Lemmings and Sheeple Are Unpatriotic...

Last year I wrote a blog on Independence Day, so today I went back and reread it. As Congress continues to expand (or attempts to expand) the role of the federal government, I can't help but wonder what our founding fathers would think about such expansion. I'm afraid Jefferson, Madison and others would hardly recognize the "republic" they helped create, and only Alexander Hamilton would be very excited about the difference from then to now.

In spite the encroachment (and impending encroachment) into our daily lives, the freedom we enjoy is still something we shouldn't dare take for granted. The very fact that I can sit at a computer and publicly publish my dissatisfaction with the direction our government has been heading for the past several years is testament to the country in which we live. I can go to church tomorrow without having to worry about government officials coming in and breaking up the service. Groups can freely gather to protest, even though I'm not 100% clear on the correlation of the tea parties to the original tea party of over 230 years ago and I'm not really sure of the point of some of the left wing demonstrations that we occasionally see.

This nation was born out of dissent and disagreement. Anyone selling the "purple country" myth just doesn't know anything about U.S. history. We've always disagreed and had varying ideas about how this country should be run. I hope that that spirit never dies and we never give in to those who would have us believe that dissent is unpatriotic...whether their voices call from the left or the right.