It Is the Duty of Every Citizen to Help the Government Fight Corruption
By Bill Miller (Author of The Tea Party Papers: A Collection of Essays to the Tea Party Patriots)

This is one of the major tenets of the Federalists as well as the advocates of Jeffersonian Democracy. An obligation too many have left for others to do, and now we live in a tyranny. It is not homicidal a tyranny as Hitler’s was or Callous as Castro’s is nor does it suspend logic like Chavez’s tyranny does; however, it is a tyranny none the less. The Philosopher, John Locke, said private property begins with one’s body. That it is an attack on private property for a government to take the sweat of your labors. Yet many in fact, most of the citizens of this country work until October just to pay their taxes. Add in their living expenses and if they’re prudent, the individual may have a few weeks pay for their self-actualization process.

Add to this factor, the unconstitutional behavior of the government: every moment of every day, those in government sworn to uphold the constitution, violate it. They violate it with unconstitutional departments and agencies and activities, but they also do something far, far worse–they commit sacrilege against Natural Law. There can be times that violating the constitution is excusable. It is, after all, only man’s law and it only reaches parity in the trilogy with Nature and the individual; it can never exceed or interfere in that relationship. The Individual’s tie with Nature is eternal. So violating Natural Law is first and foremost almost sacrilege. It is also un-American; anyone, including the President if he violates Natural Law, becomes immediately irrelevant. As James Otis said, “It is better that the government itself dies then it violate Natural Law.”

James Madison wrote that all governments were evil. He understood they are temporal–beginning in corruption and get worse over time. He told us the best forms of government were the local participatory governments: the bigger and farther away, the more centralized, the greater the evil. And I hate to even call it the Federal government because there is little Federalism left in it. Let us call it the Imperial Government, since the word Imperium in Latin means the authority to command other citizens. The Imperial Government is a Centralized Collective Authority; it is a tyranny that is, in fact, becoming harder and more ruthless every day.

So what is an individual to do?

*  An individual must do whatever they can do. If you have children and you are busy running around from ballfields to ballet classes, you can at least invest the time to ensure that the progressive teachers, as acolytes of the evil Wisconsin idea* and their puppet mater union representatives, are teaching Natural Law in school. Almost no public school in this country teaches the most fundamental of truths. Support your local Tea Party events. As important and in some ways more important, vote in the primaries. That is where the candidates who run for higher office come from and don’t neglect local elections. A couple of trips to the voting booth a year is a cheap price to pay for freedom compared to civil war or insurrection. The local elections are your farm team. They are also of vital importance in that we need representatives with backbone in our states to stand up to the evil of the imperial government in Washington.

*  If you are so positioned in your self-actualization process to run for office, do so. We need your help. Study the candidates; support individuals financially. Do not trust the party system–they are corrupt and evil as well. In many ways they are worse then the government they administer.

*  If you are a union member, fight your bosses. All unions at their head are evil; they are collectives.

*  Never trust the main stream press, they are also acolytes of the Wisconsin idea*, they are internationalists.

*  If your local Tea Party supports a candidate and you state party supports another candidate, put more credence in the word of the Tea Party than the machine.

*  If your local Tea Parties are split over two candidates, and you have done your research and still are not sure which way to vote, pray and meditate. When an individual is centered and grounded they will instinctively know the truth.

*  Prayer and Meditation are tools that should be utilized every day; they help center an individual and that often makes it easier to see the truth.

*  Since our system of checks and balances is actually based on a spiritual centering, your personal centering alone will help the overall situation in exponential ways, akin to dropping a stone in a puddle and watching the waves ripple out from the center.

*  The one entity to trust the least–even less then the press and teachers–is the Imperial Government itself. Do not help it. Do not support it. Resist it. We must try to starve it down to size. It will not reform itself…it can’t.

*  Starve the beast whenever and wherever you can, including an uncooperative school district.

*  Never give up the fight! Spiritual battles like the one between heaven and hell never end and this is a spiritual battle.

These are only a few ways to help, there are many more. We have suffered more dangerous imbalances before and gotten through them. We shall do the same now. We shall be resolute and forthright and in the end, we shall prevail. After all, as Thomas Paine wrote,” heaven puts a heavy price on its goods” and Natural Law is the greatest gift that God has given us.

