Independence Day and the Liberty Tree

For our Friday music, I wanted to pay homage to my country. With all of its problems and all of the issues that I personally am trying to help resolve, it's still the best country on earth.

The freedoms that our founding fathers envisioned and set down in our Constitution have been upheld and fought for, for well over two centuries. Still, this country is a young upstart compared to many nations. 

Before it was actually a country, it was a group of colonies. A "whole mess," as my grandma would say, of colonists, with differing opinions, religions, and backgrounds. But there was one thing that roped them all together: the idea of freedom. Of men and women taking responsibility for their own lives, and of accountability to each other and the morals and decency rooted in Judeo-Christian values.

The Liberty Tree was the backdrop for many discussions (some heated) about taxation, representation, and the rights of free men before their God. Some were fiery and radical, and espoused violence as a way to solve problems. Some were reasoned and cautious, and pushed calmness and rhetoric as the solution to the issues at hand. 

Unlike many of the landmarks of old Boston, such as the Old North Church and others, the Liberty Tree is almost forgotten today. Could be because the British chopped down the venerable old elm in 1775. Or it could be that the tree symbolized the sometimes violent, uprising, "radical" side of the Revolution. It is a side of our history that is still a bit too "messy" for comfort.

Contrast the messiness of 1775, with it's public square, its buckets of tar and bags of feathers, hanging and burning people in effigy, and more, with today. . . . Today's messiness is characterized by people calling each other names on social media and the combined force of citizens, business, and technology giants to squash ideas that don't fit the narrative of a select few -- while rioters burn portions of cities and take aim at law enforcement. 

Yes, the tree of Liberty was and still is a symbol of our freedoms. Today, we have the freedom to speak, as long as we are fully aware that we may be removed from social media or lose the privilege of doing business where we choose. Patriots have died so that we can have our freedoms, but I wonder how long we will keep them?  We have been so complacent for so long -- perhaps we need to remember what our forefathers fought for....they didn't have to fight against other colonists; they were united to resist a king. The colonists wanted to be left alone to enjoy self-government, their private property, and farm or conduct business in peace. Today's citizens are concerned with "getting all they deserve."

Perhaps "we the people" need to quit looking at our smartphones and look at the documents that remind us of our freedoms and our constitutional republic. We need to return to the values that make that republic possible. (And yes, it IS a republic. It makes me so annoyed when commentators try to tell us about our democracy. A democracy is simply majority rule, people! The majority can snuff out the rights and voices of the minority. The founders, in their wisdom, gave us ways for the few to be heard by the many! Don't lose sight of this -- go back and read the Constitution, the Declaration, and some of the Federalist Papers.)

I hope that you will overlook the length of my rant, but not its content - these things need to be heard in the public square of today. We need to return to the "revolutionary" ideas of one nation under God; we need to value the free market (not free trade) and economic freedom for all; we need to promote free speech (even to those who disagree with us) and the right to peaceably assemble; and we must oppose government overreach and the suppression of the rights provided to all Americans. Those are God-given rights -- the Declaration and Constitution don't give those to us; they simply list them. They come to us from God, the source of all of our blessings. Let's pray for our country, our leaders, and ourselves, that we will look back at the Liberty Tree and be inspired to drop the shield of complacency -- to get involved and win our country back.