WASHINGTON—Every year, millions of Americans gather on the last Monday in May to drink, barbecue, socialize, and remember the fallen. But we all have that one friend who we know would be an unwelcome addition to the party. Nobody wants to invite him, but his potato salad is just so good that we have to.

That’s what happened when we heard that “American Taliban” John Walker Lindh was being released from prison. We didn’t want to invite him to our Memorial Day party, but his homemade potato salad is so fucking delicious that we didn’t have a choice.

Sure, Lindh’s stint with the Taliban in 2001 and experience in al-Qaeda training camps will make for some awkward conversation at our backyard barbecue. But holy shit if it isn’t worth it for a couple scoops of his signature side dish.

You might think after 17 years in federal prison that Lindh’s culinary skills would have atrophied. I can tell you with certainty, however, that they have not. Most people put too much mayonnaise in their potato salad and are overly conservative with the vinegar and paprika. Lindh, on the other hand, goes light on the mayo and all in on the vinegar and spices.

Now that’s the way a potato salad should be made.

Our party guests might have their own opinions about the Taliban or supporting terrorist organizations. But we know they’ll be able to put their prejudices aside, if only for one day, once they taste John Walker Lindh’s delectable potato salad.

LOS ANGELES — Marvel Studios announced today their most recent film “War on Terror: No Endgame in Sight” has bombed badly with an estimated loss of $5.6 trillion since opening 18 years ago.

Hollywood reporters were shocked at the poor box office performance. Dan Wakeford, People Magazine’s Editor-in-Chief, vividly remembers “how excited everyone was about this project from 2001-2003. But, the public lost interest quickly once they realized how long it would run. As a result, the media also had to start ignoring the ‘War on Terror’ around 2008.”

None of the cast have stepped forward to assume responsibility for failing to win the audience’s hearts and minds. Cast member Stanley McChrystal offered a signed copy of his memoir to this reporter in lieu of on-the-record comments when approached. A-lister David Petraeus released a statement that he was still “All In” and committed to working intimately with junior staff members despite the film’s poor returns.

Notably absent from the “War on Terror” red carpet premiere, was former President George W. Bush, whose initial passion for the film was said to be hot enough to melt steel beams.

Marvel Studios CEO Isaac Perlmutter is optimistic despite the bad news.

“I expect we will recoup our losses eventually, as we plan to leave this movie in theater forever,” he said.

LASHKAR GAH, Afghanistan — Gesturing the “peace” sign and telling fellow fighters that he was “totally done with this insurgent stuff, man,” hippie Taliban defector Ahmad Khan got incredibly stoned, sources confirmed today.

“Bro, did you ever just think, like, what are we doing it all for?” asked the totally lit former IED maker seconds before being stoned to death by his compatriots. “Like, did you ever think, what if we’re the bad guys and the Americans are the good guys? Or what if we’re actually both the good guys but we just don’t understand each other? Like, whoa. Damn, I’m so high.”

While many of Khan’s fellow insurgents empathize with his desire to reject the establishment and live a life of “free love and groovy tunes,” departing the Taliban to pursue an independent and off-the-grid lifestyle comes with its costs.

“Brother, I’ve got mad respect for Ahmad and everything he’s trying to do by sticking it to the man. I went through a bit of a ‘free spirit’ phase myself when I was younger,” said fellow Taliban fighter Muhammed Tarklani. “But we’re totally going to have to stone him to death. I mean, you can’t just leave the Taliban to go get high and listen to music.”

Khan’s parents attempted to convince the Taliban that he was going through a phase, and that within a few months they would make sure he finishes his classes at Berkeley and gets a job at his father’s law firm.

A Navy SEAL reassured a teammate dying from multiple gunshot wounds that this portion of his book would be “awesome,” sources confirmed today.

“This is awesome. I’m talking about this on every stop of my book tour. No way I don’t hit the bestseller lists after this,” Chief Petty Officer Brian Costanza told his fellow SEAL, Petty Officer 3rd Class Chet Steel, who was gasping his last breaths.

As the MEDEVAC helicopter departed with his teammate’s corpse, Costanza jotted down plot points and significant details about the incident to use in “Triumph of the Will: A Navy SEAL’s Journey Through Syria.”

Costanza said he was thrilled to have a significant emotional hurdle to add to the main character arc in the yet-to-be published memoir, but he faced backlash from some of his surviving teammates for the way he handled the incident.

“Don’t get me wrong. Brick is a great guy,” said Petty Officer 2nd Class Slade Paragon.“But I think it’s bullshit that he immediately claimed the incident for himself. Yeah, Chet died in his arms, but I was the one pulling security while he bled out. If anything, the trauma I suffered would make for a much more compelling chapter in my own book, ‘This Noble Warrior’s Creed.’ It’s just selfish.”

Petty Officer 2nd Class Chad Brogan, who outed himself on MSNBC shortly after receiving deployment orders to Syria, was also critical of Costanza’s decision.

“At the very least, he should have checked with the rest of the team so we could compare narratives,” Brogan said. “How would it look if all our books had similar chapters detailing Chet’s horrific death and our emotional journeys of recovery? People would think we’re assholes.”

Brogan said he now has to figure out a new anecdote to lead into his monologue about the terrible cost of war during chapter 9 of his book “The Trident Bleeds in Valhalla.”

Costanza was dismissive when asked about his teammates’ objections.

