True Americans

There is a notion out there, especially among many politicians, that there is no such thing as a true American. They are saying you can be and believe anything you want, no matter what, you are still “American”, and we should all just except each other. I agree we should embrace many cultures, beliefs and people. This should be a place where every person should be able to come to and have the opportunity to become whatever they are willing to work to become. This should be a place where everyone can explore their beliefs with little interference and with out the fear of persecution. With all this being said however; there is still such a thing as a “true” American. Not everyone in this country fills that bill. In order to be a true American, you must believe in freedom. On the statue of liberty there is a beckoning call, a call to all Americans at heart to gather here. That call is: "Give me your tired, your poor, Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free: The wretched refuse of your teeming shore. Send these, the homeless, tempest-tossed to me, I lift my lamp beside the golden door." It does not matter what condition you are in before or after you get here, as long as you “yearn to breath free”. This is a call to all people that yearn for freedom. A call to all true Americans, no matter where they may now reside. This is the land of freedom. The land where we have the freedom to try and succeed, and the freedom to try and fail. This is a country for those that want to have the freedom to scratch out their lives as best they can, at the price of security.
Freedom is not always pretty or fair or kind. Sometimes it is painful, ugly and hard. To live a free life is to live with no guarantee of success or happiness and to live with great risk. Somewhere along the way someone started selling the idea that we could have freedom with out risk. On January 6th 1941 President Franklin D. Roosevelt, in his annual address to congress, outlined four freedoms that the world should be founded on. Among those freedoms, two are in our constitution, the freedom of speech and religion. President Roosevelt then added two that are not in the constitution, the freedom from want and fear.
The question is, can one have freedom without risking want at the same time? In order for a government to remove want, they must also take freedom of the citizens. Security and freedom are mutually exclusive ideals. The more secure you are, the less free you become. The more free you are the more vulnerable you become to disaster of all sorts. If a man is free to build up a business that makes him wealthy, he also has the risk of that business failing and leaving me broke. If we are free to move about our country, we are also at risk of attack of all sorts.A socialist government is one that is based on the idea of security above freedom. I am not saying that socialism is bad, I do not think people that believe in that type of government are evil. Socialism is just another type of government. The question is, is it the American type of government? I am not even trying to discuss the question of which type of government is better. I am just asking which one is American? At the time of the revolution, Patrick Henry ended his speech to the leaders of Virginia with the famous words: “give me liberty or give me death!”. As great as these words are, it is unfortunate for us that the first part of the statement is left off. Unfortunate because it makes his statement even more powerful. Mr. Henry’s full closing was: “Is life so dear, or peace so sweet, as to be purchased at the price of chains and slavery? Forbid it, Almighty God! I know not what course others may take; but as for me, give me liberty, or give me death!” The people that built our country into such a great nation, believed that liberty, (freedom) was more important and sweeter than both life and peace. A Democracy and freedom can only be had by a people that love freedom. Love freedom more than success, more than wealth, more than life itself. Democracy and freedom can only be had by people that love freedom more than everything else. If we look back to the men that founded our great nation, it is evident that they were all people of this type. Our founding fathers, in the declaration of independence, pledged their “ lives, fortunes, and sacred honor” for the opportunity to be free. America is the one country that was founded on the idea that liberty is the most important aspect of human life. There are many countries that have been founded on the idea that security is the most important aspect of life. This country is unique, it is the only one of its kind. I understand the desire for security over freedom. There is nothing wrong with that idea; however, I implore the people of this country: Please do not rob those of us that value our liberty more than security of the only place on this earth designed for us! I end with this warning to those that would change this country. Like our founding fathers before us, we will sacrifice everything for our liberty. Like Patrick Henry, to us liberty is dearer than life, sweeter than peace.