History tells us that July 4, 1776 was the date the Declaration of Independence was ratified, not signed.
It was signed July 2nd of that year, but it took two additional days for the document to actually become the law of the land. Our founders were very thoughtful, very careful about what they were doing and why. I wonder how they'd feel about how things are going today.
How much of who we are as a nation would be recognizable, how much would be completely off base from their original intentions? I wonder.
We hear it from all sides....the founders were either spiritual visionaries or godless racists....folks either love or hate 'em. Some think our Constitution is a living, breathing thing while others think it's a quaint, historic document that's inapplicable in today's world. I recently watched the Glenn Beck show on the Fox channel and was amazed at how much of our nation's history we haven't been taught.
There were African Americans, Native Americans and even Women fighting and working on the front lines during our War for Independence from England. Why weren't we taught these things?
Ours is a very unique country....founded because freedom was, in the final analysis, the only course for a people no longer willing to be shackled by the chains of tyranny. In the '60s we knew that feeling...knew it deep in our souls. We stood on front lines then, too...for civil rights, peace, equal rights for women, ecological issues....we were patriots, just like our nation's fore parents. And we're still patriots today.
In this age of political correctness on steroids, tabloidism instead of real investigative news journalism, and lobby-led elections, we are often left to wonder if America is worth anything at all. We're made to feel bad about who we've been, rather than remembering the wonder and splendor of what our nation was found for, and what...beneath all the static, we are still all about.
This July 4th, I'm going to do something I haven't done in a long, long time. I'm going to be proud of my country and grateful for being born here. Happy Birthday, America.
This Picture is of Jack and I recording in the Green Screen studio room. You can do a lot with a dining room and a couple of green boards!
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