When in the Course of human events...

How many of you knew, before making the connection with today's date and the nature of my blogging, that these words began the Declaration of Independence?

How many of you know what the Declaration of Independence REALLY means?

On July 4, 1776, a group of men called the Second Continental Congress adopted this document. This document was a dissolving of the political and governmental ties to the state of Great Britain. While it was adopted on July 4, 1776, and essentially gave birth to the United States of America, only John Hancock, the elected President of Congress, signed the declaration on this day. (Thank you to Wikipedia for the information. View the entire Declaration of Independence as well as the history of the document at Wikipedia here .)

July 4, is celebrated as America's birthday. It is the symbolic date in which the world forever changed. It is the date upon which the last semblance of the British Empire was erased due to the unfair taxes and practices of the King of England. Some of the information I read at the above Wikipedia link was old hat, old news that I had heard during my liberally-biased education in elementary and high school history and civics classes.

However, those old facts and the new facts I had not learned all came together, along with something I had heard on the radio the other day. Sean Hannity, as well as several other conservative radio hosts I listen to, play clips of President Ronald Reagan's speeches from time to time, courtesy of the Heritage Foundation.

In this particular instance, the late, great President Reagan is talking about how America's traditions and power are eroding because of a lack of understanding by current generations. America, the America that Reagan still envisioned and loved, the America that the parents of the baby boomers fought and suffered and died for without regret or reservation, is falling further and further into the past. It eroding and fading away.

I have come to a conclusion based on my Wikipedia reading, and the inspirational words of President Reagan. Today, the day we celebrate America's birth, freedom, and independence, we need to sit down during the weekend and revisit our history.

The generations that are running the world today have lost touch with the realities of what made America great. We have lost our identity and pride. American pride is washing away into the oceans of guilt, regret and self-loathing, as brought on by the bleeding hearts on TV.

Why are there liberals who project a feeling of guilt when it comes to our freedoms, prosperity, and success? Why do we have Americans who hold disdain for their own country due to the very freedoms that allow them the right to publicly hold and display that disdain?

We need to revisit the sacrifices of the men, women, and children of the wars in which America has fought. From the French and Indian War to the Revolutionary War to the War of 1812 to the Civil War to the two World Wars to the Cold War to Korea to Vietnam to the two Persian Gulf Wars, Americans take for granted the sacrifices and pride taken in those sacrifices.

Do we really, truly know what it means to be an American? Do you know what John Hancock and the Second Continental Congress was trying to accomplish with the Declaration of Independence? Do you know what the Bill of Rights really means?

More importantly, are you proud to be an American? Are you thankful to God to be living here? If not, perhaps President Reagan was right. Perhaps you desperately need to relearn and comprehend your country's rich history, and redevelop your pride and appreciation for this great land.

As I conclude this July 4th blog, let me add a deep, heartfelt thank you to the following people for their sacrifices, sometimes unintentional and unwilling, that made America the greatest country in the history of man kind. I say that this is the greatest without reservation, shame, embarrassment, or any negativity of any kind. I say it because it is fact. America is the greatest country, EVER.

Thank you for making the blog and country possible:
-Current and past members of the Armed Forces.
-The wives, widows, and orphans of Armed Forces personnel, past and present.
-The victims and the families of those lost in the attacks on 9-11-01
-The victims and families of the attacks on the American Embassies in the 1980's and 1990's
-The men and women in uniform for the nation's police, fire, and rescue units.
-Men and women like Rush Limbaugh, Sean Hannity, Ann Coulter, Laura Ingram, and the countless others who love their country and make no mistake about their American Pride.
-The men and women and children who constantly pray for the safety and return home of our soldiers in harm's way.
-The leaders in the Second Continental Congress who took the bold initiative to Declare our independence from the tyrant British leadership in 1776.
-The tireless and endless support of our allies in Britain, Poland, Australia, Israel, and the many other countries who have been by America's side since 9/11.

Thank you to the groups I mentioned above, and millions of other people who have given me the opportunity to live in the freedom and greatness of America.

Happy Birthday, America! God bless us all!

Women! Listen!

I wanted to discuss an important topic.

Ladies.

Yes, ladies. I am making some generalizations in this little rambling, but I think about everyone could take something out of what I am saying. I might sound like I am on some kind of high horse...and maybe I am. But I think this needs to be said and repeated over, and over and over and over...

The reason this is such an issue is that there is a serious lack of ladies in the world today. Even fewer little girls will grow up to be ladies in the years to come.
By lady, I mean a woman who is confident, modest, strong, and values herself as a person and refuses to be objectified as a "piece." I mean a woman who is strong enough to live and be happy without selling her body for acceptance and "love."

