I Am the Flag of the
Of America
I am the flag of the United
States of America.
My name is Old Glory.
I fly atop the world's tallest
buildings.
I stand watch in America's
halls of justice.
I fly majestically over institutions
of learning.
I stand guard with power
in the world.
Look up and see me.
I stand for peace, honor, truth
and justice.
I stand for freedom.
I am confident.
I am arrogant.
I am proud.
When I am flown with my fellow
banners,
My head is a little higher,
My colors a little truer.
I bow to no one!
I am recognized all over
the world.
I am worshipped - I am saluted.
I am loved - I am revered.
I am respected - and I am feared.
I have fought in every battle
of every war
for more then 200 years.
I was flown at Valley Forge,
Gettysburg, Shiloh and Appamatox.
I was there at San Juan Hill,
the trenches of France,
in the Argonne Forest,
Anzio, Rome and the beaches of
Normandy.
Guam, Okinawa, Korea and
KheSan, Saigon, Vietnam know me.
I was there.
I led my troops, I was dirty, battleworn
and tired,
But my soldiers cheered me
and I was proud.
I have been burned, torn and trampled
on the
streets of countries I have helped
set free.
It does not hurt for I am invincible.
I have been soiled upon, burned,
torn and
trampled in the streets of my country.
And when it's done by those
Whom I've served in battle - it
hurts.
But I shall overcome - for I am
strong.
I have slipped the bonds
of Earth
and stood watch over the uncharted
frontiers of space from my vantage
point on the moon.
I have borne silent witness to
all of America's finest hours.
But my finest hours are yet to
come.
When I am torn into strips
and used as bandages
for my wounded comrades on the
battlefield,
When I am flown at half-mast to
honor my soldier,
Or when I lie in the trembling
arms of a grieving parent
at the grave of their fallen son
or daughter,
I am proud.
Please forward this message to
all who still love
and respect me that I may fly proudly
for another two hundred years.
MadebyVinda
Artist Unknown
It's Time To Take A Stand!
Broken Arrow, Oklahoma School officials remove
"God Bless America" signs from schools in
fear
that someone might be offended.
Ice Sculpture
Channel 12 News in Long Island, New York,
orders flags removed from the newsroom and red, white, and blue ribbons
removed from the lapels of reporters. Why? Management did not want to appear biased and felt that our nations flag
might give the appearance that "they lean
one way or another".
Berkeley, California bans U.S. Flags from
being displayed on city fire trucks because they didn't want to offend
anyone in the community.
In an "act of tolerance" the head of the public
library at Florida Gulf Coast University ordered all "Proud to be an
American" signs removed so as to not offend international students.
I, for one, am quite disturbed by these actions
of so-called American citizens; and I am tired of this nation worrying
about whether or not we are offending some individual or their culture. Since the terrorist attacks on September 11, we have experienced a surge in patriotism by the majority of Americans. However, the dust from the attacks had barely settled in New York and Washington D.C. when the "politically correct"
crowd began complaining about the possibility that our patriotism was
offending others.
I am not against immigration, nor do I hold
a grudge against anyone who is seeking a better life by coming to America.
In fact, our country's population is almost entirely comprised of descendants of immigrants; however, there are a few things
that those who have recently come to our country,
and apparently some native Americans, need to understand.
First of all, it is not our responsibility
to continually try not to offend you in any way. This idea ofAmerica
being a multi-cultural community has served only to dilute our sovereignty and our national identity. As Americans, we have
our own culture, our own society, our own
language, and our own lifestyle. This culture, called the "American
Way" has been developed over centuries of struggles, trials, and victories
by millions of men and women who have sought freedom. Our forefathers fought, bled, and died at places such as Bunker Hill, Antietam, San Juan, Iwo Jima, Normandy, Korea, Vietnam,
We speak English, not Spanish, Arabic, Chinese,
Japanese, Russian, or any other language. Therefore, if you wish to
become part of our society - learn our language!
"In God We Trust" is our national motto. This
is not some off-the-wall, Christian, Right Wing, political slogan -
it is our national motto. It is engraved in stone in the House of Representatives in our Capitol and it is printed on our currency. We adopted this motto because Christian men and women, on Christian principles, founded this nation; and
this is clearly documented throughout our
history. If it is appropriate for our motto to be inscribed in the
halls of our highest level of Government, then it is certainly appropriate
to display it on the walls of our schools.
God is in our pledge, our National Anthem,
nearly every patriotic song, and in our founding documents. We honor
His birth, death, and resurrection as holidays, and we turn to Him in prayer in times of crisis. If God offends you, then I suggest you consider another part of the world as your new
home, because God is part of our culture and
we are proud to have Him.
We are proud of our heritage and those who
have so honorably defended our freedoms.
We celebrate Independence Day,
Memorial Day, Veterans Day, and Flag Day.
We have parades, picnics, and barbecues where we proudly wave our flag. As an American, I have the right to wave my flag, sing my national anthem, quote my national motto, and cite my pledge whenever and
wherever I choose. If the Stars and Stripes offend you, or you don't
like Uncle Sam, then you should seriously consider
a move to another part of this planet.
