250 years ago, the British Navy ruled the seven seas with more than 270 vessels, including a hundred heavily armed warships called "ships of the line” the Aegis guided missiles Cruisers of the day. The American Continental Navy originally consisted of only 8 active, armed vessels that were refitted merchant ships and schooners rather than purpose-built warships. The British, led by Gen Willam Howe mustered an expeditionary force of 32,000 professional English soldiers and an additional 18,000 German mercenaries (called Hessians). 50,000 against General George Washington’s Continental Army of less than 20,000 volunteers -- undisciplined citizen-soldiers who lacked uniforms, standardized weapons, and formal military training. Twenty percent % of the colonial population, known as “Torries”, remained loyal to the King of England.
The odds were not in our favor – What was? Destiny…
Our Founding Fathers established the Constitution to create a stronger, unified national government, establish the rule of law, prevent tyranny through careful separation of powers and checks and balances among the three branches of government. "No taxation without representation" or lack of representation in how they were governed.
The specific purposes of the Constitution as outlined in the Preamble was to:
- Form a more Perfect Union:
- Establish Justice:
- Ensure Domestic Tranquility:
- Provide for the Common Defense:
- Promote the General Welfare:
- Secure the Blessings of Liberty:
Our Founding Fathers knew they were creating something different. Something that would require profound leadership, enduring perseverance and revolutionary change all in service to their fellow Americans.
The signers of the Declaration of Independence came from diverse backgrounds, including doctors and lawyers, merchants and businessmen, plantation owners and farmers, writers and publishers, pastors and clergymen, and even musicians.
Of the 56 men who signed the Declaration of Independence, 39 were veterans who actively served in the Continental Army, state militias, or naval forces during the Revolutionary War. They included George Washington who commanded the Continental Army, James Monroe and Alexander Hamilton who served in active combat roles, Thomas Jefferson and James Madison who both served as colonels in the Virginia militia. Others served as Command Surgeons or in vital diplomatic roles like Benjamin Franklin who rallied allies like France to our side. Our Founding Fathers sacrificed everything for this idea called America. Five signers were captured by the British and imprisoned as traitors. Twelve had their homes and properties ransacked and burned to the ground. Two lost their sons serving in the Continental Army. Nine of the 56 fought and died in the Revolutionary War.
They all signed and they pledged their lives, their fortunes, and their sacred honor.
The founding ideals of our country were only realized by spilled blood and lives lost taking on the most powerful Army and Navy of its day – the British Empire. How Ironic, now it is the US military and our navy that rules the seven seas but there are threats to our hegemony and they are on our horizon.
The concept of America only endures and is sustained by the service and sacrifice of the American Soldier, Sailor, Airman, Marine, Guardsman and Guardian. From Valley Forge, the Civil War, D-day at Normandy, Frozen Chosin Reservoir, rice paddies in Vietnam, the deserts of Iraq and mountains of Afghanistan, through every conflict that has tested our nation, our service members have always answered the call of duty. They stepped forward to leave everything behind; their homes, their families, their futures; everything a person lives for. All to protect the freedoms that make our country great. That is their legacy and why we honor them every year.
Our Founding Fathers vision of America as guided by enlightened ideals becoming a “shining city on a hill” to the world’s oppressed only endures if we have sons and daughters willing to put their lives on the line for it.
When those 56 delegates gathered in Philadelphia two and half centuries ago, they drafted a radical and revolutionary vision for the world: a nation built on the premise that all men are created equal, endowed by their creator with the unalienable rights to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. They outlined the blueprint for a democratic republic. But a proposal on paper, no matter how brilliant, is only ink. For that vision to become a reality, it required sweat, service, sacrifice and yes, blood. It required patriots willing to defend and die for it – even today.
Generation after generation, since our nation’s founding to overthrow the yoke of British tyranny, to free the enslaved, to end the War to End all Wars, to save the world from Fascism, Nazism, Communism and modern-day Jihadist Terrorism by enemies who want to destroy the very liberties and principles America stands for - freedom of Religion, Speech, Assembly, Press, and Petition.
To quote my Green Beret brethren, to “Free the Oppressed” is why we have tens of thousands of graves of American servicemen in Europe, Africa, Central America and Asia. Some are still missing in action in the jungles of Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos. Millions more lie in military cemeteries in every state of the union from Arlington, Virginia to Bushnell, Florida.
1.3 million U.S. service men and women have died in all of the nation's wars combined, spanning from the American Revolution to recent 21st-century military conflicts in Afghanistan, Iraq and now Iran.
When our country asked, "Whom shall I send? And who will go for us?" these heroes replied, "Here am I. Send me!"
These Patriots ensured the concepts articulated in our original constitution written by our Founding Fathers endures. America was a radical departure from the monarchies of the Old World, establishing a constitutional republic where sovereignty belonged to the people rather than inherited rulers. This unprecedented system made America a global beacon of liberty, opportunity and meritocracy.
President Abraham Lincoln often referred to America as "the last, best hope of Earth."
Ronald Reagan: "The world’s hope is America’s future. America’s future is in your dreams. Make them come true."
Our Founding Father’s evisioned endstate was to be a “shining city upon a hill” symbolizing freedom from tyranny, opportunity for all and American exceptionalism.
