As the Timbers of America Creak

We Fought For This

On July 4th, we celebrated our 237th year of independence from the British crown, a moment in history made possible by our military which achieved victory over an army in almost insurmountable odds.

Thomas Jefferson spent over two weeks in June of 1776 drafting our Declaration of Independence, eloquently detailing our grievances against a tyrannical monarchy in which the American people declared forcefully that we wanted our freedom from arbitrary rules at a cost no less than our lives.

Prior to Jefferson's draft, perhaps the most compelling indication of how much we cherished freedom was a speech delivered to the Virginia Conventions in Richmond at St. John's Church on March 20th, 1775. Patrick Henry ending his speech to the convention with this plea:

It is in vain, sir, to extenuate the matter. Gentlemen may cry, Peace, Peace - but there is no peace. The war is actually begun! The next gale that sweeps from the North will bring to our ears the clash of resounding arms! Our brethren are already in the field! Why stand we here idle? What is it that gentlemen wish? What would they have? Is life so dear, and peace so sweet, as to be purchased at the price of chains and slavery? Forbid it, Almighty God! I know not what course others may take; but as for me, give me liberty or give me death! -- Patrick Henry, March 20th, 1775

That is the attitude that gave birth to America, and for nearly 200 years, it was what guiding our policies both at home and in Washington. Our presidents adhered to the principles on which we were founded because they believed in them deeply, and the people who were born here and the immigrants who came from other lands all bought into it equally. All loved the freedom of America in both good and bad times.

So what has happened to us in the last few decades? Have we enjoyed so much privilege and prosperity that there is nothing left to seek? Certainly we are not created equal by birth as to wealth and success, and our system was always intended to be that way. We are all created equal in the Eyes of God as to the opportunity to succeed as a ratio to how hard we work to achieve our goals, whatever we decided those goals to be. Success has never been guaranteed.

Not our best days

Up until the 1960's, America had been steadily traversing a course toward that which led the world, was indeed the envy of the world. It seems that a bunch of privileged kids -- who apparently grew weary of the idyllic lifestyles provided by their parents -- decided that the American style of freedom was not enough for them. They wanted more.

And so began the course upon which we travel now; a course that appears to have us galloping toward a past we left long ago -- that of the European social model. We now have a "royal" class of citizens, a class to whom the privilege of serving is viewed as a right. I'm not talking about the soldiers who serve -- I'm talking about those in Congress to whom a Senate seat, e.g., is seen as something to pass down to offspring.

We have a Democrat Party that has cultivated a culture of dependency in America that is unprecedented, spending billions on food stamps and other welfare programs, not to mention the billions on free cell phones and the like. Worse, we have a population that has demanded these things -- nay, has come to expect them -- thereby effectively feeding the coal furnace of tyranny.

And yet, on our 237th anniversary, because of alleged cuts in the budget from the so-called sequester, our military family members and their families were denied the joy of a 4th of July fireworks display, while our king President and his family spent $100 million on a vacation to Africa. Millions more are spent on advertising for welfare programs.

We have squandered the splendor our forefathers bequeathed to us and have forged our own shackles, all in the name of "security and peace". We are already feeling the ultimate effects of Socialism and tyranny, and we keep grazing like so many sheep, and I am ashamed for my country.

That sound you may hear is the timbers of America groaning under the strain. Or it may be the bones of our Founders as they turn in their graves.

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Happy Independence Day

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The Last Vestiges of Liberty

As July 4th approaches - a celebration of America's independence from the British Empire - I am struck by a feeling of melancholy to which I am unaccustomed. The reason will become clear as this essay progresses.

On July 4th, 1776, the Continental Congress declared their independence from the British Monarchy and officially became The United States of America. Quite naturally this did not sit well with King George III, and a brutal war erupted between British soldiers and the new Continental Army, formed in 1775. The French government under King Louis XVI covertly supplied the Continental Army with supplies, weapons and ammunition.

In 1777, when the Rebels captured a British contingent of soldiers, events escalated and, in early 1778, the French military entered the war in earnest. What this accomplished was crucial to the success of the rebellion as it evened the military prowess of both sides. Further, in the coming two years, two allies of France also went to war with Great Britain.

