Pioneer Spirit

It has been an amazing run. Last Friday the United States celebrated its 232 birthday. Hawaii joined the union in 1959, creating the need for a fiftieth star on our flag a mere forty-nine years ago.

If the Las Vegas bookies were around on July 4, 1776, what odds would they have given a bunch of ragtag, independent colonies defeating England, the foremost power in the world? The historians have documented all the reasons for their success, but the victory still remains nearly incomprehensible.

And talk about luck! What arrangement of the stars put men of such great wisdom together in Philadelphia to hammer out a constitution which created the bedrock for the most successful nation on the planet? The magnitude of what they accomplished all but defies gravity.

Don’t forget the pioneers who forged this nation with pure guts. They were hard nosed dreamers. They came from Europe with little or nothing, explored, settled and lived off the land. They represent the soul of this country.

And never forget that at least one-half of all the early colonists arrived as indentured servants. They were slaves by any definition. They gave up five to ten years of their lives for the cost of passage. How big was their dream to do this?

The ashes of the Civil War were still smoldering while picks, shovels and dynamite linked the west coast with the east coast in 1869. The transcontinental railroad coupled the spoils of the Mexican War, the annexation of the southwestern states, with the east and the land acquired from Napoleon Bonaparte in 1803, called the Louisiana Purchase.

Only two years before the railroad coupled the nation, Abraham Lincoln’s Secretary of State concluded a deal with Russia to purchase Alaska. The press mocked this decision, calling it a folly. These little men didn’t stop their yapping until gold was discovered.

Our forefathers created a nation which has withstood two world wars, terrifying epidemics, the Great Depression and Communism. They revolutionized production and the sciences, put men on the moon and opened their hearts and treasury to those they vanquished in self-defense.

This nation is a phenomenon. It recognizes and attempts to rectify its mistakes, believes in personal freedom and is a worthy friend. No other country in history has sacrificed more to free subjugated people and promote the prosperity of mankind.

Our ideals remain the beacon to the world. The Statue of Liberty has the same appeal as it did when it was erected. And that is the greatest evidence of the glory of the United States of America.

There is no utopia. We are currently working our way through another muddy patch. Don’t listen to those who believe we can only succeed by suppressing our freedoms or relinquishing our core values.

These naysayers don’t understand what makes this country strong. They actually believe government initiatives, rather than individuals with vision, built this nation.

It might be a bit messy, but America will find an energy solution. That’s the beauty of capitalism in a Republic. Private enterprise always finds a way despite the hungry incompetence of government.