Independence Day

There can be no more graphic example of the mood of the country and the state of the economy than this little vignette of my own home community, at least for me. Where I live, I can see the valley below me and a panorama of the hills towards the west from my living room window.

UK Fireworks Ad

In a ‘normal’ year, the lead up to the Fourth of July would be a steadily increasing crescendo of fireworks going off, culminating in a house-shaking, window-rattling finale on the evening of the Fourth. Now, just so we’re all on the same page, pretty obviously I’m not talking about the safe and sane variety of sparklers and fountains. I’m talking about skyrockets and 3 and 4 inch ‘mortars’, ‘bricks’ of firecrackers etc. I’m not advocating the purchase or use of illegal fireworks. I’m simply stating what is. The nanny state can try as it might, but there’s certain things that Americans will never allow themselves to be weaned from… fireworks and moonshine are two that come to mind.

I served in the Marine Corps with a guy whose family had been making ‘shine, as he called it, for generations. Asked if he wasn’t worried about the Feds… he just looked back at me and said, “Heck no”. So much for the Revenuers. Likewise, around here the police make a great show of driving around and suppressing the illegal stuff. It’s like a cat-and-mouse game that operates by its own rules.

Guy (also known as Guido) Fawkes

Explosive fireworks are legal in the UK where my editor Dee resides. There is a rather gruesome event over there called Guy Fawkes Night, commemorating a plot to blow up Parliament by placing barrels of gunpowder under it. Poor Guy got caught. Capital crimes in the England of 1605 were dealt with by having the convicted traitor hung, cut down alive, stretched by ropes pulled by a pony, thrown down on an execution slab and eviscerated, having his intestines drawn out in front of his own eyes, and sometimes thrown in a lit brazier… at which time if he wasn’t already dead, his head would be removed with an axe… his limbs removed from his torso which was thrown on an offal pile for the dogs to eat. His head would then be placed on a spike on the Tower of London… the four limbs would be taken to the four corners of the Kingdom and disposed of. Altogether, an unpleasant way to die. Poor Guy was able to throw himself off the scaffold headfirst, breaking his own neck and saving himself from the gentle ministrations of the King’s executioners.

The 'Guy' atop the bonfire on November 5.

Dee tells me that the evening is celebrated by the ingestion of copious amounts of alcohol and hot dogs around the bonfire, which is symbolically topped by an effigy called a ‘Guy’, and explosives going off everywhere. It’s one of those quirky things about the UK, arguably one of the greatest nanny states in the world. That it would allow their citizens to use explosive fireworks in great quantity fueled by, as Dee says it, binge drinking… while at the same time they’re not permitted to defend themselves, their families or their property from evildoers.

This year it has been noticeably quiet around here. So much so that I mentioned it to the elder of my two boys. He said he had noticed the same thing. We seldom go to a fireworks display. We can simply open the living room blinds, turn off the lights and enjoy. The valley would be lit with fireworks of both varieties, likewise the hills on the other side. There’s very little going on in comparison to other years and we’ve been here for ten Independence Days now.

Now you can’t be much more unscientific about an observation than this, but I think it’s indicative of two things: (a) A scarcity in disposable income. These big ‘illegal’ fireworks, some approaching professional quality, are anything but cheap. (b) A less than joyous mood in the country. People are not only not spending what money they have, they are noticeably pessimistic about the direction of the country. The Gulf well isn’t dry, but America is watching our DeMarxist Congress tapping a well which doesn’t exist.

In another breathtakingly unconstitutional maneuver, the Democrats voted that a budget was ‘deemed’ passed, so that they could start spending funds from a budget which is non-existent. Sounds insane, doesn’t it? We have a country being run by the Cheshire Cat, the Mad Hatter and the Dingy Rabbit. Their Wonderland is as hallucinatory as the ‘Phantom Budget’.

Semper Vigilans, Semper Fidelis

© Skip MacLure 2010

It’s another American first. A (so far) bloodless revolution. It’s Americans banding together to confront the evils of the Marxist coup against our God given rights.

In 1775, Americans rose up against what they saw as tyranny by a King and his Parliament thousands of miles away. In eight years of bitter fighting the fledgling country won its freedom, with the help of King Louis XVI of France who saw the conflict as an opportunity to stick his thumb in the eye of his arch enemy, King George III. The Spaniards and Dutch were allies of the French and, by extension, allies of the American colonists also.

We don’t have eight years to take our country back. We have until November 2, 2010. Larry Kudlow calls it a “Tea Party” election. He points out, very correctly, that the DeMarxists and the ‘moderates’ in both the Democrat and Republican parties have made a big mistake thinking that the Patriot Movement is a momentary phenomenon.

What has been, and is, occurring is that with every incursion into our fundamental rights and freedoms the ‘movement’ (which I’ve been calling ‘the Conservative Patriot Movement’ for purposes of clarification) has gotten more powerful. It’s a process of diminishing returns for the Obama Marxists. What they so disparagingly refer to as ‘Teabaggers’ is in fact a huge coalition of like-minded Independents, Conservatives, Republicans and not a few disillusioned Democrats whose ‘hopey changey thing’ has so far turned into a two year nightmare of deficit spending, sky-high tax increases and, arguably, the worst economy since the great depression.

The Patriot movement’s support, or lack of, has determined the results of elections all over the country. The Republican old guard so far has done everything in its power to ignore, and when that became impossible, disparage the movement as being a temporary voter reaction. ‘Repubics’ (thanks Mark), such as Lindsey Gr(amnesty) wish we would go away. Yeah, you Lindsey, you smarmy rat. This stooge has been around far too long. That’s right, Graham, we’re gunning for you. We’ll support Conservative challengers to you and harry you from office, to become the dirty little historical grease spot you deserve to be. Tell us how irrelevant we are during your next election cycle.

Democrat and Republican so-called moderates  (another term for liberal as far as I’m concerned) are approaching November with trepidation, as well they should. So, if you’re among the millions of Americans who are frustrated and bitter, watching your government and your freedoms being taken over by a nascent tyranny, it’s time for you to get active. The Patriot Movement is a big, welcoming place. It’s where your voice can best be heard among millions of like-minded Americans. We’re not hard to find.

While we remember those Patriots from that first Fourth of July so long ago, let us remember those who today risk their lives on our behalf in hostile climes around the world. It’s your nation, take it back.

Semper Vigilans, Semper Fidelis

© Skip MacLure 2010

What is wrong with the Libertarian Right?

They deliberately ignore 2,000 years of tradition, every religion in the world,  and the legal system of the United States that never endorsed the idea of Gay Marriage.

And equating Gay Marriage with Independence Day.

In terms of votes one Rabbi and one Christian Minister influences more votes than the Pajamas Media crowd. With allies like this who needs.....

www.ericcantorforvp.com