Threatening to invade Great Britain and challenge her navy, Spain and the Dutch Republic severely hindered the campaign in the Colonies, drawing critical resources away from America. Britain's naval superiority enabled her to enjoy easy success in controlling the harbors and coastal regions of the Colonies, but only roughly 10 percent of the population was there. The remainder lived inland, and the ground forces of the British were ill equipped to combat the fierce resistance offered by the Minutemen.

When Spain became engaged in the war, the British were forced to abandon the Florida gulf coast. France was the deciding factor, however, because she had a formidable naval force of her own. When the French navy defeated the British navy in Maryland's Chesapeake Bay, it led to the surrender of the British in Yorktown in 1781. Two years later the Treaty of Paris ended the war and culminated in the official recognition of the United States of America as a sovereign State.

Still, it wasn't until four years later that the United States Constitution was signed by the members of the newly-free members of the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia on September 17th, 1787. And it took another two years to have it ratified in 1789, and America had an official Federal government.

For nearly two centuries thereafter, America prospered and grew into the greatest nation Mankind has ever known. Then it all began to sour...

The key components of our success were the entrepreneurial spirit of our people, our moral and spiritual roots, and our relationship with a free press. Arguably, the former could not have flourished without the latter since success is dependent on accurate information and truth. At our inception, men were honest and journalism followed suit. It was the Miracle-Gro of Liberty.

Our government has slowly but surely plodded its way back to the root cause of the first revolution, though the people are not free from culpability. Generational success passed down has bred sloth, but even worse has been the notion that such luxury is to be expected. When the chain of wealth is broken, the offspring look elsewhere for the meal ticket. Politicians have learned well and become quite adept at capitalizing on that mentality.

The true betrayal has come not from our own propensity to cede freedom for comfort, however, as we have been herded toward that end for several generations. It is the enabling of that herding by a media equally infected by the same propensity, an affliction that has made possible this tragic rejection of a great gift through a collusion to conceal the truth.

It seems to be an inexorable march to our ultimate doom, an end to life as we have grown accustomed. All that our ancestors have fought, bled, sacrificed and died for has been casually cast as funereal ashes to the wind. Once a great patriot advised us that only two things mattered; Patrick Henry said, "Give me liberty or give me death".

If you are reading this, you have a computer or phone with internet access. That is a great thing. I love the technology we enjoy today. It's great to have the cell phone, the flat screen television, the computerized cars, the video games, and everything "I". But think about this; what good would these trinkets be if you were not free to use them as you pleased?

Our forefathers had none of the ease of communication that we enjoy, but no one ever told them they could not assemble and discuss. While they would most likely envy our modernity, they understood through investment the importance of liberty. And as we have learned to spread our messages far and wide, we have forgotten how to whisper in our neighbor's ear.

We have seen a steady progression of our media toward an ideology that they share with the forces determined to hasten the destruction of all that the Founding Fathers fought valiantly to create. The election of Barack Obama has seemingly cemented the relationship between the government and the only entity created ostensibly to counter it. When the forces of power and information join, freedom dies.

Ironically, as we resist a return to our European roots, it took the words of an Irish entrepreneur to drive this notion home. From the Irish Times, a word on the subject from Ben Dunne regarding the press:

“It exposes mistakes. It probes actions. It presents alternatives. Without a free media, freedom would have far less meaning. The common good is served by an independent and principled media.”

Sadly, we have an "independent and principled media" in America, but it is under assault not only from the government it seeks to restrain, but a complicit "mainstream" media. Clearly, if Mr. Dunne is correct, liberty is in serious jeopardy in America and those who stand to defend it - most notably anyone who supports the Tea Party movement - are cast as villians, somewhat successfully.

Look around you. The campaign against tyranny in the 20th century that resulted in such joy has largely been dismantled and forgotten in the last two years. Forgive me, but our prospects look bleak.

So as Independence Day approaches with all the festiveness of the long weekend and the fact of Summer, I fear mine may be partly spent in brooding contemplation of our future. I will certainly partake in the company of loved ones and good food, but part of me will be wondering how close the waterfall's edge looms.

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