America, the Beautiful by Katharine Lee Bates:

Larry Fiesel / Estero

As we approach the July Fourth celebration of our independence I can’t help but think of the lyrics of c by Katharine Lee Bates:

O beautiful for spacious skies,

For amber waves of grain,

For purple mountain majesties

Above the fruited plain!

America! America! God shed His grace on thee ...

O beautiful for heroes proved in liberating strife,

Who more than self their country loved,

And mercy more than life!

America! America! May God thy gold refine ...

O beautiful for patriot dream

That sees beyond the years,

Thine alabaster cities gleam,

Undimmed by human tears!

America! America! God shed His grace on thee ...

Today, there are those among us who have a philosophical belief that the Constitution of the United States, the Declaration of Independence, the liberties upon which this nation was founded and the freedoms that we have so long enjoyed are no longer relevant; that the government of the people, by the people and for the people is no longer applicable.

I sit here looking at the American flag that draped my father’s casket along with his honorable hischarge from the United States Navy, his 30 years of service to our country, and wonder how he would feel knowing the current occupant of the White House has apologized for the arrogance of the American people, desecrating the graves of those who sacrificed their lives so that we might maintain those freedoms that our forefathers guaranteed us with the documents that established our nation; those who did not return home from the field of battle; those who remain in France, Belgium, England, Luxemburg, Netherlands, Pearl Harbor, Vietnam.

The Rule of Law has been set aside, the Constitution has been trampled, the will of the majority has been ignored, non-representing representatives. If we are content to allow this insanity to continue we will be consumed, both as individuals and as a nation. In the Pledge of Allegiance, “One nation under God” will no longer exist, the republic will not survive.

We soon will celebrate Independence Day and we must remain vigilant to stop the socialism that our government is imposing upon us with takeover of our nation’s banks, General Motors, Chrysler, Wall Street, health care, czars who will determine executive compensation, failure to secure our borders and trillions of dollars of debt that our children and grandchildren cannot possibly repay.

We must rise up and let this government feel the wrath of “We the People”, and stand up for those who sacrificed to gain our freedom from tyranny. We cannot be a “nation of cowards.”

Thomas Paine said: “Those who expect to reap the blessings of freedom, must, like men, undergo the fatigues of supporting it.”

With freedom comes responsibility and we must seize upon whatever opportunities we have to keep America the “Home of the Free and the Brave.”

America! America! May God continue to shed His grace on thee!

God Bless a Free America

Happy Fourth of July!