Ahhh, the Fourth of July. The day means many different
things to many different Americans. Since I have not been to Philadelphia, I am
grateful to Walter Knott for building an exact replica of Independence Hall
just across the road from his wonderful Ghost Town at Knott’s Berry Far. So
accurate was his version the National Park Service requested use of his
blueprints when undertaking a full-scale overhaul of the original. Inside this
replica building you’ll also find a replica of the Liberty Bell, an 18th
century carriage and various other items of antiquity. Also, there is a room
identical to the one in which our Founding Fathers gathered and wrote the
Declaration of Independence.
The Fourth of July used to mean parades and picnics;
baseball and yes, apple pie. Now I scoff at the fact they call it Independence
Day. Independence for who? Surely not independence from a minority rule. No
nation that denies bodily rights to half its population is can tell those same
citizens they are independent.
The cherry-picking of the Constitution continues, as
the 2nd Amendment is staunchly defended by some of the same people
who ignore the 1st. Two thirds of the Justices on the Supreme Court
are Catholic, and one of them is already chirping about disallowing married
couples from using any form of birth control. This means we have been suckered
into being a Catholic nation. With all due respect to my Catholic friends,
those justices can go to hell as far as I’m concerned. As long as they’re on
the court, no American will live in complete freedom of or from religion.
And there’s a growing number of Americans who echo my sentiments when I say “Organized
religion really f***ed up my spiritual life…”
Even before last month’s horrific decision I had grown
weary of celebrating this holiday. As with most holidays we have trivialized it
to the point of no return. There is an inherent shallowness to the way we as a
society celebrate these days. We don’t celebrate the occasion or its meaning,
we celebrate the celebration. This is why for many, the only difference between
Memorial Day and the Fourth of July is the fireworks. Oh, that and the fact
most kids are out of school the day after the Fourth. Aside from that, what is a holiday in this
nation but an annual exercise in handing over our paychecks to the corporate
machine? How man radio commercials will we endure which state “There’s
nothing more patriotic than Old Glory, firing up the grill and buying a brand-new
car or truck from…?”
Growing up I was taught Patriotism meant loving
something. These days it appears the main requirement is hating something…
Other requirements include eating off red, white and
blue paper plates during appropriate holidays, competing to see how many flag
code violations one can make, and wearing tactical gear. (Wearing tactical gear
doesn’t count if you don’t have at least one Velcro patch on your .511 or Condor
hat…)
Theodore Roosevelt once said “To announce that
there must be no criticism of the President, or that we are to stand by the
President, right or wrong, is not only unpatriotic and servile, but is morally
treasonable to the American public…” Contrary to the beliefs in some
circles, these words rang true from 2016 to 2020 as well…
Apparently, not liking it when children are massacred
in the classroom also makes one unpatriotic…
“The only thing that stops a bad guy with a gun is a
good guy with a gun.” I guess the fine officers in Uvalde aren’t good guys.
They had guns but the only balls found in Uvalde that day were attached to a
Border Patrol agent who showed up a little later…
Speaking of schoolroom massacres, there’s a meme going
around (again) which claims a child asked God why he isn’t present during
school shootings, and God replied “Because I am not allowed in schools”.
Never did hear why God was banned from Sutherland Springs, Tree of Life
Synagogue or Emmanuel Baptist Church...
On that note, still waiting on the meme explaining
where God is every time a boy gets molested by a priest…
Saw a bumper sticker that said “If Jesus had a gun,
he would still be alive…”. Too many holes in that argument, not least of
which being: wouldn’t all the Romans have had guns too?...
Fun Fact: “Thoughts and Prayers” don’t raise the dead.
Nor do they keep the bullets from flying again…
Apparently, “All Lives Matter” only until birth. After
that, we’re on our own…
So the hearings into the January 6th
Insurrection/Riot/Trump Rally are underway. According to “Patriotic” Americans,
anyone holding an opinion stating the events of that day were wrong hates this
country as much as people who don’t like mass shootings. By that logic, I must
be a meth user since I don’t like heroin...
The Blue Lives Matter crowd have been eerily silent on
Capitol Police Officer Michael Fanone’s beating, with an American Flag no less.
Just so we’re clear: beating a police officer who is attempting to defend our
capitol: Good. Professional athletes protesting the murder of minorities: Bad...
Funny how those pissing and moaning about Biden and some of his
verbal miscues continue to worship the guy who claimed windmills cause cancer, Lysol
cures covid and Puerto Rico has a president...
On that note, I am waiting for Mexico to pay for the wall, and
proof the 2020 Presidential Election was stolen...
If I actually had a large readership, I am certain a few replies
would say “If you don’t like it why don’t you leave?!” Those people are like
the Arizona Karen who told the Navajo girl “Go back where you came from!”…
Just finished reading Frederick Douglass “What
to the Slave is the Fourth of July?” again. I cannot help but wonder What is
the Fourth of July to a Woman… to a Trans Woman... To a Gay Man...
This nation was in existence for over 140
years before women gained the right to vote. 102 years later and now women do
not have the right to their own bodies. As a therapist recently said in quoting
a patient (with permission): “I have more right to own a gun designed to kill
several people in a matter of seconds than I do to my own vagina”…
Parting Shot(s):
Tragedy struck Highland Park, Illinois in the
form of six people murdered and dozens more injured. At a Fourth of July Parade.
Guess there’s nothing more American than a good old fashioned mass shooting. Err,
umm, I mean, exercising the right to keep and bear arms…