* If you are unfamiliar with the “Wisconsin idea,” read more about it at this link: WISCONSIN IDEA

C: is for Christian (we began as a Christian nation. John Jay, our first US Chief Justice said so in the 1700’s).
O: is for Obedient (we believe in honoring God and our parents, and following common sense rules)
N: is for Neighborly (we help our neighbors and are the most giving people on earth)
S: is for Service (no other country serves & rebuilds its enemies to the extent that we do)
E: is for Economical (too bad our fiscal efforts give the progressives moocho [spelling intentional] opportunity to steal)
R: is for Responsible (we work hard and believe in teaching our kids common sense, Christian values)
V: is for Vigilant (we have long been regarded as the watchdogs of the world)
A: is for Accepting (that’s why America became known as the melting pot)
T: is for Truthful (when we make a statement, we back it up with the facts)
I: is for Inventive (when the progressives in government don’t squash our efforts)
V: is for Valiant (American soldiers, firefighters, police, etc. prove themselves every day)
E: is for Educated (except to the point that the progressives have dumbed down American children under our noses for decades)

A quick perusal of the above tells it all: I’m proud to be conservative. And very concerned about our future…especially the future of our children and grandchildren. When I look at each descriptive word and message above, I realize that they represent the kind of person I want to be; the kind of person I respect. And after reading about George Washington (what he said, wrote and did) it’s clear that he was all of these things and more. It’s just as clear that today’s politicians (after listening to them and watching what they do) aren’t even close. Oh, sure, you could argue that Barack Obama is vigilant. (After all, he’s managed to keep his eye on every opportunity to grab more power and vacations for himself.) And he’s responsible too: responsible for showing us just how inefficient a progressive federal government can be when it comes to helping its citizens. And Nancy Pelosi? She’s very accepting! She’s accepted whatever she could grab from the pie that we (the little people) have created with our hard work, diligence, inventiveness, etc. And she’s clearly shown us that she is economical. (Oh, come on! She could have tried for a 25,000-dollar-a-month office complex!)

All kidding aside, the trouble with socialists is, they’re looking at life from limited, pessimistic lenses. They see capital and/or wealth as a limited supply of raw goods, so they want to redistribute the wealth. Capitalists, on the other hand, see human creativity as the main source of capital and/or wealth. And creativity is unlimited (check out the following website for more on this: http://www.thelibertyfoundation.us/). It’s all about production, NOT redistribution. Ergo, the agent for success is the entrepreneur, not the government. (This, by the way was proven by Calvin Coolidge, which you can see for yourself, if you google the facts.) Then again, another problem with the socialists is…they want to redistribute YOUR wealth because THEY BELIEVE THEY DESERVE TO KEEP AND MULTIPLY THEIR OWN WEALTH. And if you don’t agree, you are very, very greedy little children who need to be disciplined. Harshly.

The last word listed above, “educated”, is the main concern of this member of M.O.M. for America. Why? It’s because each generation learns less and less about our founding fathers and our Christian roots. Therefore, they feel less and less of a connection. It’s being hammered into their heads that capitalism is all about greed; therefore, it’s bad. Christians are portrayed as bigots. And, that, to me, is downright sad. Got a little one in school? Read to them from the sampling of books suggested by MOMforAmerica.com. Oh! And look for my table at the big event on August 28th! I just love Michelle M!

That’s all for now!
Ann Rich Duncan

You may purchase Ann Rich Duncan’s books at the following links, OR at the Michelle Malkin event on August 28th!
Johnny Vic’s Nautical Adventures

The Seed

The Adventures of Johnny Vic Through the Metals of Time

An Interview with Author Bill Miller
The Tea Party Papers: A Collection of Essays to the Tea Party Patriots

By Leigh-Ann Bellew

On the eve of Independence Day weekend, I had the pleasure of interviewing, Bill Miller, the author of The Tea Party Papers, A Collection of Essays to the Tea Party Patriots.  I’ve had the opportunity to meet Bill on several occasions, and hear him speak about the founding principles of Natural Law.  The book focuses heavily on the idea of Natural Law and Self-Actualization. 

“What are The Tea Party Papers?” I asked Bill.

“It is a play on words, a reference to the Federalist Papers and the Anti-Federalist Papers, which were written at the time of the ratification of our Constitution,” Bill answered.  “With the rebirth of interest in the Constitution and constitutional history, I thought it was important to review the basic ideas that brought about our Constitution.”

