All day long I heard one thing from customers and associates at the store. They meant well, yes, but even the television stations were saying the same, mostly. Happy Fourth of July!!! I had to grit my teeth in a smile and nod to keep from face-palming. For those outside the United States of America, the fourth of July is indeed just another day. For Americans, it is Independence Day. No, it's not just the title of a movie that got bad reviews which spawned a parodius depiction of the reviewers in those producers next movie. Yes, other countries have a fourth of July, despite what some people might otherwise claim, but they do not have an independence day at all or not on the same day as we do
We are not celebrating shooting off fireworks and grilling hot dogs and hamburgers and drinking beer without purpose. All these traditions came as a result of our freedom from the old tyranny of the British back in the 1700s, taxation without representation and worse. But if you ask many children and even adults in America today, they'll be unable to explain why we celebrate Independence Day, and many do not even call it that as a result, whether they know the reason or not. It irks me that with private school, home-school and public school I had to learn about the Revolutionary and Civil Wars multiple times through multiple grades, with varying levels of detail and focus... And yet the average American cannot even call the day by its correct name, and worse that many don't know what they are celebrating.
Please, if you have children, explain that the fireworks harken back to the primitive rockets above the colonial cities and navies being fired at one another, and the reasons why as a country we were so willing to still have relations with the British Empire after gaining our independence. Tell them why we fought so hard alongside them in WWI and WWII and other countries against oppressive regimes. Are we perfect? Should we have joined every war? In my opinion? No. But was our battle for independence justified? Yes, yes, a thousand times yes. So celebrate Happy Stick-It-To-The-British Day, or its official name, Independence Day with pride.
However... Not to darken this great American national pride, there is a lot as a country we still have to struggle with, and against. Tyranny comes in many forms, and more commonly now is that of misinformation and burying intent with paperwork and legalese rather than simple and concise agreements to help, serve and protect our nation for each other and for our descendents. Great strides have been made toward racial equality, gender equality and orientation equality, and we still have more to go there and in other places, but primarily we need to encourage our senators and representatives to push our needs and desires over that of corporations and other nations, which while important are not who they are supposed to serve: us. Most don't even know who their mayors are, let alone their senators and representatives are, or what they do. This is dreadful, and tragic for our future if we wish to prevent the tyranny of old rising from secluded slumber to outright terror. As Thomas Jefferson said in 1757, "The tree of liberty must be refreshed from time to time with the blood of patriots and tyrants. It is it’s natural manure."
