I would bring to your attention that Soldier, Marine, Airman and Sailor are not on that list. This is not a slight by any means. There are acts of bravery and heroism every day in the Armed forces of any country. These men and women deserve the respect of the nation for the sacrifice they make whether or not our nation is at war.
For all the hardship and difficulty that the era was rife with, I almost
wish I could have lived in the late 1700 to early 1800’s. Life was hard then
but there were events that were in play that were historic in scope. Tomorrow
is the 4th of july. On this day in 1776 these words were penned;
When in the Course of human events it becomes
necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected
them with another and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and
equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature's God entitle them, a
decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the
causes which impel them to the separation. (Copyright
©1999-2012 by the Independence Hall
Association)
There was a lot of discussion and debate leading up to the signing of the constitution. To sign this document meant treason against Great Britton and the Crown. If there were ever a set of heroes that deserve our respect and honor, the 56 men that signed this document deserve our respect and honor, twenty-four lawyers and jurists, 11 merchants and tradesmen, and nine farmers. Ben Franklin was the only really old man. Eighteen were under 40; three were in their 20s.These were not agitators or community organizers. Most of these men were wealthy, with a couple of notable exceptions, such as Samuel Adams. John Hancock was one of the wealthiest men in the colonies. These were well educated men that had made their fortunes in the new world, but their desire for freedom was greater than their lust for wealth. They pledged their Lives, Fortunes, and sacred Honor all the while with a firm reliance on the protection of Divine Providence. Did you ever wonder about what happened to those that signed the declaration? If you look here (http://www.baxtercountyrepublicans.com/founding_fathers.html) you will see an account of the fate of these men. Here are some examples;
Francis Lewis, New York delegate, saw his home plundered
and his estates, in what is now Harlem, completely destroyed by British
soldiers. Mrs. Lewis was captured and treated with great brutality. Though she
was later exchanged for two British prisoners through the efforts of Congress,
she died from the effects of her abuse.
John Hart of Trenton, New Jersey, risked his life
to return home to see his dying wife. Hessian soldiers rode after him, and he
escaped in the woods. While his wife lay on her deathbed, the soldiers ruined
his farm and wrecked his Homestead. Hart, 65, slept in caves and woods as he
was hunted across the countryside. When at long last, emaciated by hardship, he
was able to sneak home, he found his wife had already been buried, and his 13
children taken away. He never saw them again. He died a broken man in 1779,
without ever finding his family.
Edward Rutledge, Arthur Middleton, and Thomas
Heyward, Jr., the other three South Carolina signers, were taken by the British
in the siege of Charleston. They were carried as prisoners of war to St.
Augustine, Florida, where they were singled out for indignities. They were
exchanged at the end of the war, the British in the meantime having completely
devastated their large land holdings and estates.
These men Pledged everything they had, Everything they were to the fight to
free this country from oppression, and just the presence of their name on a
document enough to send them to meet the hangman. These men and all those that
sacrificed to win our freedom are the heroes we should place on pedestals, and anyone
else that we seek to place on that pedestal should be compared to these.