Then I asked Miller his reason for writing the book: “As a release,” he said.  “To release  my frustration with our current government; some hold up signs and march on Washington, some write and sing songs, I decided to write a book – a book to remind the people where we came from and what our founding fathers wanted for us.”

The Tea Party Papers take a look far back into the history of western civilization explaining how only in the American colonies could the ideas of liberty truly take root into practical application.  While the seeds were sown in England, the ideas could not grow under the shadow of a monarchy.  It was not until those earliest of English colonists, the Pilgrims, far removed from the reach of the British Monarch, experience the true definition of equality based on our relationship to the Creator, rather then the position of birth.  As Bill writes, “it was evolution by wooden boats”.  The Reformation and Enlightenment set the stage, but being far from Europe and the long honored class-system, allowed the tree of liberty to grow for generations.

“Everybody had multiple jobs and was, for the most part, equal to one another in the colonies, with no real class system.  Most colonists thought of themselves as good Englishmen, not unlike those in England, until they met British soldiers during the French and Indian War.” According to Miller, it was during this time that true resentment to the British system began to fester among some of the colonist.

“At that time the idea of Independence from Britain began growing until it reached one-third of the population when the Declaration of Independence was signed. Everyone thought America would be independent just that the timing may not yet be right,” explained Miller.

As the evening continued, I wanted to get a flavor of where Miller saw our Nation heading. “For decades every poll shows that Americans believe we are headed in the wrong direction.”  He continued, “And I believe it is because we have moved further and further from the Federalist system of government the Founders intended.  Our government has now become a centralized collective authority.”

On the Tea Party movement Miller stated, “It’s not about political parties but about the ideas of Natural Law and individual liberty.” He added, “Life, Liberty and Property is about being able to reach the fullest potential, your Creator intended, without the interference of government.  Before the movement I, like most Americans, was too busy in my own nonsense, if you will, to see what was happening to our country.  Yet, through mediation, prayer, and a discovery of my own spirituality, I came to a defining moment of clarity where Natural Law and American Exceptionalism came into focus.  I think that is happening through out our nation, and explains of the growth of the Tea Party movement.”

From my perspective, The Tea Party Papers is a rich, well-documented view of history that gives reason to the principles from which our Nation was founded.  It is a journey of intellectual and philosophical discovery, which is essential to anyone who desires an in-depth understanding of where the idea of America started, and why that idea changed the course of world history forever.  If we, as Americans, don’t know our past and why that past is exceptional, we will not understand the change of course necessary to institute a sincere revival of the American Experiment that made us a Shining City on a Hill.

About the Author:
Bill Miller was born in Somerville, New Jersey in September 1961.  After some rough and costly scrapes during his youth, he decided to find a more balanced life.  Always interested in politics, science and history, he attempted to bring these interests together with his newest interest, the Tea Party movement.  Purchase your copy of The Tea Party Papers: A Collection of Essays to the Tea Party Patriots today! 

All my best,

Leigh-Ann Bellew, Vice President – M.O.M. for America, Inc. 
Campaign Manager – Anna Little for Congress
Little Government is Good Government!

Happy Fourth of July! Yay for Independence Day–it’s America’s celebration of freedom!

Freedom. It’s a word, a concept, a vision that, unfortunately, has been distorted in recent years. True to my journalistic/writerly background, I looked it up. I noticed that The American College Dictionary, copyright 1963, still listed its first definition of freedom as:  “Civil liberty, as opposed to subjection to an arbitrary or despotic government.” Then I looked up a more current definition of freedom on the internet…one that popped up quickly. It’s first definition of freedom was: “The state of being free or at liberty rather than in confinement or under physical restraint.” Hmmmm, that second one did not mention a despotic government. A subtle difference, but an important one!

The American College Dictionary’s definition bespeaks of the vision of freedom held by our founding fathers. It whispers to me of the need for integrity and personal responsibility. And the current internet definition? It’s a synonym for selfish! It’s all about the self-centered, distorted versions of freedoms that our current leaders are fighting for. Leaders like Nancy Pelosi, who, according to what I’ve recently heard, is busily exercising her freedom to rent an $18,000/month office (along with other accoutrements of her political power). What? Isn’t this at OUR expense during this “economic crisis?” Well, I guess she needs lots of space as she struggles to legislate OUR freedoms AWAY from us. This Speaker of the House certainly DOES speak–FOR HERSELF. But I digress.

