Fight for Liberty?

In the background on my computer screen is a World War II poster.  It shows some contemporary soldiers marching in front of some colonial militiamen.  The caption reads, "Americans Will Always Fight for Liberty".  There are two words that stuck out to me.  They are not "Americans" and "Liberty", but are "Will" and "Always".  During WWII, there was no doubt that the saying on that poster was true.

Since the 1940's, it seems that every few years America has sent her young men and women to fight for someone's liberty.  This is not to neglect the honor due to those prior to the 40's, but since that time, it has been one fight after another, in one country after another.  American blood is mixed with the water in the oceans around the world and has soaked into the dirt and gravel of countless countries.  There are white crosses that adorn green fields on multiple continents.  One thing that has been for sure, is that America will send her best and brightest to answer the call of the weak to oppose the oppressor.  When the work was done, we have come home, leaving freedom as our signature.

Why do you believe that we do that?  I do not believe it is some ego trip that one president after another is riding.  I do not believe that our citizens produce a superior human that cannot be matched by offspring in other countries.  I believe it is because we, here in America, cherish freedom.  We have been blessed to be a part of the most amazing experiment - the one where the people are free and the government works for the common citizen.  With this rare perspective, we have not sought to be unique, but have fought to spread liberty around the world so that other people in other nations can enjoy what we have.

Even today, Americans are stationed around the world with the purpose of spreading freedom to some and protecting liberty for others.  We are watching as one war winds down in a newly democratic country and one war continues on the soil of a neighbor of theirs.  We are helping to guard the line between the north and south in Korea, as tensions mount.

But, even with all of this evidence, I am left with those same two words catching my attention, "Will" and "Always".  Is it still true that "Americans Will Always Fight for Liberty"?  Will we? Always?  With a sadness in my heart I must admit that I do not believe that poster would be accepted as gospel in America, today.

I am not saying that all Americans fit into any one category, for sure, they do not.  The diversity in Americans is becoming more clear and with wider chasms over the past several years.  There are many who are now fighting and others who would fight for liberty.  But there appears to be a growing number who would not.  Our freedom has been taken for granted and the quality of our liberty has been under attack for several decades.  Many of our current citizens do not recognize that what America now is, is not what America once was.  Many of us still speak of our freedom, but a giant chunk of liberty has disappeared from right under our noses during the past 100 years. 

America is still sending troops to fight in other nations for the liberty of others.  We continue to produce men and women who volunteer to risk everything for the sake of some people they probably have never met and cannot even speak their language.  Somehow, we find that the "Greatest Generation" keeps reproducing themselves.

But, what about here at home?  Will Americans fight for liberty here?  We seem to understand that gaining liberty for strangers is worth a fight and it's value is worth some blood.  We spend hundreds of billions of dollars fighting wars in other lands.  We bury thousands of our sons and daughters and watch many more come home with life changing wounds, physical and emotional.  But securing our liberty, which was bought with much shedding of blood, does not seem to have the same importance with a growing number of Americans. 

I believe this is partly due to an indoctrination being carried out by our government on the citizens and also, that the stripping away of our rights and freedoms has taken place in incremental stages.  We are guilty of allowing the socialist foot to get in the door, just a little bit here and a little more there.  Once they gained a foothold, there was a full-frontal assault against the Constitution and the freedom and rights we have valued so highly.

At the current time, all three branches of our Federal Government are heavily influenced by those who have a disdain, or even a hatred, for the principles of the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence.  They are not only unwilling to fight for liberty, they appear to be fighting against it.  We the People of America, over the past 100 years have allowed this to take place.  They have been very good at distracting us with the right hand while the left hand is stealing from our bundle of rights.  In some ways, we have been lazy, not willing to do the work of holding our politicians accountable.  This they have viewed as weakness and they have exploited us.

Over the past few years, the grassroots Americans have been waking up.  After rubbing our eyes for a brief period, we began to take stock in our situation.  The more we saw, the madder we got.  Now, they have stirred up a nest of hornets and we are just plain p----d o-f!  It's too late to spend time asking, "how did this happen?"  We must jump in with both feet and get busy.  There is no time for retrospective contemplation.  The longer we watch, the further behind we get.

As we begin 2011, we must not relax.  All of us have to be vigilant and keep watch on Washington.  Each and every one of them MUST be held accountable. 

This American has not had to fight for freedom in the past, but I will now!  I do not want to be a part of the last generation who set there in ignorance while liberty disappeared from the shores of America.  The following generations, at least those who learn what America once was, rightly will look back with anger at this time and a shame will rightly fall on those who let liberty slip away without so much as a fight.

"This American Will Always Fight for Liberty".  Will you?