I don't bash veterans. Most of them have seen enough of the true horrors of war to know exactly why we need better foreign policy...at least those who will stand up and protest. If the SHTF, they may be the only thing between you and the militarized police. I don't consider that military worship. I think you might be surprised how many veterans are anti-war....maybe not necessarily old WWII vets but the younger ones. My uncle was a WWII vet and he was a POW held captive in the Phillipines. He never talked about the war after he came home. Not everyone is John McCain.
I'm not saying we have to "Bash" them either. To clarify, my opinions on the military are similar to that of Laurence Vance, not the Westboro Baptist Church, if you know what I'm saying.
You are very right that veterans may well stand between us and the militized police, and I agree that that's not military worship. (If I accused you or Cajun of being military worshippers, I would seriously, seriously reconsider my definition.)
This isn't really so much about the veterans themselves for me as it is the people who blindly accept virtually any government tyranny, but slight the veterans and wow they're ticked. Those people are just state-worshippers and statist worshippers, bottom line. If someone is completely OK with the War In Iraq, Obamacare, the Fed, gun control, etc. but he's offended that the altars to the Golden Calf of the US military are shut down, yeah, he's a state-worshipper. I seriously doubt you'd disagree with that.
I am not saying that the people here (or at least the ones who apply) who are against government nonsense in general, including this, are state-worshippers. In fact, by that definition, I myself would be a state worshipper, since I find it absolutely stupid that they're shutting the memorials down. I just also find it stupid that people care so much about this. They care more about honoring those who went overseas to murder than they are the fact that the murder is happening and that our money is being stolen to pay for it.
I know I'm rambling here... I just have so many thoughts going through my head. The TLDR is that its not so much about bashing the veterans themselves, though I do have a problem with what they do overseas, as it is with the people who absolutely adore them and worship them, and America in general.
(Note: despite the use of religion, this is a political analogy, please take it as such)
I guess I kind of view the US Government as being like the Catholic Church, before the Reformation. Say that a group of people broke off from the corrupt Church and started a religion that taught that works alone save and that Jesus is not God. Now, as a Baptist, I completely disagree with Catholic doctrine, and do not view it as the same religion I believe in in any sense. I'm opposed to it. Yet, I wouldn't support this breakaway group either. They are actually FURTHER from what I believe in than the Catholic Church to begin with.
The US Government is completely out of control, and is filled with people that worship it. People are rejecting it because it doesn't allow them to worship it as much as they'd like. So, while I completely oppose the US government, this civil disobedience is going in the COMPLETE OPPOSITE DIRECTION that we need to go.
As for the comparisons to 1776, the Founders didn't worship the Redcoats or want to see tyranny from a different political party. I cannot imagine 1776 happening today, necessary though it may be. And I wouldn't support just any revolution if it wasn't based around anything close to my beliefs and values.