Too often, on TV, in movies, in songs, in every aspect of life, girls are taught that letting a boy have his way with them is acceptable and encouraged. Girls are ingrained with the idea that sex is their only asset to get what they think they want. And what they think they want is also ingrained by the same venues that teach them that they are only as good as the amount of cleavage they show or partners they have.

So, today, as a man, I want to stop the trend. I don't want some easy tramp who thinks the only way I might love her is if she sleeps with me. I don't want some woman who is incomplete by herself and needs to feel wanted, and they stoop to any level to get that feeling of want, even if it is misguided and more lust than true want.

Instead, what I want is a woman with confidence. A woman who knows that she is more that just a notch on a bedpost. A woman who thinks for herself and doesn't buy into the idea that showing more and giving more is the right way to live. A woman with morals. A woman with her head on straight. Someone who can intrigue me without unbuttoning her blouse.

Women, its time to stand up for yourselves. Stop letting yourself get walked on and treated as a piece of tail. You have so much more to offer. Be proud of who you are and be strong. Stop listening to what 50 Cent or Ludacris or Eminem or any of 1,000 singers might say...stop looking at movies and TV shows....you can still watch and enjoy them, but stop learning their misguided lessons.

Girls today have lost the innocence and modesty that makes women so incredible. High school girls compete for lovers and numbers of partners like boys used to only claim to have done in locker rooms. Far too many girls are running out of fingers to count their partners on before they get a high school diploma. Too many girls are under the impression that it is okay to be promiscuous and to dress in revealing and slutty clothes. Too many girls are growing up as cheap, easy, incomplete people whose life consists of too high an emphasis on sex.

Girls might want to blame guys...say guys are the reason because guys are brought up to think the same thing. To an extent, the girls do have a point. However, girls, it is up to you to take a stand and teach the boys that you are worth more than that. Stop giving in to the cute guys just because they are cute. Stop giving yourself away and stop degrading and devaluing yourself.

And guys...stop thinking with your penis. It is almost as much our fault for acting like sex-craved horn-dogs as it is the girls' fault for giving in and rewarding that kind of weakness. It is a far stronger man that waits to have sex for love then have sex for fun.

Having sex can be fun...but it can be so much more. It can be truly fulfilling and truly gratifying if you wait for the right partner and the right reasons. Having sex is not a way to create love where it doesn't exist, nor is it a way to extend a relationship. Sex is not an avenue to keep a person you care about with you. If you have to go to bed to keep someone, then they obviously do not value you enough. So, don't give in to pressure. That is not love, and that is not healthy.

We have become a free-sex society and it is tragically destroying our world and any semblance of morality. Guys and girls, stop going to bed with people you aren't married to. If you wait until there is a real sense of love and meaning between partners, everything will be so much better.

Ok, I am off the high horse now...but I am still right.

The Media Decides 2008

Well, the media won. The voting public was swayed and John McCain is the heir appearant to the Republican Nomination.

Mike Huckabee did nothing but play spoiler to the leading, true conservative Mitt Romney. If Huckabee had done the gracious thing and bow out like Thompson and Guliani, we would have a tight, two-man race. Instead Huckabee is hanging on till the bitter end.

My dream ticket of two conservatives in Mitt and Fred will not happen. Instead we will get a man who has publicly flirted with the idea of becoming a Democrat. But, how could he have made it were it not for the support of NBC, CBS, and ABC. They see him as one of them, a liberal on most social issues.

John McCain is a good man, a hero. He served and fought and was taken prisoner in Vietnam. Perhaps his military connections will give him the strength and wisdom to do the right thing by our national security and the safety of our troops abroad.

That is my one hope. That McCain will fight for our troops and not buckle to pressure from the left, as he did in McCain-Fiengold and McCain-Kennedy. I hope he can be a true leader and not a puppet for the left like he has been at times in the Congress.

I personally have mixed feelings about Ann Coulter coming out to say that she would campaign for and support Hillary if McCain gets the nomination. I can see her point that Hillary would be a 4 year debacle that could guarentee a resurgance of the conservative movement.

However, what sacrifices will we make in those four years? How many troops will be sacrificed as they are running out of Iraq? Who will die as a result of the terrorist attacks that we would be left vulnerable to?

On the other side, McCain could be nearly as bad. His constant flirting with the left is a scary idea. Can he be "The Sherriff" he claims to be? Or is he going to finally become a true republican and fight for the right? The fear is that if McCain fails, does that mean that the conservative movement will stall for 8, 12, or 16 years?

Only time will tell. All I know is that I am disappointed in the Republican party voters. I am truly disgusted with how Huckabee spoiled our chances at a conservative ticket. And, finally, I am cautiously hopeful that McCain will be loyal to the right if he is elected.