Good Lord. Do you realize that less than 1% of Americans bear the weight of defending the freedoms the rest of us often take for granted? This parade is about honoring 250 years of men and women who’ve risked everything so you can live in a country where even calling them “terrifying” is your protected right. It’s a tribute to wounded warriors who came home forever changed, and to Gold Star families who carry an unimaginable grief — not for glory, but because someone they loved believed this country was worth dying for.