The American culture is our way of life, our
heritage, and we are proud of it. We are happy with our culture and
have no desire to change, and we really don't care how you did things
where you came from. We are Americans, like it or not, this
is our country, our land, and our lifestyle.
Our First Amendment gives every citizen the
right to express his opinion about our government, culture, or society,
and we will allow you every opportunity to do so. But once you are
done complaining, whining, and griping about
our flag, our pledge, our national motto, or our way of life, I highly
encourage you take advantage of one other great American freedom, the right to leave.
If you agree, pass this on to other Americans!!
Subject: "Be not afraid "
Some of you may receive this from several
sources. Hope you do..... And pass it on !! If they know of him at all, many folks think Ben Stein is just a quirky actor/comedian who talks in a monotone.
He's also a very intelligent attorney who
knows how to put ideas and words together
in such a way as to sway juries and make people think clearly.
The following was written by Ben Stein and
recited by him on CBS Sunday Morning Commentary, Sunday, 12/18/05. Herewith at this happy time of year, a few confessions from my beating heart: I have no freaking clue
who Nick and Jessica are.
I see them on the cover of People and Us
constantly when I am buying my dog biscuits and kitty litter. I
often ask the checkers at the grocery stores.
They never know who Nick and Jessica are
either. Who are they? Will it change my life if I know who they are
and why they have broken up? Why are they
so important? I don't know who Lindsay Lohan is either, and I
do not care at all about Tom Cruise's wife.
Am I going to be called before a Senate
committee and asked if I am a subversive? Maybe, but I just
have no clue who Nick and Jessica are.
If this is what it means to be no longer
young, it's not so bad.
Next confession:
I am a Jew, and every single one of my ancestors
was Jewish.
And it does not bother me even a little bit
when people call those beautiful lit up, bejeweled trees Christmas trees. I don't feel threatened. I don't feel discriminated against. That's what they are: Christmas trees.
New Immigrants
From: "David LaBonte"
My wife, Rosemary, wrote a wonderful letter to
the editor of the Orange County Register which, of course, was not printed.
So, I Decided to "print" it myself by sending it out on the Internet. Pass It along if you feel so inclined.
Dave LaBonte (signed)
Written in response to a series of letters to the
editor in the Orange County Register :
Dear Editor:
So many letter writers have based their arguments
on how this Land is made up of immigrants. Ernie Lujan for one, suggests
we should tear down the Statute of Liberty because the people now in question aren't being treated the same as those who passed
through Ellis Island and other ports of entry.
Maybe we should turn to our history books and point
out to people like Mr. Lujan why today's American is not willing to accept this new kind of immigrant any longer.
Back in 1900 when there was a rush from all areas
of Europe to come to the United States , people had to get off a ship and stand in a long line in New York and be documented.
Some would even get down on their hands and knees and kiss the ground. They made a pledge to uphold the laws and support
their new country in good and bad times. They made learning English a primary rule in their new American households and some
even changed their names to blend in with their New home. They had waved
good bye to their birth place to give their children a new life and did everything in their power to help their children assimilate
into one culture. Nothing was handed to them. No free lunches, no welfare, no labor laws to protect them. All they had
were the skills and craftsmanship they had brought with them to trade for a future of prosperity.
Most of their children came of age when World War
II broke out. My father fought along side men whose parents had come straight over from Germany , Italy , France and Japan
. None of these 1st generation Americans ever gave any thought about what country their parents had come from.They were Americans fighting Hitler, Mussolini and the Emperor of Japan. They were defending
the United States of America as one people. When We liberated France , no one in those villages were looking for the French-American
or the German-American or the Irish-American. The people of France saw only Americans.And we carried one flag that represented one country. Not one of those immigrant sons would have thought about picking
up another country's flag and waving it to represent who they were. It would have been a disgrace to their parents who had
sacrificed so much to be here. These immigrants truly knew what it meant to be an American. They stirred the melting pot into
one red, white and blue bowl.
And here we are in 2006 with a new kind of immigrant
who wants the same rights and privileges. Only they want to achieve it by playing with a different set of rules, one that
includes the entitlement card and a guarantee of being faithful to their mother country. I'm sorry, that's not what being
an American is all about.
I believe that the immigrants who landed on Ellis
Island in the early 1900's deserve better than that for all the toil, hard work and sacrifice in raising future enerations
to create a land that has become a beacon for those legally searching for a better life. I think they would be appalled
that they are being used as an example by those waving foreign country flags. And for that suggestion about taking down
the Statute of Liberty, it happens to mean a lot to the citizens who are voting on the immigration bill. I wouldn't start
talking about dismantling the United States just yet.
(signed)
Rosemary LaBonte
P. S. Pass this on to everyone you know!!! KEEP
THIS
LETTER MOVING!!
I hope this letter gets read by millions of people
all across the nation.
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