“There is nothing a man can do to liberate himself if his time of divine liberation has not come. But when the time comes, nothing can stop it.”
– Unknown
Liberty and safety are often confused. We often think that with the advent of one we somehow miraculously gain the other. That, with the acquisition of liberty, we can somehow provide for our own security and that we are only truly safe when we have the freedom to live our lives without the interference of tyranny.
On this day, July 4th, Americans celebrate so much, as well we should. It isn’t so much that we invented democracy as we introduced the notion of the right to self-determination. And this right, while paramount in the American mindset, comes at a cost we frequently overlook.
I don’t recall the first time I saw a fireworks display on Independence Day, but I do recall the way I felt as a child when my parents took me to these events. In my earliest memory I linked the excitement of the orchestrated colors and the crackle of bombshells, along with the bright flash-bang of the mortars with the words from the poem that became our National Anthem.
