Happy New year to all of our veterans and their families. Soldier, Sailor, Air Force, Marine and Coast Guard. You all are the ones that allow us to use the word pride in our dedication to our Country and its system of governing. With all of our travails we still have more liberty and opportunity than most nations on earth. It is you the veteran who paid the dues as a guardian of those sometimes delicate but enduring freedoms.

Since this site was launched in July, we appear to be well received by the readers. It looks like we have the building blocks to be a continuing and reliable source of useful information and a solid connection to the community.

I do hope that Veteran Veritas has lived up to its mission of advocacy to veterans and their families. A ton of dialogue with our local population of vets has its genesis in this Blog, and I look forward to maintaining that trust and helpfulness.

I start every new year with the Parade of Roses in Pasadena. Its embodiment of Americana is unsurpassed anywhere. And the overall purity of the entire event, schmaltzy as it may be, brings the old Boy Scout out of me and a cart load of Hope at the same time.

Everyone of those floats commemorates something good and decent about our people and our common house called America.

Possibly we would all do well to build a float in 2010 to something good and decent and then emulate that throughout the year.

God bless your heartfelt intentions and may the light of the Holy Spirit guide your every decision.

HAPPY NEW YEAR Mike Brewer/USMC