Behind the
Badge “Fourth of July”
By Joseph
Pangaro
Our founders,
like all of us, were flawed men who lived in a world unique to their time. But
there was also something extraordinary about them. From their hearts and minds
sprang a nation like none before it, where the individual was set apart from
the state and placed in a position superior to the state. They created a
government that would help the individual achieve their greatest potential, not
hold him back, by allowing each person to pursue their own destiny as they
chose free from government interference.
What we take
for granted in 2013, was revolutionary to all of mankind in 1776. In fact for
much of our existence as a country we have celebrated our rugged individualism
and our ability to choose our path and take our chances based on our own skill,
drive and energy. Win or lose we lived for the challenge, and thrived on the
struggle.
If we think
of the words of the signers of the Declaration of Independence when they
publicly pledged their honor, fortunes, and very lives to the cause of freedom,
a freedom forged so many years ago that all of us are still beneficiary of.
Many of
these men and their families lost their fortunes and their lives in the
struggle to birth this nation. At a time when we many modern people scoff at
them for their lifestyles and beliefs, we forget that their efforts allowed for
the construct of this country and our constitution which led to the changes in
societal norms we all herald today.
In recent
weeks we have seen reports of government over-reaches into our private lives, the
trampling of constitutional safeguards that protect our freedoms and government programs aimed at fairness that
threaten us with fines and jail time if we do not “willingly participate” for
our own good. At the bottom of all of this is the belief that these things,
while they are a complete deviation from all of the practices of the last 200
plus years, are for the good of all.
Looking at
these breaches of our rights openly we can say that having the government look
at every e-mail and phone call we make can keep us all safe in this age of
terrorism. There is no doubt that having the ability to look at anyone’s
private papers, documents, mail, and other personal items whenever you want,
without the burden of having to show probable cause can help law enforcement
uncover plots and solves crimes much quicker. When we put those violations of
our rights up against the backdrop of protecting us from another 9/11 or Boston
Bombing it would seem to make common sense to allow the government to do what
they please.
In a similar
sense wouldn’t the same “Bending” of the rules in everyday police work be just
as good an idea. Say you were burglarized and the police had a suspect, but
could not gather enough evidence to get a search warrant. Should we allow them
to simply search anyway? After all if we did we would absolutely solve more
crime. You can use that same scenario with any home grown crime: sex assaults,
drug dealing, white collar crime you name it. Removing the burden of oversight
would allow our police agencies to clean up crime in short order.
But we don’t
allow that and for good reason- we cherish our privacy and we don’t allow the
government (the police) to act simply because they might be able to move
quicker. We demand that our police conduct themselves with proper restraint;
after all we the people are superior in the equation.
So why then
do we seem to simply yawn off this sea change in our relationship with
governmental power? Could it be that in the years since 1776 we have become so
comfortable with our American way of life and trust that our leaders and fellow
citizens all hold similar beliefs in freedom as we do? Could it also be that
the average citizen doesn’t understand how we got here and the struggle all of
humanity has had to deal with for the freedoms we take for granted?
I think it’s
a combination of many things, we can’t believe that our country could ever
change and that our rights could be so deeply infringed that it would change
our very way of life- but history paints a very clear picture for us. If we
don’t remember, everyday, that our freedoms have to be zealously guarded and
protected from the inevitable creep of government, we will find ourselves in a
place we do not recognize; some would say we are already there.
There is no
doubt that everyday survival has become harder in this modern world. Ours is a
fast paced, never ending run for the money. We can become disillusioned when we
see some people living lives of wealth we can only imagine and others
struggling to find the next meal and a place to sleep. I believe it’s our
natural human inclination to want to “Make things even”. But once again history
has many lessons for us on this topic. When we drag people down so that all are
the same we drag down our society as well. When we lower the bar so we can feel
good, we lower our standards and we all suffer. Instead we can look to our
American Legacy of caring and double down on those efforts. We can work through
our religious organizations and clubs to help those in need. We can give people
a hand up, that make us all better. Our brothers and sister Americans are our
responsibility, not the governments. When we shirk our duty to each other we
weaken our nation and allow others to control our lives. That is never right
and it is the lesson of history.
Admittedly those things are hard to do, but
that is who we were for most of our existence. We need to be those people again
if we are to pass this, the greatest nation ever to take hold on the Earth, to
the next generation, and the generation after that.
So on this
Fourth of July 2013, as we Bar-B-Que, watch fireworks and wave our flags ask
ourselves; are we, as a people, willing to pledge our honor, fortunes and very
lives to the cause of freedom or do we simply want someone to take care of us? If left to us would America have been born?
Have we earned our freedom and paid our debt to those who sacrificed for us?
I for one
choose freedom and accept the burden of trying to fulfill my destiny and I thank
God for the gift of this country. Happy Fourth of July!
Let me know
what you think- jpangaro194@yahoo.com
