Jul

5

Resolution Day

Filed Under Fascism, Government, Law, Socialism | 1 Comment

I’ve been thinking over the weekend.

I’m proposing that we keep July 2nd as Resolution Day. It was on July 2nd that the Continental Congress passed the resolution to become independent from Great Britain. John Adams thought that July 2nd should forever be celebrated with fireworks and parades. Instead, we adopted the 4th, the day the Declaration was actually signed, as the day we celebrate.

But July 2nd should have a different meaning for us. It should give us cause to reflect on why we signed that declaration. What did declare our Independence from?

If you will recall, at the time of the signing, Great Britain was in control of the colonies. She ruled us under the Monarchy of King George. One of the reasons mentioned as the cause of our troubles was that the King had become mentally ill. And certainly his edicts demonstrate that his ability to reason may have been compromised. One example is his paranoid response to the “Olive Branch” petition sent by Congress. He believed the Congress was being led by a group of conspirators. At the time, nothing could have been further from the truth.

But keep in mind, also, that Britain not only ruled us politically, but economically. She controlled our imports, our exports, our weights and measures, and our shipping and trade. The Boston Tea Party was a protest against being forced to buy English tea, which purchase was then subject to taxation. It was a way to indirectly force the colonies to pay the tax, and the colonists hated it.

In fine, the English controlled what we could buy and sell and to whom. It was, from the viewpoint of the colonies, a state-controlled economy. The state controlled the means of production and distribution within the colonies.

Whether they knew it at the time or not, our Founding Fathers were rebelling against a form of limited, focused socialism. It was something they were not used to, and they rightly saw it as a threat to their economic well-being.

The Declaration of Independence enumerates several specific grievances against the king, all of which culminate in a final charge of tyranny.

A Prince, whose character is thus marked by every act which may define a Tyrant, is unfit to be the ruler of a free people.

As you read each of those grievances, compare them to the complaints that come out of socialist governments. I think you will find they are very similar. We fought a war to rid ourselves of this kind of illegitimate government. Why, then, do we now accept it as the “natural evolution” of our system of government?

Our Founding Fathers were not so unwise as to be blind to the possibilities which their vision might one day create. The government that the liberals and Barak Obama would foist upon unsuspecting Americans will bring the same results that we petitioned against in 1776. It is not the government our Founders created.

To bring this to a point, I propose a day of reflection to occur every July 2. It will be called Resolution Day, a day to renew our resolve to never allow ourselves or any person live under any form of tyranny forever. It will be a day to relearn and celebrate our heritage and our history, and a day to expose and reject those forms of government that are calculated to bring people under the yoke of bondage. It will become a precursor to Independence Day, when we celebrate the realization of our struggle for Liberty.

My Resolution begins now. Patrick Henry once said, “Give me Liberty, or give me Death!” To his words I add the following: “Be forewarned, for Liberty is as Life to me, and I will defend both with blood, be it mine or my enemy’s.”

Jul

3

I Am An American

Filed Under Government, Law | Leave a Comment

I’m not usually a fan of the Washington Post. However, today they reposted an anonymous letter to the editor, originally printed on July 4, 1976, that I thought was so good it needed to be shared. I offer it here in it’s entirety.

By Anonymous
Thursday, July 3, 2008; 12:00 AM

What am I?

I am a free man — a good and decent man — a man of compassion, generosity, and understanding — a true friend, a steadfast ally, and a bitter foe.

I owe my allegiance to a government founded in the belief that among the rights of man are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. Indeed, I would acknowledge no other. I can redress my government for injury; not satisfied with redress, I can elect a new one. I have watched my government function smoothly during periods of transfer of power caused by re-election, assassination, and resignation.

While other nations have a distinct race, religion, and/or geographic denominator, I live among people of my home without fear of intrusion by anyone — citizen or government designee — unless they have my personal invitation or a duly authorized search warrant.

I have a press to keep me informed — a press free to write, without inhibition, the truth as they see it. A press that needs fear no repression, no retaliation, no censorship so long as it prints the truth.

I live under a system of justice, merciful and fairly administered, where I am assumed innocent until proven guilty — a system which provides me appellate privilege while denying it to the power of the state.

I am free to go anywhere I want, earn my living in any way that suits me and, based on that freedom, I have created a standard of living unequalled in the history of man and envied the world over.

I have suffered in humility at the consequences of my mistakes — economic deprivation, social injustice, unequal opportunity and racial prejudice to name a few — but, once aware of these mistakes, I have set out to right the wrongs they created.

I have faced challenges to my way of life. I have fought and died countless times from Lexington and Concord to Vietnam. I was humbled at Valley Forge, Pearl Harbor, Corregidor and Malmady. But these experiences gave me the character I needed to go to Yorktown, Gettysburg, Midway and Normandy. I cherish my freedom above all else — I bow to no tyrant.

I am two hundred years old today. I have never been so proud of my ancient heritage, so grateful for my present situation, and so confident of the future. Today, I reaffirm my allegiance to, faith in, and love of my country. To the proposition that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth, I do humbly pledge my life, my fortune, and my sacred honor.

I am an American.

Happy Birthday America!