Biggest vote in US history happening today!

And tomorrow, and the next day, and the next, and the next...

Today is July 4, 2008, Independence Day, the 222nd anniversary of the day the Declaration of Independence was signed by the founding fathers declaring that we, the original 13 colonies of Britain, would no longer swear allegiance to the Crown. In payment of that event, those founding fathers found themselves embroiled in a bloody war against a foe so better armed, so better trained, so better organized, that it was folly in the eyes of anyone who was watching the happenings.

What drove those brave men (and women) to risk their homes, their families, their very lives? Oppression. The oppression of a government which had ignored pleas for aid, which had instead tacked on taxes and restrictions to make their citizens' lives more grievous. It was the oppression of a government which cared nothing for those who lived under it.

We won. Or did we?

We live in oppression today. The differences are that taxes are many many times higher than they were then, that government still cares nothing for the pain of those whom it governs, and that oppression and regulation has now reached into every aspect of our very existence. But there is one larger difference: we don't care.

So today we all vote, registered or not, Republican, Democrat, Conservative, Liberal, Progressive, Communist, Baptist, Pentecostal, Catholic, Atheist... we all vote today. We can't abstain.

We vote by allowing evils to flourish while we shoot flaming missiles into the air and wave little plastic flags. We will vote with our dollars who will survive and fail in the business world. We vote with our attitudes on what type of nation we want to become.

When we pass someone on the road today, some little old lady with a flat tire standing in the scorching sun all alone, we vote for a nation that ignores those in need. When we cry to our friends over hot dogs about how those politicians are trying to destroy America, we vote for a nation which places blame rather than performs action to correct a problem. When we turn our eyes from those political billboards we see rather than trying to discover more, we vote for a nation that ignores itself, much as the shabby bum lying in the gutter ignores himself.

When we talk politics, and rather than trying to find a solution, we pick our favorite team to win, we vote for a country that has no clear direction, that weaves and wobbles like a football team. When we sneer at others because they have less, we vote for a caste-based nation, where no one is able to change their position in life. When we berate those who do not understand our position rarther than explain ourselves, we vote for an uneducated nation.

When we complain that the neighbor hasn't mowed his grass, instead of offering to help him mow it, we vote for a nation full of regulations and laws on our every action or inaction. When we turn up our nose at someone because of the color of their skin, we vote for a racist nation. When we cut someone off in traffic, we vote for a less polite, more confrontational nation.

While you enjoy your day off from work, time with family and friends, good food, rockets blasting in mid-air, and that refreshing cold beer, you will be voting for the kind of country you want. Your attitude, your words, your actions, your thoughts, and your purchases all will count in the final tally. There will be no recount. There will be no vacation from your duty.

Come November, people all across our nation will vote for the politician they wish to run the country. for 120-odd days prior to this, people will vote for the kind of nation they want this politician to run. freedom is not something you practice once every two or four years, any more than religion is something you practice on Sunday morning. No, it is something you practice, something you vote on, every single moment of every single day of your life.

That includes today, July 4, 2008, Independence Day.

TheRedneck

232 years :O)

one liner sorry

An inspiring post and stark reminder, that our Freedom Wasn't Free. It was paid for with the blood of patriots, that valued liberty so much, they were willing to fight and die for it.

I think we as a people, sometimes forget the sacrifices that were made on our behalf, and instead take our freedom for granted.

Thanks for the reminder Redneck, and have a safe and happy Independence Day!

And a safe and happy 4th of July to you, Lloyd. I'll be driving today, so please take it easy around the trucks.

And sorry for the error. DarkStormCrow is better at making those number-thingys work.

May someone who reads this think about the freedoms we have, and those we have lost, and those we stand to lose. If one person does this, for only a moment, I have done a good thing. Happy Independence Day to all.

TheRedneck