Happy 4th of July

I am proud to be an American. I have done nothing to gain my freedoms, I have done little to maintain them, and as I see them potentially slipping, I am finding little to halt that. Little, but not nothing, I am choosing and then acting, in small ways, to begin changing either what is around me or making the choice to find a place more suited to living a real expression of freedom.

I think, and often, about the men who sacrificed, some sacrificing all others sacrificing more. Men who had their sons murdered, their property seized and never returned, and yet lived to a poverty stricken old age. Men who received grievous wounds of body and mind. American citizens before there was an America. People willing to die for a mere hope. Then, the sons of those men, and grandsons, and so forth so that the hope thrived, the bounty was plentiful, and their progeny prospered to world dominance. A dominance not used for the new nations greed, for absolute dictation of terms on nearly any foreign policy save survival, and often used to the benefit of all.

I think on these things and my world takes new order. Some things must be done and some people need to be corrected. Each may need strong or delicate measures, each must be tailored to the need, and each must be done so that what I have written and other things I know are not forgotten. Connections need to be made. It never is the sheep that keep the place thriving, it is and always will be a subset minority, driven to action, set upon ensuring the sheep safe grazing and perhaps even allow for willful disobedience within the limits of flock etiquette. Even the limits of flock etiquette are being assailed and this must be corrected. Yes, there is a place for the madness of chaos, but it is not in the halls of power, the streets, or anywhere in between should it be directly opposed to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness of any and at times including the particular individual if seemingly against their wish.

So, “Happy 4th of July!”. And to add a seemingly appropriate piece, if from another situation, “…and many more.”