One by one, 56 men walked to the table and each one deliberately affixed his signature. Each man considered the consequences of his action. The best any of them could hope for was a bloody war; the worst – a hanging tree.
Nevertheless, these courageous souls decided that war, even death, was better than living under the oppression of an uncontrollable government. Since that fateful day in 1776, Americans have had to make the same decision, over and over again. Neither the certainty of war, nor the threat of death, has prevented brave Americans from rising to meet every challenge to our freedom.
Threats to our freedom never end, they just change form.
Our freedom, as individuals, and as a nation, is now facing threats from within – and from outside – our country. Whether or not freedom continues to prevail is not a question of the bravery of our citizens. The question is whether or not freedom is worth the price.
The men who signed the Declaration of Independence were prepared to give up their fortunes, their property and even their lives. Indeed, all of them paid a heavy price for the freedom we enjoy.
Whether or not our children and grandchildren enjoy these freedoms will be determined by the price we are willing to pay today.
Are we willing to give up the time required to learn why and how “Smart Growth” and “Sustainable Development” erode our individual freedom? Are we willing to give up the time required to get acquainted with the elected officials who can reverse these policies?
Thomas Nelson Jr. saw his home taken by the British for its military headquarters. He told Gen. Washington to attack, and saw his home destroyed. He died in poverty.
Are we willing to give up $50, or $100 to support the organizations who daily fight for our freedom?
Are we willing to expend the effort required to unravel the complex issues surrounding the conflict between national sovereignty and global governance? Or will we be content to make our judgments based on the sound bites and editorials from our favorite news sources.
Should the United States rejoin UNESCO? Why? What are the consequences of rejoining, and not rejoining?
The price of freedom begins with the time required to gain an understanding of the threats that confront us. The price increases with actions necessary to quash the threat. None of us is likely to see our home confiscated by an invading force. But daily, people are seeing their property confiscated by the federal government to protect a bug, or a swamp, or a scenic “viewshed.”
Very few people have yet discovered that the philosophy and the policies that cause this new form of confiscation – this threat to freedom – arise from the United Nations. Far too few people have paid the price in time to learn the source of the threats, and have not even begun to pay the price of countering the threats. Rather than pay the price by investing the time to examine the evidence, far too many people are willing to simply rely on the word of a politician or a newscaster who dismisses the charge as “black helicopter” rhetoric.
Sadly, far too many people have been convinced that protecting a bug, or a swamp, or a scenic “viewshed” is more important than individual freedom. This is the first step toward believing that global governance is more important that national sovereignty. Global governance is a system in which there can be no national sovereignty, nor can there be individual freedom.
Those original signers of the Declaration of Independence did their part. Those who fought in every war since, did their part. The challenge of defending and preserving our freedom now falls upon our shoulders. The threat no longer comes from other nations with imperial ambitions. Our freedom is threatened by terrorists, obviously, which the government is fighting with bombs and bullets.
The more sinister – and perhaps more serious – threat comes from those who advance a collectivist philosophy that slowly, incrementally erodes our freedom and wraps the tentacles of an uncontrollable government around us. This threat to our freedom is as real, if not as visible, as was the threat posed to those original signers by the British. It is now our turn to stand, and pay the price of freedom – for ourselves, and for our posterity.
