CRAIGforCONGRESS
Missouri's 7th District, U.S. House of Representatives

 

 

 

Bringing LIBERTY to Capitol Hill -- 2008
OZARKS VIRTUAL TOWN HALL
Saturday Morning, May 24, 2008, 10:30am

A Discussion of The President's Saturday Morning Radio Address

Click here to listen to a replay of the May 24, 2008 Ozarks Virtual Town Hall

Notes and Summary of the President's Address -- Memorial Day

THE PRESIDENT: Good morning. This Memorial Day weekend, kids will be out of school, moms and dads will be firing up the grill, and families across our country will mark the unofficial beginning of summer. But as we do, we should all remember the true purpose of this holiday -- to honor the sacrifices that make our freedom possible.  (continued below)

How the President Differs from the American vision of "Liberty Under God":

  1. If the federal government did not undertake the task of overthrowing Saddam Hussein, destroying hundreds of billions of dollars of Iraqi infrastructure and killing hundreds of thousands of people, and replacing the secular Baathist government with an Islamic theocracy, would Americans still be free?
  2. The United States government was founded on a policy of non-intervention in foreign affairs:
    The great rule of conduct for us, in regard to foreign nations is in extending our commercial relations to have with them as little political connection as possible."

    — Washington, Farewell Address (1796) [Washington’s emphasis]
    I deem [one of] the essential principles of our government, and consequently [one] which ought to shape its administration,…peace, commerce, and honest friendship with all nations, entangling alliances with none.

    — Jefferson, First Inaugural Address (1801)
    3. This policy would preclude U.S. intervention in Arab-Israeli affairs.
  3. "Democracy" was not a goal of America's Founding Fathers.
  4. No war in American history has been good for the ideal of "Liberty Under God." None of them should have been fought. Those who died, died in vain.

President Bush's
Saturday Morning Radio Address

Another Perspective:
"Liberty Under God"
THE PRESIDENT: Good morning. This Memorial Day weekend, kids will be out of school, moms and dads will be firing up the grill, and families across our country will mark the unofficial beginning of summer. But as we do, we should all remember the true purpose of this holiday -- to honor the sacrifices that make our freedom possible. Their sacrifices were real.

Did they make freedom possible?
On Monday, I will commemorate Memorial Day by visiting Arlington National Cemetery, where I will lay a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknowns. The tomb is the final resting place of three brave American soldiers who lost their lives in combat. The names of these veterans of World War I, World War II, and the Korean War are known only to God. But their valor is known to us all. Their valor and self-sacrifice were real. Were they wasted by a government that ignores the Constitution and the principle of "Liberty Under God?"

Would Jesus Celebrate Memorial Day?
Throughout American history, this valor has preserved our way of life and our sacred freedoms.
• It was this valor that won our independence.
• It was this valor that removed
     the stain of slavery from our Nation.
• And it was this valor that defeated
     the great totalitarian threats of the last century.
 What exactly is "the American way of life" supposed to be? Standing in lines at the airport for security checks? "Your papers, please?"

The Original "American Dream" - "Vine & Fig Tree"

The military is a threat to this "way of life"
http://July4th1776.htm Today's Americans show little concern over tyranny which animated America's Founding Fathers.
William Wilberforce abolished slavery in Britain w/o killing 700,000 people.
Communism was the victor in WWII. Reagan defeated it? If so, he did so w/o war. It still exists. (more)
Today, the men and women of our military are facing a new totalitarian threat to our freedom. In Iraq, Afghanistan, and other fronts around the world, they continue the proud legacy of those who came before them. They bear their responsibilities with quiet dignity and honor. And some have made the ultimate sacrifice in defense of their country. Iraq was no threat to the U.S.

 

The troops are not "defending," because Iraq was not attacking.
One such hero was Sergeant First Class Benjamin Sebban of the Army's 82nd Airborne Division. As the senior medic in his squadron, Ben made sacrifice a way of life. When younger medics were learning how to insert IVs, he would offer his own arm for practice. And when the time came, Ben did not hesitate to offer his fellow soldiers far more. Many such acts are truly virtuous, noble, brave, and self-sacrificing. We can learn from their example. We live in comfort and safety, and are often unwilling to sacrifice even a little to preserve our freedoms.

