We just celebrated our independence from tyranny, as well as our nation’s birth. It was a great time to reflect on the monumental achievements of our founding fathers. We have been blessed with so much in this great nation. We have freedom, we have liberty and we have ideals. Ideals that keep many of us from just putting our heads in the sand. Nevertheless, during this Independence celebration I was faced with the stark reality of where we stand today in comparison to our history.
I know there are many who want to forget the history. Forget the past. Many will say “Yeah, but we have so many atrocities and injustices in our history such as …” While I cannot fix what happened by my grandfather’s grandfather’s grandfather’s generation, I can focus on where we are at today. Unfortunately, I must say that while we, in theory, celebrated independence from tyranny, we are, more than ever before, falling victim to tyranny. A tyranny that is caused by the terrorists.
For a moment, explore the goal of the terrorists. Sure they want to kill people with their bombs and acts of terrorism, however, that is not their biggest goal. Their goal, I contend, is to strip us of our freedom and dignity. Their goal is to change our way of life. With that as a back drop I must confess that they are succeeding. We now, in the name of security, give the government more and more authority to check on us through our texts, facebook, posts, cell phones, etc. People rarely bat an eye when it comes to the government expanding their power. The Supreme Court ruling on what voters choose. The President grabbing power and Congress abdicating all the while to the whims of the political winds. All of these things are sure signs that our way of life, our freedom, is at stake. Think about when you were a child. It is somewhat staggering to think how much we have changed in less than one generation. There are so many reasons for it, but I contend one major reason is our desire to be “safe.” Whenever you put your trust in the government to make you safe your trust is misplaced. The government cannot make you safe. Despite all of the drones, the spying and the reduction of personal liberties, are we more safe from the terrorists today? We continue to act in line with exactly what they want us to do. With that I ask the question, Are the Terrorists Winning?
Check out this link and think for yourself about what sort of country do you want? Are we still free from tyranny?
Until Next Time,
David A. Standridge
