So, on this July 4th, I recognize some self-evident truths. Among them are that no matter how I (or anyone for that matter) feels about the war in Iraq, there are over a hundred thousand American men and women there who deserve and need our support. Putting politics aside is never easy, but we must remember that those service people in Iraq are kindred spirits to those who were at Valley Forge, Gettysburg, the Ardenne, Normandy, Iwo Jima, and so many other places.
I revel in having an opportunity to live in a country where dissenting opinions are part of the fabric of the flag; I enjoy the freedoms put forth in the Declaration and proudly worship the god of my choice; I happily raise my child in a country where demonstrating against the war is as patriotic a practice as supporting it. Most of all, I celebrate the fact that I am very fortunate to live in the United States of America, and today I wish my country and all its citizens a happy 230th birthday, and we should celebrate with passion and vigor because this is the day that changed the way the people of the world saw themselves, which is the best self-evident truth of all.
Article comments
1 - Kold
I was out riding on July 4th 2006, trying to find-out why they didn’t have Go Fourth, and found a dead, baby doll with one arm on Mayberry Street, the other one was broken-off. I guess you could make TEN-thousand-one statements of what that symbolizes. I hung it up on a hook, which is how I wanna be martyred (hung, shot, guillotined, or pulled by four-horses when a shotgun is fired. Guess you‘d call that ‘Quarter-Horsing-Around’). Nevertheless, my interpretation is this: America, in it’s infancy, has no bloody idea of how much we owe God Almighty for our well-being in this Land-of-the-Free; That also makes me realize, by her lying broken in the street, how callous we are toward the unborn. Don’t know? Don’t care? “SoBeIt,” saith the Trinity. “Let the Angel of Death descend, Bill and Fred.”
2 - diana hartman
I am pleased to tell you this article is being featured in the Culture Focus today, July 5.
Diana Hartman
Culture Editor
3 - Victor Lana
Thanks for letting me know, Diana!
4 - Michael J. West
This, Victor, is what an article about the Fourth of July should look like. It's wonderful and I appreciated every word of it.