But terrorists are also brave and self-sacrificing.

The question is not individual bravery, but the collective foreign policy for which they fight.

And for nearly all soldiers, the choice is voluntary.
On March 17, 2007, in Iraq's Diyala province, Ben saw a truck filled with explosives racing toward his team of paratroopers. He ran into the open to warn them, exposing himself to the blast. Ben received severe wounds, but this good medic never bothered to check his own injuries. Instead, he devoted his final moments on this earth to treating others. Earlier this week, in a ceremony at Fort Bragg, North Carolina, I had the honor of presenting Sergeant Sebban's mom with the Silver Star that he earned.
No words are adequate to console those who have lost a loved one serving our Nation. We can only offer our prayers and join in their grief. We grieve for the mother who hears the sound of her child's 21-gun salute. We grieve for the husband or wife who receives a folded flag. We grieve for a young son or daughter who only knows dad from a photograph. Serving the government or serving society?
One holiday is not enough to commemorate all of the sacrifices that have been made by America's men and women in uniform. No group has ever done more to defend liberty than the men and women of the United States Armed Forces. Their bravery has done more than simply win battles. It has done more than win wars. It has secured a way of life for our entire country.

These heroes and their families should be in our thoughts and prayers on a daily basis, and they should receive our loving thanks at every possible opportunity.

 We have at least two holidays that honor those who chose the military.

What do you think of when you think of "liberty?" Would you not have this if, like Switzerland, we didn't have the Pentagon?

Politicians and Soldiers

What if nobody volunteered to fight in Iraq?
Would our way of life be less free, or would it actually be more free?
Would your way of life be enhanced if the government had not spent nearly a trillion dollars of your money in Iraq?
This Memorial Day, I ask all Americans to honor the sacrifices of those who have served you and our country. One way to do so is by joining in a moment of remembrance that will be marked across our country at 3:00 p.m. local time. At that moment, Major League Baseball games will pause, the National Memorial Day parade will halt, Amtrak trains will blow their whistles, and buglers in military cemeteries will play Taps. You can participate by placing a flag at a veteran's grave, taking your family to the battlefields where freedom was defended, or saying a silent prayer for all the Americans who were delivered out of the agony of war to meet their Creator. Their bravery has preserved the country we love so dearly.  
Thank you for listening.  

Kevin Craig's Platform:

Kevin Craig For Congress Blog

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John Adams once wrote that the American Revolution began in 1761, when Massachusetts attorney James Otis began legal challenges to the Writs of Assistance. He lost the case, but "American independence," Adams wrote, "was then and there born." Now do the math. That means it took 15 years to convince the rest of America to declare Independence (1776). Then another seven years of war was required before a Peace Treaty was signed (1783), and then six years before the Constitution was finally ratified (1789). That's almost 30 years. (And Jefferson said we shouldn't go 20 years without another rebellion!) How can we hope to convince Americans to fight for principles they were never taught in government schools? We need to be in this battle for the long term. "Eternal Vigilance is the Price of Liberty."

The Democrat Party Radio Address:

Te Democratic Radio Address was delivered by John Boccieri, state Senator from Ohio who's running for Congress in the 16th District.

A tribute to Roosevelt's G.I. Bill, Homes for Veterans, a plea for benefits for Iraq War Veterans

Libertarian Response:

The Democrats' G.I. Bill is another welfare program.

Our priority should be "Liberty Under God," not government welfare programs.

  1. The War in Iraq has not served the interests of "Liberty Under God."
  2. The government does not serve the interests of veterans.
  3. Veterans are victims of government cult propaganda, and have come to believe the lie of #2 above: that signing up for war would be in their own best interests.
  4. Veterans need to be "de-programmed." They need to understand that the government is not their friend, and war is not a legitimate career option.
  5. Using the government to serve the interests of veterans does not serve the interests of "Liberty Under God."
  6. This is true even if the government is in some important sense the cause of Veterans' problems.
  7. Re-phrasing #5: Using compulsion and threats of violence to redress government wrongs against veterans does not serve the interests of "Liberty Under God."

Click here for a replay of this edition of the Ozarks Virtual Town Hall