In the middle of thoughts of freedom today, I fell to my knees. You see, it’s the tenth day of a thirty-day vigil of prayer at the House of Angels, the beautiful outdoor sanctuary for prayer and healing that my husband created in an act of obedience after he was freed by Jesus from the ravages of cancer. As I plopped down, I noticed an ant laboriously dragging a dead insect, twice its size, across mountainous piles of twigs and leaves. I watched as it struggled with its single-minded mission of serving its Queen. (Queens? Kings?) Suddenly, I find myself thinking about Ms. Pelosi again–and of the current administration and all the politicians who have been intent upon redefining freedom in their effort to take God and our founding fathers out of our schools, out of our government and, therefore, out of our lives. They want freedom FROM religion. Freedom FROM personal responsibility! Freedom FROM the Constitution!  They’ve distorted the Divine definition of freedom and are leading us on a path of destruction–turning our children, ever so slowly, into mindless, Queen-serving ants–instead of taking the path that leads to the greatest amount of fulfillment and joy for the greatest number of people!

Ants. Did you know that they are just one of many hymenopterous insects? (That means they–when winged–have four membranous wings, like flies and wasps.) But to me, it simply means they’re greatly annoying, like certain politicians who use their (our) very expensive wings to fly hither and yon.  However, getting back to the point, a number of these creepy little critters scurried by, reminding me of soldiers in North Korea or other Communist countries, who, like ants, are forced to march by the hundreds in precise unity. Forced to serve and protect their despotic governments…certainly not their citizens who live in fear, without joy, without fulfillment, without… freedom. But, hey, they ARE free to wait for handouts from the home of the brave and the land of the…well, what we were created to be.

America celebrates the Fourth of July because our founding fathers listened to the righteous voice of freedom. The Divine voice, if you will. The voice that led them smack in the middle of the path leading toward, “Life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.” But, how long will we remain free? Heck, there’s a town in Rhode Island that prohibited members of a float from distributing copies of the Constitution as they marched in the Fourth of July parade last year! And, how many youngsters have been sent home from school because they dared to read from the Bible? And other students? They’ve been punished for wearing the American flag because it “might incite violence,” while others are left free to wear images of murderous dictators.

Celebrate Independence Day, folks! Celebrate your unalienable right to freedom. Celebrate this “nation under God” long and hard. After all, according to Noah Webster, “All the miseries and evils which men suffer from vice, crime, ambition, injustice, oppression, slavery, and war, proceed from their despising or neglecting the precepts contained in the Bible.” We must hold fast. Hold fast to today’s memories and all of our memories of Fourth of July’s past. Hold them in our hearts and minds so we can carry OUR unalienable freedoms straight to the polls…while we still can. And, please, please, please, support MOMforAmerica!

God bless you on this Holiday of Freedom!

Ann Rich Duncan

BOOKS BY ANN RICH DUNCAN:
Johnny Vic’s Nautical Adventures
The Adventures of Johnny Vic Through the Metals of Time

ANN RICH DUNCAN ALSO SELLS HER BEAUTIFUL ANGEL ARTWORK! CONTACT HER AT annrichduncan@yahoo.com AND MENTION YOU READ ABOUT IT ON MOM FOR AMERICA’S SITE!

In my day, my parents let us loose to wander the neighborhood and “explore.” While the freedom and trust put in us not to do anything “bad” is in my memory as some of my best days on this earth, I do sometimes wonder whether they should have been a little more vigilant? I grew up on a lake where we took out our boats–pontoon, canoes, speed boats–at various appropriate ages. We spent summers swimming to the raft in deep water and playing “King on the Hill” pushing off all those we wished to challenge. We could all swim…except for my friend from 8th grade who came to spend the night with me on that lake, Cindy. Cindy grew up in our local town. I didn’t know she couldn’t swim. So on that summer day, we took a canoe out to the raft to lay in the sun and splash around…and on the way to that raft, I did what I did quite often–I tipped the canoe over. As I surfaced laughing, I looked around for Cindy. In horror, I realized she hadn’t come up and I swam down to the bottom (the lake was clean enough in those days to open your eyes underwater) and found she had sank like a stone! I brought her to the surface, sputtering and gasping for air. Honestly, I had never met anyone who couldn’t swim! She was quite upset, and my mom drove her home upon arrival back at our house. It was the last time Cindy was allowed to play with me. And now, as an adult, I wonder often how many tragedies could have occurred due to absentee parenting. We had BB guns back then…there were barbed-wire fences EVERYWHERE in our neighborhood, and many of us were victims of their rusty barbs…even today I bear a scar up the side of my right leg from ankle to knee! We played baseball and once I knocked out a neighbor girl when she stood too close to my swinging bat and I hit her in the head. This same neighbor girl was on the back of my bike when I hit a tree one day–I jumped off at the last second, and she went into the tree. I also recall the curiosity and “playing doctor” that occurred in outdoor tents, and the time I helped my 15-year-old friend avoid a bad experience when some older boys pinned her down to the ground. So how much parenting is too much? Where is the balance?

