Happy Independence Day

Most of us know this date as the Fourth of July, but its official name is Independence Day. Not the movie. A lot of things happened to get us to that point, starting with Christopher Columbus sailing the ocean blue. Then there was The Stamp Act, mercantilism restrictions, Boston Tea Party, Boston Massacre, Common Sense, help from the French, and those words penned by Richard Henry Lee of Pennsylvania, which most of us know, "these United colonies are and of right ought to be, free and independent states. John Adams decided that day was when the Congress passed "the most important resolution..." (July 3, by the way) The final draft of the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776.

The rest is history. Literally. Fast forward to 2017. Things are a little crazy. Trumped up. Even vicious. But if you read any books of the day, or newspaper articles, editorials, other papers, you find that our history is soaked with nasty comments, accusations, personal attacks (even though they didn't have Twitter back then). We've survived. We will continue to survive. Our nation ebbs and flows. Its OUR job to be sure the USA stays what it is. An IDEA. And a good one at that. Free. How many other countries are there that tolerate so much dissension and ideological differences without killing or imprisonment by the government?

Keep the faith, folks. We're all in this together. We have alot in common, and can be civil as we discuss and defend peacefully. Tons of folks are still coming here. There must be a good reason. I think some of us who have never been off the continent don't know how good we have it.

Enjoy the burgers, hot dogs, beer, music, games, parades, fun and fireworks. Nobody does this as good as we do!!!

Happy Independence Day!!!