dark and said, simply, “it’s out.” I blinked. And hastily penned an e-mail to Mayor Piper. Followed 12 hours later by a flurry of letters to other city officials.

Fueling the flame…

Is it a malfunction? If gas expense is the issue, why not, at the very least, consider rewiring it for electricity? Or better yet, hook it up for solar power. Surely modern technology has a discreet method can relight this city’s flame without obvious incursions to its artistic design.

If expense is the issue, why not ask the car dealerships that sell all those nice new high speed cars, pick-up trucks and SUVs to Fort Campbell soldiers to donate the price of a new car to the cost of the flame’s gas bill? Maybe the dozens of check-cashing operations and businesses who deal in title loans and the pawn shops that do a steady trade along Fort Campbell Boulevard can take turns or pool resources to underwrite the gas bill?

Why not ask McDonald’s and WalMart — where military families spends millions each year — to support the flame? Maybe the real estate agents selling all these new homes to soldiers in this Gateway to the South city can pool a percentage of profits into a realtor’s “flame fund?” Why don’t the churches get together and make a donation to underwrite the honor established by the flame — how many of their members come from military families? Maybe the city can fuel the flame by following the example of the IRS and adding a “donate one dollar to the flame” check box on the tax bills issued to homeowners and businesses.

Lawmakers and businesses and churches and families advertise on their promotional signs that they “support the troops.” Supporting the troops is more than a sign: prove it by putting your money where your mouth is. Apply the cost of the sign you made or bought to the expense of keeping the flame alive in their honor. Scream when the light goes out.

It is the height of irony that the only light on the Pillar might be candles placed by anti-war activists to honor a fallen soldiers.

If the City of Clarksville can’t keep the supposedly “eternal” flame lit, a flame which is advertised as a landmark on the city’s websites, maybe it should donate the memorial to some other city — I’m sure there are many communities across the country who would love to have this inspirational and commemorative work of art lighting up the night sky in their community.

To have it stand at the top of a hill as one of our city’s landmarks, yet be unlit at a time when our city’s soldiers are deployed and wounded, or dying, and on the day devoted to their honor, is a bullet to the heart of to every soldier who lives here and everyone serving away from home as well. How can the city glad-hand the military while turning off the light? Aren’t they embarrassed? If not, they should be. Embarrassed and ashamed.

I frequently stand at the memorial with friends in peace actions acknowledging of our escalating losses and the high human price we are paying in Iraq and Afghanistan. It is sad that a small and humble group of pacifists in an overwhelmingly military town stand at the base of the eternal flame for a memorial, reading the names of the military dead, must light their own candles of honor against the night.

Editor’s Note: We will of course continue to follow the flame in search of an explanation.

Debbie Boen photo: Marble base of the Eternal Flame is illuminated with candles during a peace prayer vigil the last time the flame was allowed to die.

Christine Piesyk photo: The eternal flame sits dark as holiday lights are installed to illuminate downtown.