Video: Rush Rocks Joplin, MO with Independence Day Speech

Via BreitbartTV:

"Our founders believed in the power of the freedom of the individual, not the power of an elite government."

UPDATE: Rush Limbaugh's Speech In Joplin Missouri On The Forth Of July 2011

Gretchen And Cloey From Joplin Missouri Call The Rush Limbaugh Show

How The Liberal Media Celebrated the 4th of July

Of course liberals hate the 4th of July. Why? This is why: Harvard Study: 4th of July Events ONLY Help Republicans. Patriotism is a net negative for liberalism. Ergo, since the establishment MSM is by far rabid liberal, they hate the 4th too. From moonbattery:

The July 4 issue of Time features an appalling cover story calling into question the relevance of the Constitution that has held back tyranny for two centuries. The leftist termites at ABC follow it up with this:

Attacking men of the 18th century by singling out areas where they failed to comply sufficiently with modern views is cheap and moronic even for liberals. But our reverence for the Founding Fathers and the Constitution must be discredited by any means necessary before oligarchical collectivists can destroy America and replace it with the slave state of their utopian dreams.

This reminds me of the communist goals from 1963:

29. Discredit the American Constitution by calling it inadequate, old-fashioned, out of step with modern needs, a hindrance to cooperation between nations on a worldwide basis.

30. Discredit the American Founding Fathers. Present them as selfish aristocrats who had no concern for the "common man."

31. Belittle all forms of American culture and discourage the teaching of American history on the ground that it was only a minor part of the "big picture." Give more emphasis to Russian history since the Communists took over.

And it is coming to pass.

Wow: Joey Chestnut scarfed down 62 hot dogs (with buns!) to win 4th of July hot dog eating contest at Coney Island

For the record, I scarfed down 7 hamburger patties (about 1/4 - 1/3 lb each) and a few hot dogs at a cookout yesterday (no buns with either by the way). Which is absolutely puny compared to what Joey Chestnut did in only 10 minutes yesterday:

Wow. Where the heck does all that go? The 'black widow' scarfing down 40 dogs would best most men weighing in at 4 times her weight.

Video: Hollywood Actors Read Declaration Aloud in Stirring Performance

"Some scholars believe that Thomas Jefferson always intended the declaration to be performed in public." Ergo:

Plus: Independence: All-Star ‘America the Beautiful’

Also: Independence: Understanding the Declaration

And finally: Independence: Schoolhouse Rock ‘Fireworks’

Independence Day Video: Ronald Reagan ‘A Time for Choosing’

Via BreitbartTV: Independence: Ronald Reagan ‘A Time for Choosing’. Aka "The Speech":

Related: "In my many years I have come to a conclusion that one useless man is a shame, two is a law firm, and three or more is a congress."

Video: Stuff yourselves with food today because next year we may be fighting for our independence

Hard to argue with the way things are going at this point:

Video: We Need God in America Again

Darned right:

Good grief: Planes with banners that read “God-LESS America” or “Atheism is Patriotic” will be flying over 27 states today

Today we celebrate the day we declared independence from England. From the Declaration of Independence:

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.

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. ...

It is quite ironic that on this day, atheists - those that don't believe in God or a Creator - are making a public stand. From CNN:

But the way they're spreading their message might have Americans looking to the sky this Fourth of July and finding something besides fireworks to stir emotion.

Planes with banners that read "God-LESS America" or "Atheism is Patriotic" will be flying over 27 states on Monday. While people might be leery to see the messages overhead, the $23,000 campaign has had a struggle with those who are supposed to bring it to life.

Ironically, it flew over like a turd n the punchbowl:

Justin Jaye of Fly Signs Aerial Advertising, who is orchestrating the flights for American Atheists, said out of the 85 people in the country who fly these sign-pulling planes only about 17 have agreed to fly the messages.

"I've been in this business for 20 years and I've never run into so much resistance on people flying," Jaye said. "I've had pilots who are actual atheists who said, 'Justin, I am an atheist and I won't fly it because I can't wear a bulletproof vest.'"

Dave Silverman, president of American Atheists, says the reaction to the organization's campaign before it takes off shows how much work the group still needs to do. "This is a clear reminder of why we need to keep fighting because the bigotry against us is so thick that a lot of the pilots are afraid to fly our banners," he said.

Jaye said while some feared for their lives, others feared for their marriages. He had one pilot say his wife would divorce him if he made the flight.

Red Calvert, a pilot and president of Pro-Air Enterprises in Indianapolis, said his reasons to decline the flight were based on his personal beliefs.

"I respect our country and I respect our churches and we've got enough problems in our country without stirring up some more," he said. "If those people want to do something they believe in, fine, just don't include me."

Good grief. Even local liberals like Mitch Albom can't stomach this: If God made the sky, can atheists fly it?

UPDATE: Florida district buckles – drops 'God bless' ban 

Officials in the Santa Rosa County, Fla., School District have agreed to gut an ACLU-inspired consent decree they imposed on students and faculty several years ago and pay hundreds of thousands of dollars in legal fees to settle a legal challenge to their decision that banned ordinary phrases such as "God bless" from their campuses.

Word of the settlement was announced yesterday by the nonprofit Liberty Counsel, which represented faculty and students in the district after the ACLU decree was adopted several years ago.

The restrictions were so draconian that employee Michelle Winkler in 2009 was charged with contempt after her husband, who is not employed by the district, offered a meal prayer at a private event in a neighboring county.

During testimony in the case, she also described how she and a co-worker, who recently had lost a child, had to hide in a closet to pray.