Fast forward…

As a new parent in 1973, I wondered how much freedom I would give my own daughter when she was a teenager. The answer came 14 years later in 1987 when I decided that the world wasn’t very innocent, and children DO need parenting. Not a leash to my hip…but definitely oversight. The problem is: Most mothers I knew thought my oversight was an “intrusion” on her privacy. You see…I read all her notes to and from firends that she left laying around. I searched through her things…her dresser drawers, between the mattresses, the diary (yes, the diary). As she got older, I realized the day would come when I’d have to tell her about my “spying” due to things teenagers are wont to do–smoke, sex, drugs and other dangerous behavior. So when she was 16 and I found the birth control pills, I said nothing. While I had preached as much as I possibly could about premarital sex (and drugs, etc.), I was just a tiny bit proud that she had taken the steps on her own to get “protection” vs. becoming a pregnant teenager like I was. Still, it bothered me. So one night I brought up the subject again (she hated these talks, of course), and asked her to ensure that anyone she “gave” herself to truly deserved her. She looked me dead in the eye and said, “I haven’t had sex, but when I do I will make sure I have protection.” And I couldn’t call her a liar…because the presence of those pills didn’t mean she was having sex. There were none missing. And there were none missing a month later.

The day did come that I had to let her know that her privacy had been invaded. I found a letter to a friend telling them that she had been in a car with a boy who was 19, and he drove over 90 m.p.h. The sentence that affected me the most was this: “If my Mom knew, she would s**t.” This wasn’t the first time I heard (or in this case, read) an expletive from my daughter. But it discouraged me that she was allowing this 19-year-old (way too old for her) to engage her in such dangerous behavior and her only worry was that I would get upset! So I told her. I told her about all the years I spent reading her diary and finding her pills, and reading her notes, and sharing in her anxiety when a certain girlfriend turned on her. And, of course, she felt totally betrayed by me, especially after she was no longer allowed to associate with this boy.

Which brings me to the point of this blog. I’m glad I did it. I’m HAPPY that I invaded her “privacy” and would today posit that privacy is for our adult children in their own home when they have their own jobs and lives. In my home, privacy was not a right. Today, my daughter is a moral, Christian mother of my three beautiful and respectful grandchildren. And she even admits that she will most likely “spy” on her kids like I did…because there are too many things that can lead them on a path that will ruin their futures.

That said, I’ve always been a little “tough” according to my friends who are also mothers. My own mother was appalled when, at the age of 7, I required my daughter to learn how to make her own bed. By the age of 10, she was able to do her own laundry (I was a single parent working many hours to support us). By the age of 13 she was very responsible and babysitting for neighbors. By 16 she had a job. During her entire life, I attended night school. We graduated (her from high school/me from college) in the same year. It was HARD. But here is what I planted in my daughter’s brain as soon as she was able to understand it:

“When you are 18 you will go to college. You will live there. You will get excellent grades, graduate, and come back home to live for 6 months whereupon I expect you to have found a job, saved your money in order that you can get your own apartment and live freely. However, if there is an emergency, you are always welcome to move back in with me for a short period of time until you get on your feet again. I am the soft place to land.”