The United States is STILL the beacon of freedom, democracy, and hope. Despite our many faults and failings over the past 250 years, America is still the moral example and inspiring model for the rest of the world. It is why millions every year from around the globe are still lining up at Embassy Consular sections applying for visas and their chance at the American dream…
250 years ago, the British Navy ruled the seven seas with more than 270 vessels, including a hundred heavily armed warships called "ships of the line” the Aegis guided missiles Cruisers of the day. The American Continental Navy originally consisted of only 8 active, armed vessels that were refitted merchant ships and schooners rather than purpose-built warships. The British, led by Gen Willam Howe mustered an expeditionary force of 32,000 professional English soldiers and an additional 18,000 German mercenaries (called Hessians). 50,000 against General George Washington’s Continental Army of less than 20,000 volunteers -- undisciplined citizen-soldiers who lacked uniforms, standardized weapons, and formal military training. Twenty percent % of the colonial population, known as “Torries”, remained loyal to the King of England.
The odds were not in our favor – What was? Destiny…
Our Founding Fathers established the Constitution to create a stronger, unified national government, establish the rule of law, prevent tyranny through careful separation of powers and checks and balances among the three branches of government. "No taxation without representation" or lack of representation in how they were governed.
The specific purposes of the Constitution as outlined in the Preamble was to:
- Form a more Perfect Union:
- Establish Justice:
- Ensure Domestic Tranquility:
- Provide for the Common Defense:
- Promote the General Welfare:
- Secure the Blessings of Liberty:
Our Founding Fathers knew they were creating something different. Something that would require profound leadership, enduring perseverance and revolutionary change all in service to their fellow Americans.
The signers of the Declaration of Independence came from diverse backgrounds, including doctors and lawyers, merchants and businessmen, plantation owners and farmers, writers and publishers, pastors and clergymen, and even musicians.
Of the 56 men who signed the Declaration of Independence, 39 were veterans who actively served in the Continental Army, state militias, or naval forces during the Revolutionary War. They included George Washington who commanded the Continental Army, James Monroe and Alexander Hamilton who served in active combat roles, Thomas Jefferson and James Madison who both served as colonels in the Virginia militia. Others served as Command Surgeons or in vital diplomatic roles like Benjamin Franklin who rallied allies like France to our side. Our Founding Fathers sacrificed everything for this idea called America. Five signers were captured by the British and imprisoned as traitors. Twelve had their homes and properties ransacked and burned to the ground. Two lost their sons serving in the Continental Army. Nine of the 56 fought and died in the Revolutionary War.
They all signed and they pledged their lives, their fortunes, and their sacred honor.
The founding ideals of our country were only realized by spilled blood and lives lost taking on the most powerful Army and Navy of its day – the British Empire. How Ironic, now it is the US military and our navy that rules the seven seas but there are threats to our hegemony and they are on our horizon.
The concept of America only endures and is sustained by the service and sacrifice of the American Soldier, Sailor, Airman, Marine, Guardsman and Guardian. From Valley Forge, the Civil War, D-day at Normandy, Frozen Chosin Reservoir, rice paddies in Vietnam, the deserts of Iraq and mountains of Afghanistan, through every conflict that has tested our nation, our service members have always answered the call of duty. They stepped forward to leave everything behind; their homes, their families, their futures; everything a person lives for. All to protect the freedoms that make our country great. That is their legacy and why we honor them every year.
Our Founding Fathers vision of America as guided by enlightened ideals becoming a “shining city on a hill” to the world’s oppressed only endures if we have sons and daughters willing to put their lives on the line for it.
When those 56 delegates gathered in Philadelphia two and half centuries ago, they drafted a radical and revolutionary vision for the world: a nation built on the premise that all men are created equal, endowed by their creator with the unalienable rights to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. They outlined the blueprint for a democratic republic. But a proposal on paper, no matter how brilliant, is only ink. For that vision to become a reality, it required sweat, service, sacrifice and yes, blood. It required patriots willing to defend and die for it – even today.
Generation after generation, since our nation’s founding to overthrow the yoke of British tyranny, to free the enslaved, to end the War to End all Wars, to save the world from Fascism, Nazism, Communism and modern-day Jihadist Terrorism by enemies who want to destroy the very liberties and principles America stands for - freedom of Religion, Speech, Assembly, Press, and Petition.
To quote my Green Beret brethren, to “Free the Oppressed” is why we have tens of thousands of graves of American servicemen in Europe, Africa, Central America and Asia. Some are still missing in action in the jungles of Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos. Millions more lie in military cemeteries in every state of the union from Arlington, Virginia to Bushnell, Florida.
1.3 million U.S. service men and women have died in all of the nation's wars combined, spanning from the American Revolution to recent 21st-century military conflicts in Afghanistan, Iraq and now Iran.
When our country asked, "Whom shall I send? And who will go for us?" these heroes replied, "Here am I. Send me!"
These Patriots ensured the concepts articulated in our original constitution written by our Founding Fathers endures. America was a radical departure from the monarchies of the Old World, establishing a constitutional republic where sovereignty belonged to the people rather than inherited rulers. This unprecedented system made America a global beacon of liberty, opportunity and meritocracy.
President Abraham Lincoln often referred to America as "the last, best hope of Earth."
Ronald Reagan: "The world’s hope is America’s future. America’s future is in your dreams. Make them come true."
Our Founding Father’s evisioned endstate was to be a “shining city upon a hill” symbolizing freedom from tyranny, opportunity for all and American exceptionalism.
The United States is STILL the beacon of freedom, democracy, and hope. Despite our many faults and failings over the past 250 years, America is still the moral example and inspiring model for the rest of the world. It is why millions every year from around the globe are still lining up at Embassy Consular sections applying for visas and their chance at the American dream…
God Bless America...
Our Founders...
Our Brave Military Men and Women...
Our Loyal Patriot Citizens...
Let Freedom Ring... and Old Glory Wave for another 250 years.
Thank You, Almighty God, for the Land of the Free and the Home of the Brave.