Further, former Pace High School Principal Frank Lay, now retired, and Athletic Director Robert Freeman were tried for contempt after the ACLU demanded that they be punished. Freeman had been accused of offering a blessing for a lunch for some 20 adult booster club members.

Want to see true intolerance? Spend time with a liberal.

Glenn Reynolds; Three things you can do for liberty

Over at The Washington Examiner yesterday: Sunday Reflection: Three things you can do for liberty

Today, Independence Day is generally observed by shooting firecrackers, eating hotdogs and hamburgers, and drinking beer. These are all worthwhile activities -- in these Bloomberg-prudish times, they even serve to annoy the nannyists, which is always worthwhile.

...While Independence Day is about independence from Great Britain, today it's also associated with more general notions of freedom -- individual independence, not just political independence.

Unfortunately, America's political class doesn't want you independent. It wants you as dependent as possible. As the Rainmakers sang back in the 1980s, "They'll turn us all into beggars 'cause they're easier to please."

So what can you do? Everybody focuses on the 2012 elections, and those are important. But why wait? Here are three things you can do now.

So onto the 3 suggestions (I'll let you hit the link for the details):

1. Attack the federal funding.
2. Stop supporting the enemies of freedom and start supporting your friends. Cancel your subscriptions to cable TV channels, magazines or newspapers that support big government over individual liberty.
3. Join Together. It may seem contradictory to assert your independence by banding together. But our Founding Fathers didn't set America free by acting alone.

1 is probably the hardest of the lot because of ruling class entrenchment. 2 is a bit easier but once you do some digging, you will find it hard to do business anywhere because you will find rampant liberals throughout corporate America. Some are more obvious than others, but it will still be tough. The 3rd is the easy one - join a tea party group. Plenty of them locally. Or start one of your own. So easy a cavemen can do it.

Glenn's best point in the whole piece was the one I highlighted above regarding dependence. Although instead of political class, I would have used the correct term - Democrats. Speaking of, from Mark Steyn (HT: Pundit & Pundette): Obama's Declaration of Dependence

...Big Government on America’s unprecedented money-no-object scale will always be profoundly wasteful (as on that Williamsburg flight), stupid (as at the TSA), and arbitrary (as in those waivers). But it’s not republican in any sense the Founders would recognize. If (like Obama) you’re a lifetime member of the government class, you can survive it. For the rest, it ought to be a source of shame to today’s Americans that this will be the first generation in U.S. history to bequeath its children the certainty of poorer, meaner lives — if not a broader decay into a fetid swamp divided between a well-connected Latin American–style elite enjoying their waivers and a vast downwardly mobile morass. On Independence Day 2011, debt-ridden America is now dependent, not on far-off kings but on global bond and currency markets, which fulfill the same role the cliff edge does in a Wile E. Coyote cartoon. At some point, Wile looks down and realizes he’s outrun solid ground. You know what happens next.

Read the whole thing.

Video: Celebrating the Freedom to be Stupid on the Beach in California

Via Verum Serum:

Video: 4th of July food court flash mob

Via Right Wing News:

Harvard Study: 4th of July Events ONLY Help Republicans

And why would that be? The unpatriotic, America-hating left that has tried its darndest to unmoore us from our godly roots and is now hard at work banning the pledge of allegiance and the American flag know quite well that any display of patriotism isn't going to benefit them one bit. Via Gateway Pundit:

Washington Whispers reported on the study:

Democratic political candidates can skip this weekend’s July 4th parades. A new Harvard University study finds that July 4th parades energize only Republicans, turn kids into Republicans, and help to boost the GOP turnout of adults on Election Day.

“Fourth of July celebrations in the United States shape the nation’s political landscape by forming beliefs and increasing participation, primarily in favor of the Republican Party,” said the report from Harvard.

“The political right has been more successful in appropriating American patriotism and its symbols during the 20th century. Survey evidence also confirms that Republicans consider themselves more patriotic than Democrats. According to this interpretation, there is a political congruence between the patriotism promoted on Fourth of July and the values associated with the Republican party. Fourth of July celebrations in Republican dominated counties may thus be more politically biased events that socialize children into Republicans,” write Harvard Kennedy School Assistant Professor David Yanagizawa-Drott and Bocconi University Assistant Professor Andreas Madestam. [Enjoy political cartoons about President Obama.]

Their findings also suggest that Democrats gain nothing from July 4th parades, likely a shocking result for all the Democratic politicians who march in them.

Shocker, huh? Related: Rush Limbaugh - Harvard Study Forth Of July Parades Turn Kids Into Republicans

Keepin' it Sexy and Green for the 4th of July!

It's 4th of July ( Can you believe it? The time is flying this year!) weekend which means there is a lot of traveling, pic-nicing, BBQ-ing and just plain ol' gathering. But remember you're impact on the environment this weekend. Keep it Sexy and Green---maybe stay indoor's with the lights off all weekend...you'll save energy and create your own fireworks! Just remember your Swipes Lovin Wipes!

But if staying inside with the lights off isn't an option, prepare your weekend the greenest way possible. A few weeks ago we gave you tips to a greener summer, check that out and get great BBQing and outdoor suggestions!

Fireworks aren't exactly the most environmentally friendly activity, so chose smart. If you're choosing to set off your own fireworks this year chose ones that are rich in nitrogen, they're a little more expensive but emit less smoke into the air. But an even better idea is to go see a local firework show! They're bigger, better, safer and made for many to share in the the 4th of July tradition! 

Whatever you do this weekend stay safe and remember to use your Swipes!

 

Happy 4th!