Published Saturday, July 04, 2009

Stand for freedom

I am looking at a picture of my husband he sent me from a foreign hell, covered in the grayest dust on Earth. Above him is the American flag, ever waving, all but obscured against a furious gale and torrent of ancient sand. My husband stands below it with, of all things, a proud smile on his face. I can't help but see the symbolism.

We have forgotten our history, our past, our foundation. Our government is said to be "by the people, for the people." But half out of ignorance, half out of laziness, our government is now by the politicians, for the politicians. Even now they make decisions that cripple the freedom so many gave their all for, and we let them, all the while exclaiming with hope-laden voices, "That couldn't happen in America."

It can, and it is. It is true brave men and women, such as my husband, are the reason we have this freedom and pride in being American. However, we have forgotten our duty. We are to be the watchdogs of our government, ever righteous, ever enlightened and ever proud so that the sacrifices we reflect upon on this Fourth of July were not given in vain. I have heard many voices in our older generation say there is no hope. We've gone too far marching toward tyranny. However, I look at the picture of my husband. No matter how thick that storm was, that flag still shines through and so does my husband's resolve. Friends, we have shirked our duty for far too long.

So those of us who can't take up arms against our enemies on foreign soil, I challenge you as brothers and fellow patriots to take up verbal arms against those who are domestic. Call your congressmen, call the White House, let your cry be heard with such unstoppable timbre that our ancestors hear it in their graves and cry back in unity. Do not let our flag and what it stands for fade forever into history. Do not let the stuffed shirts who sit on Capitol Hill mark the flag out as they do typos in their bills. Do not let the federal government stick its greedy hands into your rights. Do not let our military think while they are fighting for our rights we do not have the guts to exercise them. Stand for that which makes us American. Freedom.

Let's remind our government why it's called Independence Day.

Robin Powell

Newnan