We had a discussion about this recently on Facebook. Some of my Friends on there were saying how hard it is today with the job situation, to NOT support your children. I disagree. We all want to give our children that “soft place,” but there comes a time to handle this BEFORE they are bringing home babies out of wedlock, refusing to even look for a job, etc. The expectation must be set and the knowledge that the apron strings have to be cut must be realized by them before it happens. We have to show them what it’s like to fail or fall once in a while. On this topic, I loved the analogy from James Simmons–one of my Facebook Friends. Here it is:

“Just look at mother nature, she makes the mighty oaks and the soft willow. Most people will say, ‘But the oaks will snap off in heavy winds and willows can bend in the same wind.’ Oh yeah? Plant a freakin’ willow in your yard and see what happens. It will seek out the water source to your home, wrapping its roots around the water pipes strangling the very source that leads to the sprinkler system. Willows are mother nature’s welfare trees seeking more than they are entitled to. If you just keep watering a child or leave a source of water on-tap for them, they will never leave. They will wrap their little roots around you and strangle you to death. Even the little mother sparrow knows the fall won’t kill her younguns, but if they stay in the nest they will starve. At some point you have to learn to fly and it will probably start with your arse hitting the ground.”

You might disagree! That’s what the comments section is for–let us hear your opinion and stories!

God bless,

Claudia M. Nelson, President

M.O.M. for America, Inc.

They are really taking us way back -

Liberals want us to be a progressive people. But they are actually taking us way back to a time in history that we had “progressed” out of.

We once again became an uncivilized people when we began killing our babies. We became a people that serves false gods when we stopped fearing the living one. We became an animalistic people when we accepted perversion and allowed it to be out loud and proud in the streets and the schools and in our homes, via televisions and computers. We became a people in bondage when we adopted entitlement programs to spread the wealth. We became a savage people, when we began picketing in the streets for that which we did not earn. We became an uneducated people when we put wealth before the raising of our children and allowed evolution, among other idiotic things to be indoctrinated into their young minds. We stopped being a truthful people when lies became more convenient.

The progress of today is a trip back to before we were a civilized people. True progress happened in 1776.

Debra J.M. Smith
www.InformingChristians.com

To read more about the Liberal Progressive Agenda, we recommend the following books:
Liberal Fascism: The Secret History of the American Left, From Mussolini to the Politics of Meaning
Threshold: The Progressive Plan to Pull America Back from the Brink
(this book is being released June 29, 2010)

I recently met a turtle. A painted turtle. I’ve named her Lola.

Since meeting Lola, I’ve learned that the painted turtle (Latin name: Chrysemys picta) is the only species in the genus Chrysemys; it is the official reptile of Colorado and Michigan, and the incubation period of its eggs is approximately 72 days.

Now . . . Lola has decided to lay her eggs on our property and my reaction is, “How appropriate! What a wonderful place for the beginning of new life!” You see, we own almost 15 acres on the western border of Vermont, where my husband has created an outdoor sanctuary for prayer and healing called “The House of Angels.” It’s a beautiful one-acre clearing where anyone can come to enjoy nature, pray for healing, and basically contemplate the existence and the amazingness of God, our Creator. A place where anyone can come to worship Him freely. An unalienable right, actually.

Unalienable rights. Sound familiar? Comes from the second paragraph of our Declaration of Independence, where our amazing founding fathers wrote: “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.”

Such compelling words. Set forth by the Second Continental Congress on July 4, 1776. Such a wonderful philosophy for a fledgling government . . . a fledgling government that has created the most powerful country in the world. A country where one is free to pursue Life. Liberty. And the Pursuit of Happiness. A country where we are free to worship as set forth in the very first Amendment to the Constitution. An amendment, I must say, that is written very succinctly and cannot be misunderstood by anyone with an honest understanding of the English language. (Which begs the question: “Where the ‘h’ do judges come from?” But I digress.

Lola reminds me of our founding fathers. She struggled hard to get up on top of the cliff that holds our twenty-foot wooden cross. They struggled hard. Our founding fathers, I mean. They risked their lives. Their liberty. Their pursuit of happiness so that we could pursue our own. And, Lola’s eggs? They represent (to me) the birth of our rights, our freedoms, our fortunes, our opportunities as provided by the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence.

We are very fortunate to live in this country. Lola’s struggle to find a safe place to lay her eggs reminded me of that. It reminded me of the picture that evangelist James Robison sent to us showing third world babies wading thru filthy water. And I’m feeling blessed to have running water. Clean running water. And, I’m also reminded of the distended stomachs of those babies, who are being guided by their sad, sad mothers who cannot find nourishing food for them, either. And so, I’m grateful, also, to have a pantry full of food.

