Patriotism Is Still 'Cool'

For a bit of a change of pace, I thought I would add a few personal comments to the blog site. I can do that, you know, since I own the site!!....;-)
This week will bring us another 4th of July. While some of us will view this as just another chance at a 3-day weekend, some of us will be celebrating the day for what it is: a chance to celebrate our freedoms that have been paid for with the blood of others. There will BBQ's galore, flags on display and plenty of fireworks....some legal and some not-so-legal! If we are to maintain our freedoms, however, we must keep reminding ourselves just how we got here in the first place.
If you think about it, there has rarely been a time that we have not been at war. Right at this moment, we are engaged in war in Iraq. My generation had Viet Nam. My father was in World War II, and my grandfather's generation had World War I. In between, there were 'conflicts' such as Korea. Brave soldiers, men and women, have fought and died to ensure our freedoms, and we owe them.....big time.
Make no mistake about it, though. We do not fight to 'keep the peace'. That is impossible....you cannot fight and keep peace at the same time. We fight to continue our way of life, enjoy our freedoms, and keep tyrants from taking away those rights and freedoms. Sometimes we fight for ourselves, sometimes we fight for the rights of others, yet ultimately we fight for freedom.
Are we war mongers? Some might say yes, but I say No! History has proven that we must fight in order to remain free. If our freedoms and way of life were ever taken away, those who oppose wars would be the first to wonder why we are not fighting to get those freedoms back. Yet, to be politically correct, whenever there is a conflict or war in our generation, the majority oppose the actions. Where would we be today if we had not fought to rid the world of Hitler and the Nazis, or if we had turned the other cheek to the Japanese when they attacked Pearl Harbor? Likely, those of us east of the Mississippi would now be speaking German, and those in the west would be speaking Japanese.
Freedom is not free....it comes at a cost. The 4th of July is not vacation time. It is time to enjoy our hard earned freedoms and our way of life. Independence Day. I, for one, will do as others do and fire up the BBQ this weekend. In one hand I will have a fork or spatula. In the other, I will have an ice cold beer which I will use to toast the men and women of the armed forces who, throughout history, have lived and died for my freedom. After I toast them, I will put down my beer and give a snappy hand salute to those brave souls....just to say 'Thank You'!