Memorial Day

This is a weekend during which we specifically give thanks for and remember those people who laid down their lives on behalf of the citizens of this country. Those service men and women made the ultimate sacrifice so that we might live in peace and safety. They shed their blood to protect the values that we in this country hold so dear and precious: the pursuit of life, liberty and pursuit of happiness. To honor them, we must honor those values that they sacrificed to protect.

Life
The value of all human life is a fundamental principle that drove the founding of this country. To behave or legislate otherwise is to violate this principle. Every institution in this country has the mandate to protect individual's lives - hospitals, schools, churches and government. Even prisons are under this mandate - prisoners on death row are cared for and protected until the moment that they must pay the penalty - and that penalty was designed to protect other human lives. In this country, we also go out of our way to protect the lives of those who cannot protect their own or who are more vulnerable members of our society such as the disabled and children. But we still have a long way to go. Many unborn children and many immigrants seeking refuge have a precarious existence, yet.

Liberty
To live together in freedom is an ideal protected by amendments to the U.S. Constitution. Women and people of different ethnic backgrounds and races have been declared by this country to own the right of liberty. That precious commodity guarantees freedom of speech, religion, and discussion in groups. It also affirms that the citizens of this country will not be vindictively, carelessly or arbitrarily locked in jail, nursing homes, mental institutions, etc. or held in bondage in any way.

Pursuit of Happiness
This country believes that individuals' dreams and visions are essential to the well-being of the nation. What a marvelous encouragement this is! This concept has served as a beacon attracting families, entrepreneurs, dreamers, inventors, creators and builders to this country since its founding. In fact, we in this country believe that the pursuit of happiness alleviates poverty, depression and tyrany: "Give us your poor, your tired, your huddled masses longing to be free..."

This weekend, let's honor the values fought for, as well those who fought. And, let's not be stingy in sharing our values. Let's get back to being a world leader by the good example of living as if we believe in our values.