Life. Liberty. The pursuit of Happiness. Respect for the ultimate Creator. What better way to live? I’m convinced we have so much (here in the U.S.) because of the wisdom of our founding fathers. The belief in those unalienable rights. Our Judeo/Christian principles, actually.

I’m grateful that Lola reminded me of these important musings. Grateful that I live in the land of the free, where I can meet a turtle on a beautiful, peaceful spring day in a country where I have food and water and don’t have to worry about crazed suicide bombers. And so, I’m free to count the days to the “blessed event.” And when we get close to the 72nd day, I’ll be watching for the new life that springs from those eggs. Come to think of it, I might just invite people over. We’ll call it the Blessed Event at the House of Angels. A very special turtle watch that celebrates Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness. And Lola? What Lola wants, Lola gets. After exercising her unalienable right to lay her eggs in the perfect spot, she’s long gone. (Pursuing, I would guess.) I think I’ll put Lola in one of my next Johnny Vic stories. Check ‘em out here:

Happy reading!

Ann Rich Duncan

The 4th of July is almost upon us, and it’s time once again to celebrate our rich heritage and give thanks to God for our freedom, our country, our brave men and women in uniform and, of course, the symbol of our Nation–Our Flag.

Too many flag-drapped coffins have crossed the oceans to come back to our shores. During military funerals, we watch as honor guards carefully fold the flags and hand them to grieving familes. But did you know that the reason for the careful folding is because every single fold has a reason attached to it?

Here’s the story behind those 12 symbolic folds, courtesy of The American Legion:

The traditional method of folding the flag is as follows: 

(A) Straighten out the flag to full length and fold lengthwise once.

The first fold of our flag is a symbol of life.

(B) Fold it lengthwise a second time to meet the open edge, making sure that the union of stars on the blue field remains outward in full view. (A large flag may have to be folded lengthwise a third time.)     

The second fold is a symbol of our belief in eternal life.                        

(C) A triangular fold is then started by bringing the striped corner of the folded edge to the open edge.

The third fold is made in honor and remembrance of the veteran departing our ranks, and who gave a portion of his or her life for the defense of our country to attain peace throughout the world.

(D) The outer point is then turned inward, parallel with the open edge, to form a second triangle.

The fourth fold represents our weaker nature; as American citizens trusting in God, it is to Him we turn in times of peace, as well as in times of war, for His divine guidance.

(E) The diagonal or triangular folding is continued toward the blue union until the end is reached, with only the blue showing and the form being that of a cocked (three-corner) hat.

The fifth fold is a tribute to our country, for in the words of Stephen Decatur, “Our country, in dealing with other countries, may she always be right, but it is still our country, right or wrong.”

The sixth fold is for where our hearts lie. It is with our heart that we pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America, and to the republic for which it stands, one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.

The seventh fold is a tribute to our armed forces, for it is through the armed forces that we protect our country and our flag against all enemies, whether they be found within or without the boundaries of our republic.

The eighth fold is a tribute to the one who entered into the valley of the shadow of death, that we might see the light of day, and to honor our mother, for whom it flies on Mother’s Day.

The ninth fold is a tribute to womanhood, for it has been through their faith, love, loyalty and devotion that the character of the men and women who have made this country great have been molded.

The 10th fold is a tribute to father, for he, too, has given his sons and daughters for the defense of our country since he or she was first born.

The 11th fold, in the eyes of Hebrew citizens, represents the lower portion of the seal of King David and King Solomon and glorifies, in their eyes, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.

The 12th fold, in the eyes of a Christian citizen, represents an emblem of eternity and glorifies, in their eyes, God the Father, the Son and Holy Ghost.

Meaning of Flag-Folding Program

The flag-folding ceremony represents the same religious principles on which our great country was originally founded.

The portion of the flag denoting honor is the canton of blue containing the stars representing states our veterans served in uniform. The canton field of blue dresses from left to right and is inverted only when draped as a pall on the casket of a veteran who has served our country honorably in uniform.

In the U.S. Armed Forces, at the ceremony of retreat, the flag is lowered, folded in a triangle fold and kept under watch throughout the night as a tribute to our nation’s honored dead. The next morning it is brought out and, at the ceremony of reveille, run aloft as a symbol of our belief in the resurrection of the body.

When the flag is completely folded, the stars are uppermost, reminding us of our national motto, “In God We Trust.”

