Happy Independance Day

Yeah. I tried that.  Still got a scar on the back of one calf where one sucker got me.

we always celebrate my birthday along with the 4th celebrations. I always get cheated out of having a day just for me. 

• Have you ever wondered what happened to the 56 men who signed the Declaration of Independence?
• Five signers were captured by the British as traitors, and tortured before they died.
• Twelve had their homes ransacked and burned.
• Two lost their sons serving in the Revolutionary Army; another had two sons captured.
• Nine of the 56 fought and died from wounds or hardships of the Revolutionary War.
• They signed and they pledged their lives, their fortunes, and their sacred honor.
• What kind of men were they?  Twenty-four were lawyers and jurists.
• Eleven were merchants, nine were farmers and large plantation owners; men of means, well educated, but they signed the Declaration of Independence knowing full well that the penalty would be death if they were captured.
• Carter Braxton of Virginia, a wealthy planter and trader, saw his ships swept from the seas by the British Navy. He sold his home and properties to pay his debts, and died in rags. 
• Thomas McKeam was so hounded by the British that he was forced to move his family almost constantly.
• He served in the Congress without pay, and his family was kept in hiding. His possessions were taken from him, and poverty was his reward.
• Vandals or soldiers looted the properties of Dillery, Hall, Clymer, Walton, Gwinnett, Heyward, Ruttledge, and Middleton. 
• At the battle of Yorktown, Thomas Nelson, Jr., noted that the British General Cornwallis had taken over the Nelson home for his headquarters. He quietly urged General George Washington to open fire. The home was destroyed, and Nelson died bankrupt. 
• Francis Lewis had his home and properties destroyed.  The enemy jailed his wife, and she died within a few months. 
• John Hart was driven from his wife's bedside as she was dying.  Their 13 children fled for their lives. His fields and his gristmill were laid to waste. For more than a year he lived in forests and caves, returning home to find his wife dead and his children vanished.

So, take a few minutes while enjoying your 4th of July holiday and silently thank these patriots.  It's not much to ask for the price they paid.  Remember: freedom is never free!   It's time we get the word out that patriotism is NOT a sin, and the Fourth of July has more to it than beer, picnics, and baseball games.  GOD BLESS AMERICA

We should also be thankful the founding fathers had BALLS, and were not caught up in being the indecicsve, politicaly correct,corrupt, chicken$hits that seem to gravitate to leadership positions these days. LONG LIVE, and GOD BLESS America.

Due to a levee project at Athletic Park in Anderson, the Anderson Noon Lion’s Club has decided to hold its annual festival at the Anderson Speedway. The event will coincide the Speedway’s 4th of July festivities, according to track owner Rick Dawson

http://www.heraldbulletin.com/local/local_story_181000108.html

This is especially for you, Braveheart.  I hope you enjoy it.  This arrangement of The Battle Hymn of the Republic is performed by four high school choirs and an elementary choir. It's awsome.  GOD BLESS THE US. We are not perfect and we are not always right, but our ideals still burn with brilliance and inspiration.

Awesome !!! Thanks Bard