It’s a sign of the times that marketers would see the Number of the Beast as a great marketing gimmick. Specifically, they see the upcoming date of June 6, 2006—6-6-06—as an opportunity to flack everything from the new “Omen” movie to Ann Coulter’s latest book to a Satanic heavy metal music.
Of course, for the past 62 years, June 6 has had a very much more important meaning. Can you guess what it was without looking at the link? If you did, you’re either over the age of 35 or didn’t have a public school education. A little something more about that particular June 6.
A couple of summers ago, a college prof asked his class about the significance of the date. Only my kids knew the answer. He asked which high school they had attended, and they were pleased to tell him they’d homeschooled. They also told him that they’re WW II history buffs because one grandfather had spent the war encoding messages on various islands in the Pacific while the other was a B-17 pilot & POW in Nazi Germany. We always pause on that date to reflect and pray.
Hey, I’m 35, public-school educated and I knew what it was!!
My birthday is 6-6-55. So on 6-6-6 I’ll be …mumble… years old.
How much “cash” do I get?
Dom,
I think you will find more 15-25 year old guys know what happened on June 6th than in any other group under 35. Games like Call of Duty 2, where you are an army ranger climbing the cliffs of Pont-Du-Hoc, or a 101st pathfinder setting clearing the drop zone for the rest of your brigade, give a greater understanding of the events that day than any history book I have read. If you experience the invasion first hand, even if it is only 1/1,000,000th of what it was really like, you will have a greater appreciation of the sacrifices that were made that day, than if you read in class the Rangers held off the German counterattack for 3 days.
So give us gamers some credit, we know our history.
Yours in Christ,
~G
Ah yes, I forgot the “Call to Duty” effect. There’s also that game that takes place in the Vietnam era, so I guess they know a lot about that too.
Although, how sad is it that it’s video games and not school that have taught them that?
Yes, being ‘over 35’ (and then some…) D-Day is etched in my memory. It is also a help in remembering my son’s birthday, which is June 7th – a day after D-Day (and quite a few years later…)
Yes, I knew.
But also:
Ah, touche, Fr. Clark.