“These cherry fucks just like to complain,” he said. “My first book, ‘Uncommon Men-More Uncommon Valor,’ was published when they were still in BUDS, so I think I know a little more about narrative and plot structure than they do. Besides, what better way to honor Chet’s death than to have the most experienced writer on the team profit immensely by describing it in visceral detail?”

The remaining members of the team eventually agreed to let Constanza use the “death sequence” for his upcoming book. In exchange, they all received co-author credit for helping complete Steel’s posthumous memoir “Unkillable: The Sweet Rush of Combat.”

The SEALs chose to honor their fallen comrade’s memory by announcing that .5 percent of all book royalties will go to Steel’s widow Rhonda and their three young daughters.

KHOST, Afghanistan — A U.S. Army forward observer’s bracket is “totally screwed” after only the first round, sources confirmed today.

Bracketing is a common practice among casual observers and almost exclusively occurs in the post-winter months after the hangover of football season dissipates and the snow recedes. This period is often called “March Madness” or the “fighting season.”

Sgt. Andrew Shelbet hoped to win fame, glory, and $110 with his bracket, but he knew it was a lost cause after the first round.

“I tried to adjust fire on a bunch of Taliban in the open, but the first round went way over my head, then over the enemy, and then over a goddamn ridgeline,” said Shelbet. “It was totally fucked. I couldn’t even bare the impact of the second round.”

Shelbet tried to hide his embarrassment by claiming to be a disinterested observer.

“Look, I only do like one bracket a year, and I don’t even bother with the rest of the season. Most of the year, I’m totally dedicated to my fantasy football team, the Big Dick Fisters,” he said.

Meanwhile, rumors are swirling that Army Staff Sgt. Zeke “Lion” Williamson, currently deployed with the 82nd Airborne in Helmand province, has maintained a perfect bracket during this year’s March Madness.

Curiously, the NCAA and Vegas insiders have expressed interest in Williamson and his bracket.

“They contacted me asking for proof of my perfect bracket, so I sent them the drone footage,” said Williamson. “It was fucking sick. Two rounds of adjusting fire, then fire for effect, motherfuckers! Guts went flying everywhere. I estimated at least 12 enemy KIA. Perfect bracket.”

Williamson now faces UCMJ action for releasing the footage, but maintains it was “totally worth it to give the world a perfect bracket.”

Shelbet, on the other hand, has been disinvited from his unit’s 2020 bracket pool.

PLANTATION, Fla. — Rip It Energy Drinks teased plans for a unique can design that honors the 20 year anniversary of the Global War on Terror and will be available in combat zones by late 2021, in a press release today.

“We want to go all out to impress our troops,” said head of Rip It marketing Dave Hughes. “Many of them have suffered significant injuries from either combat or the consumption of our product and deserve the very best.”

The design will reportedly incorporate significant amounts of symbolism. Included will be 20 stars the size and shape of the kidney stones the product bestows, which represents the number of years of the conflict (so far). Other design elements are said to include the American flag, a heart pumping at 220 beats per minute, and probably an eagle.

The limited release product will also include commemorative flavors such as Mission Accomplished Mango, Tropical Troop Surge, Quagmire Citrus, and Poorly Defined War Aims Berry Punch. All flavors will reportedly still contain methamphetamine levels of caffeine and maintain Rip It’s signature “left out on a pallet in the Middle Eastern sun” aftertaste.

The Rip It brand itself is almost as old as the conflict, having been introduced as a non-alcoholic Four Loco substitute for troops downrange in the first year of the war. Troops immediately recognized the drink’s excellence, commonly described as carbonated battery acid, as a pallet cleanser perfect for after smoking a cigarette and immediately before throwing in a dip.  The brand’s popularity rose further once troops realized that when pairing it with Otis Spunkmeyer muffins caused simultaneous diarrhea and constipation.

“These past 20 years have been amazing, and we can’t wait to see what the next 20 holds,” said Hughes.

Though the design has yet to be fully finalized, experts believe that with the right kind of support, this promotion could be as big as Green Bean’s annual “Christmas away from your family” holiday cups.

A local Army veteran expressed outrage this morning over talks of a U.S.-Taliban peace deal, saying he didn’t risk his life during a two-month deployment to Bagram Airbase “just to see the war end like this.”

Cody Bennett started his protest on social media after U.S. special representative for Afghanistan Zalmay Khalilzad began negotiations with the Taliban to end the war. As one of the “elite one percent” who join the military, Bennett says most Americans won’t understand his point of view, but somebody needs to speak truth to power.

“Me and my boys put too much on the line out there just to see these spineless politicians settle for peace,” said the former administrative clerk who was sent home early due to bone spurs suffered on the base gym’s elliptical machine. “Are my blood, sweat and tears worth nothing?”

Bennett claims that he and other veterans often had to combat issues like minimal selection at the base Pizza Hut as well as long lines and limited hours at the dining facility.

“A large pizza for sixteen dollars? I put my life on the line day in and day out, and they’re going to try to swill me for sixteen dollars? On top of that, they never use enough sauce,” said Bennett, who never came within 200 meters of the base’s perimeter and was administratively separated from the Army for being overweight.

“Those guys, the ones like me that held the line for their country despite slightly below average dining standards compared to middle-class American expectations, those are the true heroes,” he added. Don’t talk to me about peace or freedom until you’ve had to live through that hell.”