Happy Independence Day!

Straight Talk with Sam

Two hundred forty-eight years ago today, the Continental Congress adopted a bold declaration proclaiming our freedom from British rule. Over the next few months, 56 men signed their names to the Declaration of Independence, a document that, had history unfolded differently, could have become their death warrant.

The Declaration of Independence did more than just list the abuses that colonists in the 13 colonies endured under British rule. It laid out why governments are formed and what a just and fair government should look like. Its enduring words continue to guide us today, as the first portion of the second paragraph reads:

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.--That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, --That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness.

It was that simple idea that men created governments not to rule other men but to protect the inalienable rights given to us by God that changed the course of human history. It's hard to imagine a world without the freedoms we enjoy today, thanks to those who signed the Declaration of Independence, but it's important to remember that our freedom wasn't won overnight with the stroke of a pen.

Our freedom was hard-fought and hard-won during the eight years of the Revolutionary War. It took another six years for the Constitution to be drafted, adopted, and ratified. Since then, millions more Americans have fought and died so that we might be free.

So, this Independence Day, I encourage everyone to enjoy this time with your family, but don't forget that freedom isn't free. Honor those who have made this day possible, and remember that we all have a solemn duty to protect and defend what we've inherited so that our children and grandchildren can live to enjoy these same freedoms. Because, as Ronald Reagan once said, "freedom is a fragile thing and it's never more than one generation away from extinction."

Sincerely,

Sam Graves