Happy Independence Day 2008
Posted: July 5, 2008 - 23:51 CT
On this holiday weekend, we celebrate our American independence, or at least most of us do. Each year, we're bombarded by articles from the "Blame America First" media telling us that this should be a time of mourning rather than a time of celebration for being an American. I think first prize this year should go to Philadelphia Inquirer columnist Chris Satullo for his article, A not-so-glorious Fourth (the link has since been removed by the Inquirer). The gist of the article is that America does not deserve a July Fourth celebration this year because of Abu Ghraib, Guantanamo, CIA secret prisons, and of course, the unforgivable fact that we elected George Bush president.
Mr Satullo's article begins "Put the fireworks in storage. Cancel the parade. Tuck the soaring speeches in a drawer for another time. This year, America doesn't deserve to celebrate its birthday. This Fourth of July should be a day of quiet and atonement. For we have sinned." So, how did we sin? Was it by taking prayer out of schools, activist judges making a mockery of our constitution by finding the right to murder unborn babies, or re-writing history to remove God's name and providence? Not according to Mr Satullo, who sees our biggest sin as reacting to the cold blooded murder of several thousand of our own citizens in New York City. He next proceeds to hit the leftist talking points such as torturing prisoners, then (for those wondering when his Bush Derangement Syndrome would kick in) states "We have done such things, on orders from the Oval Office. We have done them, without general outrage or shame".
Mr Satullo then blames the common folks for not keeping the evil Bush in check. "We were so busy. Soccer practice at 6. A credit card balance to fret. The final vote on Idol... We took the coward's way. The world sees this, even if we are too dim to grasp it. We've lost respect. We've shamed the memory of Jefferson, Adams and Franklin. And all for a scam." You were probably wondering when he would get to the Rosie O'Donnell type rants. He then ends the America bashing article with "So put out no flags. Sing no patriotic hymns. We deserve no Fourth this year. Let us atone, in quiet and humility. Let us spend the day truly studying the example of our Founders. May we earn a new birth of courage before our nation's birthday next rolls around."
Warner Todd Huston of Publis' Forum sums Mr Satullo's article up nicely:
"Humility? He doesn't know the definition of the word. For a man who so obviously has no clue about history and who so blatantly wants to steal the luster of the Founding Fathers to burnish his cracker jack prize of a crown is certainly an outrage. For him to wag his America hating finger in all our faces on the day we are to celebrate our freedom from tyranny is the height of hubris. Still, I know that Satullo is quite sincere in his hatred of the United States. In fact, I'm sure he feels this low at every July Fourth celebration. July Fourth is probably a black day for him no matter who is president. I feel bad for his heartburn, but that he spews his bile for the rest of us to be bothered with is downright unneighborly. Happy July Fourth, folks. Be proud of this great nation, Satullo's nonsense aside. The U.S.A. is still the shining light on a hill shining the light of freedom on all the world. Anti-Americans like Satullo might have blinders on, but for those willing to see, we stand like a rock. Unfurl those flags and let freedom wave."
Unfortunately, the attitude from the left displayed by Mr Satullo is not limited to this holiday, as evidenced by Jack "our soldiers are a bunch of murdering rapists" Murtha, Harry "we lost" Reid, Barack Hussein "you're dividing the country if you don't agree with me" Obama, his wife Michelle "for the first time in my life I'm proud to be an American" Obama, and Al "the sky is falling" Gore, who promotes global warming while investing heavily in carbon credit and ethanol companies, then calls for sacrifice from the working class while globetrotting in his private jet and running up five figure utility bills at his residence in Tennessee.
I've always wondered, why do these folks promote open borders? If America is so bad, why do they encourage more immigration. Don't they care about these poor immigrants, who will only be miserable here compared to the luxurious standard of life they enjoyed before leaving their own country? Switching off the sarcasm button, perhaps Tony Blair said it best when he stated that "You can determine the greatness of a country by comparing the number of people attempting to get in with the number of people leaving". Which leads me to a last question, why do those that are constantly spewing hate toward America never leave?
Fortunately, our country is still full of decent hard-working people who will be celebrating rather than mourning the fact that we were fortunate to be born or to become Americans. Over the past few days, I've read several excellent articles about this holiday and would like to recommend a couple, Why America is the Greatest Country on Earth by Ben Shapiro and See the World... and you'll be Grateful for the USA by Peter Rosenberger.
I'm dating myself somewhat, but I had the privilege of attending public school before our Christian heritage was expunged from the history books. Most students (and the majority of adults) are oblivious to these truths today. My passion for these historical facts was re-kindled a few years ago when I was blessed to hear David Barton, one of our country's foremost experts, speak on the subject. I have been doing research on many of the founding documents over the past year and will begin writing on a new section about our Christian Heritage within the next couple of weeks.
I do want to mention two quotes from our founding fathers that are very appropriate for this holiday. The first comes from our second president, John Adams, who stated that our Independence Day celebration should also be "commemorated as the Day of Deliverance by solemn acts of devotion to God Almighty". Incidentally, he died just a few hours after Thomas Jefferson, both on July 4, 1826, the fiftieth anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence. Sixteen months before he died, his son, John Quincy Adams, became our sixth president and proclaimed America's Independence to be "a leading event in the progress of the Gospel dispensation" since America's Birthday "is indissolubly linked with the birthday of the Saviour".
So, annoy a liberal this weekend (or any other time) by proudly flying our flag or by saying something nice about our country. America is far from perfect, but there's none better. We must also continue to pray for our leaders and ask God to continue to bless America, but let's not forget to praise Him for our freedom and for our troops who defend her. Happy Independence Day!
Comments
July 7, 2008 - 14:34
Larry -
Tempe, AZ writes:
I flew my large flag on my front lawn Friday, Saturday and Sunday to the chagrin of HOA.