"The land of the free, and the home of the brave."
I'm from Massachusetts where, fittingly, for today and this thought, the state motto is "Sub ense, libertas."
That's right, "Under the sword, liberty."
We have recycled our swords into "Colts".
We have intellectualized them into laws, sub laws, rules, regulations and tribunals.
We have organized them into moneyed special interests.
We have hacked them dull in the deterioration of our educational system through our pandering to the personal demands of the educators rather than honoring the needs of the students.
We have bent then into corkscrews of dishonor, discord, disrespect, dissimulation, disingenuity, contumely and slander.
We have ceased looking for the "quiet peace" mentioned in the uncut, unedited statement of the motto:
"Manus haec inimica tyrannis ense petit placidam
sub libertate quietem,"
I'm from Massachusetts where, fittingly, for today and this thought, the state motto is "Sub ense, libertas."
That's right, "Under the sword, liberty."
We have recycled our swords into "Colts".
We have intellectualized them into laws, sub laws, rules, regulations and tribunals.
We have organized them into moneyed special interests.
We have hacked them dull in the deterioration of our educational system through our pandering to the personal demands of the educators rather than honoring the needs of the students.
We have bent then into corkscrews of dishonor, discord, disrespect, dissimulation, disingenuity, contumely and slander.
We have ceased looking for the "quiet peace" mentioned in the uncut, unedited statement of the motto:
"Manus haec inimica tyrannis ense petit placidam
sub libertate quietem,"
We keep a sharp sword at hand, shoulder high and threatening those whom we perceive to be nuisances intruding upon our thirst for complete control over the behavior in which we find comfort.
The sharp sword comes in handy for carving out sections of the citizenry that are different from whom and what we are.
We seek to excise those who feel entitled; those who even through no fault of their own, are less well endowed, physically, spiritually, emotionally, intellectually and economically.
We use the flat side for those on our side and the sharp edge for the weaker ones.
These are times when the sword is not a unifier but a divider; not a peace maker but a fomenter of discord. It is not a tool for the lessening of organized government's intrusion into our personal lives, but a wedge driving government deeper and deeper into our individual private space.
This sword knows no political favoritism. It cares not whose hand squeezes the haft. It cares not whether the hand is right or left. All it cares is whether there is enough blood on it to show one and all that it knows its purpose and is able and willing to achieve it. No matter what.
Happy Independence Day.