After the flag is completely folded and tucked in, it has the appearance of a cocked hat, ever reminding us of the soldiers who served under Gen. George Washington and the sailors and Marines who served under Capt. John Paul Jones and were followed by their comrades and shipmates in the U.S. Armed Forces, preserving for us the rights, privileges and freedoms we enjoy today.

If you need to replace or purchase a flag for our most celebrated and joyous U.S. holiday–the 4th of July–consider the items below. God bless, and Happy 4th!

Recently, you may have heard the story where the Pledge of Allegiance was being recited in Spanish at a school in Wrightstown, Wisconsin. An angry parent wrote to the school: ““Not only does reciting this in Spanish insult our family as American citizens, it is disrespectful to the veterans who have defended our country,” she wrote. “English is the primary language in this country. The Pledge of Allegiance was written in English and should be recited in English. No similar accommodations were made for other immigrant patterns in history nor should they be as long as the American flag is flying.” The principal of the school defended the Spanish recitation explaining that he wants Spanish-speaking students to understand the importance of the pledge.

Pardon me?

Are we to be led to believe that the principal and/or teachers took the time to actually explain the importance of the pledge to these Spanish-speaking students a la Red Skelton’s explanation?

I doubt it. I doubt it very much…and if they claim they did, I want one of those Spanish-speaking children to now explain to me what their understanding is. Only they can’t because it never happened.

This is just another “nudge” by the liberals in our schools and in our lives! We have been “nudged” for decades now…nudged to acknowledge that some people are homosexuals…then nudged to agree that they shouldn’t have to hide who they are…thereby being nudged more and more to begin accepting their “coming out”…subsequently being nudged to accept that homosexuality may exist in our children–only they might not know it! Finally, we are now being nudged to believe that being gay is not only “normal,” but perhaps a preferred state of being…and nudged to agree to teaching tolerance for gays in our elementary schools…leading to more nudging to agree that our children in elementary school can and should learn about gay sex practices…

WAIT!

Where was the spot during all this “nudging” that we should we have screamed, “WE HAVE BEEN NUDGED TOO FAR!” Was it when we were told that womens’ bodies were their own to either kill babies or choose not to? Or that victims of rape had a right to abortion? Or that abortion is okay as long as the person doesn’t actually want the child? When were some Americans ”nudged” into believing that a fetus is not a person; that because we cannot hear its screams, it’s not really life?

In fact…Cass Sunstein, President Obama’s “Regulatory Czar,” wrote a book about how to “Nudge!” (Nudge Improving Decisions About Health Wealth and Happiness). Yes–it’s being done on purpose!

It’s continuing through our schools. We are now being nudged into believing that it’s okay for our Pledge of Allegiance to be recited in Spanish, so that Spanish-speaking students don’t have to bother learning English (while at the same time their parents and other family members burn our flag, remove the flag to fly their own, and spit on our laws). The federal government ignored our border laws already in place, thereby nudging us to accept their inaction…and now it is nudging us to believe that keeping out illegals is somehow “Unconstitutional.” WRONG! I will NOT be “nudged” to believe that allowing anyone to infiltrate our country illegallyis okay and not a complete and total breach of our country’s sovereignty and security!

As Americans—and more importantly, as parents—we need to stop allowing ourselves to be “nudged.” Inch by inch, our way of life is being absorbed into the crazy-quilt logic of the far left and the radicals of this great Nation! We have realized–almost too late–that one “innocent nudge” leads to more and more “nudges” with bitter consequences.

No—there is nothing wrong with teaching Spanish-speaking children what our Pledge means. But let’s first ensure they understand that being an American is a privilege, and let’s teach them English so they may recite it in both languages—the language it was written in, and Spanish which we will then accept, as we will accept them with open arms when they come to our country legally. Because, frankly, I am tired of being “nudged.” It’s no longer nudging…it’s an OUTRIGHT ONGOING PUSH toward a lifestyle I do not want nor accept for my family! No more!

We need to STOP and think. STOP allowing ourselves to be “nudged!” Because—as we’ve now seen—one nudge leads to larger and larger value-destroying results!

God bless,

Claudia Nelson, President

M.O.M. for America, Inc.

If you’re interested in this topic, you may want to read more about Liberal Manipulation, Cass Sunstein also wrote a book called Going to Extremes: How Like Minds Unite and Divide. I don’t like giving my hard-earned money to the “enemy” either, but it is vital to know how and what they are thinking to combat them.