The summer of 1776 was a hot and contentious one for the fifty-six members of the Second Continental Congress. Despite the years of growing oppression and unrest, many in America still hoped that appeasement and compromise could bring peace and unity with their parent, England. Thankfully for us, stronger hearts prevailed and executed the God-given "right of the people to alter” and “institute new Government,” as articulated in the Declaration of Independence.
The "long train of abuses and usurpations" could no longer be ignored. The despotism of their sovereign had inflicted suffering and exhausted the people's patience. So they chose to act and act radically. They raised the black flag declaring death to tyranny. Against all odds, they fought the Leviathan and won, creating a new nation whose central government, according to James Madison, had “few and defined” powers.
It is essential for Americans today to remember the history and context of our celebration. The leaders of our rebellion knew the cost of their decision would be great. They also knew that tolerance for the intolerable is the path to destruction.
We find ourselves today in a similar 1776 struggle for the heart of our country and the manner of our governance. However, for us, our oppressor is not across an ocean.
The last two years of my Naval career were spent fighting back against the tyrants who used the confusion of the lockdowns to resurrect the despotism our forefathers died to defeat. But my story is not unique. We have all tasted or seen the pain and destruction authoritarian governance brings about.
Over the last few years, many lost businesses due to ineffective lockdowns; others never had the chance to kiss loved ones goodbye as they passed away behind plexiglass walls. Now we are faced with the ever-growing monstrous tax of inflation to pay for our so-called leaders’ mistakes and greed. The past three years have continued and accelerated our federal government’s unchecked lust for authority.
The leaders of our rebellion knew the cost of their decision would be great. They also knew that tolerance for the intolerable is the path to destruction.
Even after the lockdowns, the absurdity and foolishness of our leaders continues in full force. Perhaps most obviously, we watch in dumbfound shock as male officials dress up as women in the White House and in the military, encouraging doctors to mutilate our children and promote gender confusion in our most important institutions using taxpayer dollars.
All of this leaves the common man feeling helpless, wondering where it went wrong. But today we can tip back another beer and forget our worries as we listen to patriotic Spotify playlists, pretending we live in the land of the free and the home of the brave.
Yet the Declaration of Independence also states: "Governments are instituted among men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed." I do not consent. Do you?
Just as Mother Teresa once called on our nation's leaders, I call to all of you: "I have no new teaching for America. I seek only to recall you to faithfulness to what you once taught the world." Our system was never perfect. It is only a model that enables us to endlessly strive for a more perfect union.
During my deployment in Africa, I witnessed the results of the tyrannical and godless society which America is running toward. It is not enlightened, but it is equitable: all are equally fearful and poor. We, the people, do not have to consent. We do not have to bow down, compromising and appeasing gender dysphoria and crushing government overreach.
The course of human events has made it necessary for us to come together as one people under God and declare independence from the malaise of apathy and submission which has infected our hearts; to reach back and reestablish the self-evident truth that we are all created equal, deserving the right to life, for all of life, liberty from tyrants, and the pursuit of happiness without a bureaucrat regulating its definition.
The Declaration of Independence also states: ‘Governments are instituted among men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed.’ I do not consent. Do you?
If we believe in God and, as a nation, seek him once more, our United States can recapture the first principles on which our republic was founded.
The past few years have been hard, and the years ahead will be more challenging still. Reform is not easy. The cost will be tremendous. Freedom isn't free, and to compromise on principle is to lose it all. But take courage. Do not be afraid.
This July Fourth, try putting down the Bud Light and be of sober mind. Declare that Christ is Lord, and let us fly the black flag of freedom once more.
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