Sons of Liberty

Today is July 4^th and like almost all of us I am thinking about the signing of the Deceleration of Independence. That day was the culmination of years of ferment against an unjust King of England. One of the many groups protesting infringements of liberty was a group called the “Sons of Liberty” who staged the now famous Boston Tea Party. The King was fighting a war in Europe and needed money so he raised taxes and introduced new taxes. One of the new taxes was on tea. To avoid paying the tax the Sons of Liberty threw the ship load of tea into the harbor.

That set the stage for an American tradition of civil disobedience. The Sons of Liberty thought of themselves a patriots and the King of England thought of them as rabble. Another way the New England citizens rebelled against the “Tea Tax” was to start drinking coffee as the morning-pick-me up. This is a tradition that I honor every day.

Today the Sons and Daughters of Liberty continue to stand up to our own government when it is unjust or over bearing. We don’t always agree with each other or the way we throw the tea overboard but it is a tradition that keeps our elected government on its toes. Even when I disagree with the stand of a group protesting I respect what they are doing as vital to our freedoms.

Happy Birth Day America, God bless you.