ANA Discussion Forum
AN Community => AN Community => Topic started by: Vivian B. on July 02, 2009, 07:57:31 pm
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Hi Everybody,
Just wanted to wish all of you a happy 4th of July from Canada.
Vivian
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Thanks, Vivian! Hope your Canada/Dominion Day was swell too.
I was thinking we ought to just have North America days from July 1-4. One big party.
But then we would need to include Mexico as well, so maybe a fiesta del cinco de mayo al cuatro de julio.
Sarita
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Thanx Vivian... here's hoping your holiday was a good one,... and for those Stateside, wishes for a happy and safe holiday weekend! Just wish I could get my English bloke to appreciate the holiday! ;) He's having no part of its meaning but if the sun stays out today (shhhhhhhh... don't want to jinx us here in the NE)... he'll at least partake in some of the festivities!
Happy 4th all!
Phyl
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Yes, a Happy Fourth of July celebration to all of my fellow Americans! Barbecues, beer, baseball, friends and fireworks are a good way to spend the day, but lets also take a moment to recall the significant sacrifice given by those who founded this great nation. 5 of the men who signed the Declaration of Independence were captured by the British, tortured and killed. 9 of the 56 fought and died from wounds or hardships of the Revolutionary War. 2 lost their sons serving in the Revolutionary Army, another 2 had sons captured. 12 had their homes ransacked and burned. Others saw their homes and farms or plantations either destroyed or vandalized by the British. Some, wealthy men at the time they signed the Declaration of Independence, died in abject poverty.
I intend to say a silent 'thank you' to all of these American patriots today. I maintain that, despite what some may aver, patriotism is not a sin and America is not something to be ashamed of. It has it's faults and we've made mistakes but we should not use those deficits to trash our nation and it's people. So, today, I celebrate America and remain thankful to be a citizen of this great country.
Jim
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Well said, Jim! I will raise my beer bottle in a toast!
Happy 4th everyone!
Lori
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5 of the men who signed the Declaration of Independence were captured by the British, tortured and killed. 9 of the 56 fought and died from wounds or hardships of the Revolutionary War. 2 lost their sons serving in the Revolutionary Army, another 2 had sons captured. 12 had their homes ransacked and burned. Others saw their homes and farms or plantations either destroyed or vandalized by the British. Some, wealthy men at the time they signed the Declaration of Independence, died in abject poverty.
Jim
Hi,
Jim I have always found your support unquestionable on the forum, however, I am disapppointed by your post. I appreciate this is an important day for Americans and we should all remember our own nation's past histories, how about
the genocide of the native amerians ?
civil rights?
Anyway,Would like to recommend an interesting book for you
"Fusiliers - How the British Army lost America but learned how to fight"
by Mark Urban
I am British and proud to be so. No nation is perfect. Have a nice day.
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Peace :)
DHM
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Esperanza ~
Your reservations and disappointment are noted.
I find it odd that you see a sincere endorsement of our country on the occasion of the anniversary of the original Declaration of Independence 'disappointing'.
The alleged 'genocide' of Native Americans was, in reality, a long war that saw thousands of settlers killed - as well as 'Indians'. The settlers only won because the natives were, eventually, outnumbered (and outgunned). It isn't pretty but this is how most nations were founded. One group invades and conquers and, in the old days, made slaves of the conquered people. Americans didn't do that but I believe that the treatment of Native Americans after their defeat was terrible, i.e. shuffling them off to isolated 'reservations' with sub-standard medical care and harsh living conditions. However, the 'Indian's' use of their 'sovereign nation' status to open gambling casinos has helped most (but not all) Native Americans enjoy much better lives, with the profits from Americans who gamble in those casinos.
Slavery is definitely a blot on America's history but , after England, which also practiced slavery for a very long time and finally (thanks in large part to Mr. Wilberforce) ended it, America was the second country in the entire world to renounce slavery. It was outlawed in 1865 by the Thirteenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. I don't know if they even teach this in British schools but over 600,000 Americans died, the huge majority of them 'white', in the U.S. Civil War (1861-65) that was fought over the issue of slavery (some call it 'state's rights' but the 'right' in question was about owning slaves). Meanwhile, most nations around the world were engaged in slavery - and some still are. We left that behind well over a century ago, as did England. The 1965 Civil Rights Act legally settled the issue of racial discrimination once and for all. Although prejudice can exist in the heart of any man or woman, it has been pretty well excised from American life, not just legally but on a cultural level. The richest woman in America is Oprah Winfrey, who's net worth is close to 3 billion (with a B) dollars. She is African-American, as is our current president, elected by a majority of 'white' citizens. I think it's time to put the slavery issue to rest and not use it as a reason to find fault with one of the greatest societies the world has known in modern times.
Americans rush to send millions to other nations when they're in need, as after a natural disaster. America is basically the defender of Europe and many other nations, like Japan, through NATO and other agreements, freeing many of those nations to experiment with socialism because they don't have to carry the burden of a strong national defense. America has given countless labor and life-saving inventions to the world over it's 223-year existence. Our free market system (now under attack and much stress) is a modern economic wonder that most Americans take for granted. I could go on extolling America's virtues but I don't have the time (dinner is waiting).
I make absolutely no apology for being a proud American who is quite cognizant of our nation's foibles over the past centuries, as I clearly noted in my original post, but, as a British subject, apparently you see it differently. So be it.
Jim
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Here's hoping everyone enjoyed a nice holiday weekend in the States...... onward to the next holiday... not soon enough.
Phyl
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I can wait for labor day as this marks the end of summer n its been raining her for the last 2 months!
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Jim,
You have missed the point completely.
I was disappointed that you blatently and particularly pointed out British atrocities as quoted in my previous post. A general reference to remembering all who gaves their lives would have been more than enough and perhaps more appropriate. There were atrocities on both sides.
Didn't get through all your long last post (life is waiting) although I did note some unnecessary references again...
Thanks Jim.
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I'm happy to be an American, and glad that the British are among our allies.
Here's to world and forum peace.
Sara
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I'm happy to be an American, and glad that the British are among our allies.
Here's to world and forum peace.
Sara
Aye-men on both counts! What Sara said......
Phyl
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Correct me if I am wrong, but I thought that the whole point of celebrating the 4th of July was our country's independence from the British (I really don't know how it can be said any other way); however I don't think this is the place to get into a heated discussion over history. That being said, I, for one, am glad that Jim pointed out that there is a REASON for our holiday and not just a time to BBQ and shoot fireworks. IMO, he was just making an observation about this point out on a thread entitled "Happy 4th of July" - can't really change that title to mean anything else...
K ::)
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Esperanza ~
Please check your PM box.
Jim
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PEACE
:)
DHM
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Jim,
.. and please check yours...
Esperanza
DHM,
Peace was never broken..