Friday, July 03, 2009
Thoughts for Independence Day
From the RoundTable blog
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William Hunter
Hunter, of Roanoke, is an IT manager for Roanoke County and a retired Air Force master sergeant.
As we celebrate the Fourth of July, I wonder what our forefathers would think of our actions today. Fifty-six men had the audacity to dissolve their allegiance from the British throne, pledging their "lives, fortunes and their sacred honor" for what they believed in: that "Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed" and when government went astray that consent could be removed. This was not a letter to the editor but a treasonous declaration dissolving a colonial relationship that surely would bring military action from what was then a world superpower.
It is disgraceful today that we sit ideally by as this great nation's government morphs into an institution that is now "controlling our lives, stealing our fortunes and stripping us of our honor." It makes me sad to think that, as a nation, we pay more attention to celebrity lives and deaths than we do to our representatives passing bills they haven't even read, more attention to reality television than to government spending to an excess that even our great-grandchildren won't be able to pay. We silently sit as those we have chosen exert more and more power over our everyday lives in some Orwellian nanny state.
On Independence Day, if you are a citizen ask yourself these questions: Am I proud of my government? Am I doing my part as a citizen by expressing my feelings to those I have elected? Do I feel like I am in real control of my own life? Do I still believe in freedom, the rule of law and my right to keep most of what I've earned? Do my elected officials believe that I have those rights?
On Independence Day, if you are an elected official ask yourself these questions: Am I proud of what I'm doing at my post? Can I look those who elected me in the eye and answer honestly for every action I have taken? Am I making my decisions based on what is best for those who sent me here or for party affiliation, political advancement or personal gain? Do I believe my role in this nation is limited by the expressed powers enumerated in the U.S. Constitution?
On Independence Day, if you are a judge ask yourself these questions: Am I proud of all of my rulings? Am I ruling on the law only? Am I letting my personal opinions, beliefs or empathy for one side affect my judgment? Do I still recognize it when I do? Can I still effectively carry out my duties as charged, or is it time for me to step down?
On Independence Day, if you are a member of the press or the media ask yourself these questions: Am I reporting the news honestly? Am I reporting all sides of the issues regardless of what I personally believe? Do I understand the role of a free and honest press in a democratic republic? Do I make clear the difference in news and opinion in my publication or broadcast?
We have all become co-dependent on the faulty-science, knee-jerk-reaction, make-a-new-law, government-can-solve-all-of-our-problems lifestyle. But it is our own fault. This Independence Day 2009, let's avow that we will change all of that. Whether we are the citizen, elected official, judge or the media, be independent. Be responsible for your own actions and live up to your role in this great society.
If elected, always remember that you are there to serve those who sent you and know the constraints of your office. Get out of global warming, steroids in baseball and the Woodstock Museum. Get into balancing the budget, defending our borders and ridding our country of those who have broken our laws by entering illegally.
Insist that the laws on the books be enforced before you pass new ones. Remember always that those same 56 men also said: "That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government."
Our forefathers made a government that could be fixed when it went astray but it depended upon engaged citizens for that repair. Let us be those citizens.
A preview of Wednesday's editorial about the pullback of American troops from cities and towns in Iraq sparked some discussion on The RoundTable blog. Here's a small sample:
I guess we'll find out pretty quick how well we did in "bringing democracy to Iraq." Hopefully, they'll hold off slaughtering each other until our people can get out of the way.
-- Kristen
It looks like we won. We sent our young men and women in to Iraq and they delivered a great victory.
They defeated Saddam's army in the field in less than a month, occupied the capital, captured or killed their leaders, and court-martialed and executed their dictator.
A constitutional convention was held, a national constitution ratified by their voters, national elections were held and a democratic government established.
A national army was formed, equipped and trained, a police force was established to bring order and justice to the country, the country's oil production was brought up and now the security of the country is being turned over to the Iraqi government.
All the while the Dems and The Roanoke Times were saying the surge wasn't working and the war was lost.
We should have a national celebration honoring the courage, skill and bravery of our men and women in our military who have performed so magnificently. It's being treated as a non-event by this commander in chief.
-- Wayne P.
There is no one that I know of who doesn't give the highest degree of respect for our military for the work they've been forced to do by an administration that had no idea what they wanted to do.
Our brave soldiers put their lives on the line for a bunch of bumbling idiots (Rumsfeld, Bush, Cheney and a host of others) who were clueless when it came to planning for the entire process.
Our troops deserve all the respect in the world as they followed their orders valiantly. The administration that put them in harm's way in the first place should be imprisoned.
-- Will
