God Bless America!

On September 11, 2001, American history was forever altered. The World Trade Center was hit, but America was not. The Pentagon was hit, but America was not. Because America is not about buildings or military centers, America is not even about a place. America is an ideal. "They may take our lives, but they will never take our freedom!" What does it mean to be an American?

Over 200 years ago, our Founding Fathers shook off the chains of tyranny from Great Britain, and with the Declaration of Independence, the United States of America was born: "When in the course of human events, it becomes necessary for one People to dissolve the Political bands which have connected them with another . . . We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness."

The men who founded our great Nation further ensured our freedoms by signing the Constitution and including a preamble that states, "We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common Defense, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity . . . "

Dwight D. Eisenhower said, "History does not long entrust the care of freedom to the weak or the timid." And in the words of Andrew Jackson, "One man with courage is a majority."

"Freedom is fragile and must be protected. To sacrifice it, even as a temporary measure, is to betray it." Everett Hale declared, "I am only one, but I am one. I cannot do everything, but I can do something. What I can do I should do, and with the help of God, I will do."

Terrorist attacks can shake the foundations of our buildings, but they cannot touch the foundation of America. These acts shatter steel, but they cannot dent the steel of American resolve. America was targeted by the attack because we are the brightest beacon for freedom and opportunity in the world!" - President George W. Bush, September 11, 2001

Happy 4th of July everyone! Be safe, and reflect on what we celebrate tomorrow.