Memorial Day is a day to remember those who gave their lives in defense of the country.

Here are a few quotes about patriotism and freedom:

  • "A hero is someone who has given his of her life to something bigger than oneself." -- Joesph Campbell
  • "A man's country is not a certain area of land, of mountains, rivers and woods, it is a principle and patriotism is loyalty to that principle." -- George William Curtis
  • "All you have to do is hold your first soldier who is dying in your arms, and have that terribly futile feeling that I can't do anything about it... Then you understand the horror of war." -- Norman Schwarzkopf
  • "Anyone who has ever looked into the glazed eyes of a soldier dying on the battlefield will think hard before starting a war." -- Otto von Bismarck
  • "I have long believed that sacrifice is the pinnacle of patriotism. " -- Bob Riley
  • "Only the dead have seen the end of war." -- Plato
  • "Patriotism is supporting your country all the time, and your government when it deserves it." -- Mark Twain
  • "The highest patriotism is not a blind acceptance of official policy, but a love of one's country deep enough to call her to a higher plain." -- George McGovern
  • "The patriot volunteer, fighting for country and his rights, makes the most reliable soldier on earth." -- Stonewall Jackson
  • "The patriot's blood is the seed of Freedom's Tree." -- Thomas Campbell
  • "These fallen heroes represent the character of a nation who has a long history of patriotism and honor - and a nation who has fought many battles to keep our country free from threats of terror." -- Michael N. Castle
  • "They hover as a cloud of witnesses above this nation." -- Henry Ward Beecher

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Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D. (center) is flanked by GOP whip Sen. John Barrasso, R-Wyo. (left) and Finance Committee Chairman Mike Crapo, R-Idaho, as Thune speak to reporters at the Capitol in Washington on Tuesday, July 1, 2025. Earlier Tuesday, the Senate passed the budget reconciliation package of President Donald Trump's signature bill of big tax breaks and spending cuts. (J. Scott Applewhite/AP)

Credit: AP