What Can We Do for America?

Every 4th of July, the local fire department puts on a fireworks show on a grassy knoll about a quarter of a mile from our condominium. Watching rockets scatter sparks and streamers with a Boom always reminds me of another grassy knoll where President Kennedy disappeared with a bang. And that always reminds me of his advice to ask what we can do for our country, not what our country can do for us.

I'm still wondering what I can do for my country. Every 4th of July I wave the American flag, drink American beer, and celebrate my American citizenship with the bombs bursting in the air but can't think of anything I have done for my country.

Our Constitution, Bill of Rights and democratic form of government make America a land of opportunity where we can pursue life, liberty, and happiness. But I pursued prosperity to be keep beans on the table and a roof over my head without any thought of the rights, privileges and freedom I had as an American.

When Japan bombed Pearl Harbor, thousands of Americans enlisted to put Germany and Japan on their knees and Hitler in the ground. But I joined the Army to learn electronics, not to defend democracy and the American way of life. And I didn't have to dodge bullets or shoot anyone. I just drove a truck around Germany repairing Hawk missile sites.

Learning English is the first step toward assimilating yourself into the American way of life. But I learned Spanish to make friends with the Hispanic boys and girls I met in school, not to encourage them to reciprocate by learning English.

Our founding fathers believed property owners would be better citizens because they had a stake in society and were therefore more likely to get involved in the values and issues of the country. But I bought a house to give my wife a home and better living conditions, not to make us better Americans.

Ironically, it was my doubts that I had done anything for my country that helped me discover that I am an American and have done things for my country. When I left the Army, I spent the next 40 years writing technical manuals to help military personnel test, maintain and repair equipment used on airplanes, battleships and submarines to defend our country. Along the way, I cast my vote for candidates who had, in one way or another, convinced me that they too were Americans, not politicians pursuing their own prosperity. I even wore a MAGA hat for a few months until some guy threatened to whoop my ass if I didn't take it off. I told him to shove his "Wokeness" where the sun didn't shine. He came at me with his fists in a ball and his eyes full of hate, so I pulled my pepper spray out of my pocket and aimed it at his face. He stopped, made a derogatory comment about my mother, gave me the finger and got back in his truck.

Yeah, Trump can be annoying. But my vote has everything to do with his policies, not his personality, and I don't have to wait until he's the President to discover if I was right about him. He gave me, and everyone else who wasn't brainwashed by the fake media, four years of making Americ great again.

I'm no longer driving a truck around Germany or writing tech manuals for the military, so I'd like to hear what else I can do for my country besides wearing a MAGA hat and voting for a pro-American candidate.

 

I think we all might be asked in the near future to do more than we ever expected, possibly more than most of our ancestors. The question is whether we will do it. Some of our ancestors were asked and gave which is why we have so much more than most of the rest of the world.

I think my years abroad tainted me in many ways however it certainly opened my eyes to how much better life is in our country, America, than in most others. I will gladly debate this with anyone. The reasons aren't easily seen sometimes, and some countries do have a veneer of advantages which can sometimes overshadow the real reasons that make America a fantastic place to live. For example, Health Care, so damn expensive that it's a nightmare waiting to happen to each and every one of us but that is something that can and will be changed - yet - it is superficial when compared with things like individual liberties. Yes, sadly, we all forget or take for granted these liberties until we hear what is happening in other countries, like Venezuela, then it hits home how lucky we are...but it wasn't luck. It was planned, fought and bled for and people were maimed or died so we could live our lives normally, concern with meeting life's responsibilities and bettering our and our family's lives without regard to government interference or suppression. Simply put, freedom.

The fact that you pursued 'life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness' without regard or even thought to those 'rights, privileges and freedoms' is honestly a credit to our forefathers and our success as a nation for this is how one is supposed to live, without fear, without repression or constraint. It's freedom, pure and simple. I would go farther, and state this is how God created and intend us to live, not kowtowing on our knees begging to live, begging for life, for a bit of happiness but free to fulfill ourselves based on our best endeavors.

The fact that you pause and question your reasons for your actions in the pursuit of happiness certainly is a credit to America - yet - you failed to ask one defining question, 'Without America's liberties would I have been allowed to do anything and everything that I have done" be it buying a house or 'keeping beans on the table.' The answer to that is, "Maybe", in some countries, and "No", in others. In America, it is a roaring "Yes!" because it literally is the basis of our country, defines us, defines the nation: Freedom.

Sorry, I get a bit of emotional about this stuff as spent most of my adult life overseas, makes you think, perhaps too much, seeing how others live and how they accept that life over generations... Plus, I still didn't answer your question, "...what else I can do for my country?" For one thing, VOTE! For another, DEMAND AN HONEST ELECTION! America isn't perfect, we're a work in progress, but we damn well have a good start on it...

Lastly, I do believe it is highly likely in the near future we will be asked to do more for our country, not for our government, but for our country and our people. "Patriotism is supporting your country all the time, and your government when it deserves it." - Mark Twain. We will then have the full answer to your question.

 

Drop some weight .
Look at old pictures and movies before the 60s not a lot of fat Americans then next time you are out shopping, lots-o-fat Americans.
With the talk of second American revolution, I see many Americans who would have a hard time walking 4 blocks with their load out..

 

Maybe there needs to be Civil War ll
Maybe there needs to an American Revolution 2.0
Maybe there needs to be a divorce with a division of assets (Dixie, Texas, Midwest, Plains, New England, West Coast, Alaska)
If we elect Trump none of that has to happen...now.

 

I disagree - well - not completely but it's not that simple... A person does not have to be in SEAL or Delta physical condition to do what is right and practice Civil Disobedience. In fact, I think one could make the case that the old and feeble would/could gain more ground.

Furthermore, I am unsure of the numbers now, but a few years ago it was 7-1 ratio or 7 support troops to 1 combat troop. Again, those support troops do not have to be picture perfect physically however they do need to know their jobs be it medical, logistics, maintenance, electronics. etc...

To expand on this, what kind of physical condition does an individual wearing a suicide vest need be? Or a child that dumps sugar or sand or a taped grenade into a fuel tank? Or the pretty young girl that sneaks away with a soldier to the dark alley but instead of a kiss she blows his brains out? A committed fat old man, sitting behind his rifle. with nothing to lose, refusing to surrender will kill you just as dead as a young buck soldier.

I am not saying the heavy lifting will not be done by the strong simply that there are lots of roles to play for if it indeed comes to war, it will not be totally symmetrical nor totally asymmetrical. It will be a strange animal composed of a bit of everything and it takes all kinds to fight a war like this: young, old, weak, strong, leaders and followers.

 

Samuel Whittemore was a 78-year-old veteran of the French and Indian Wars when he fought in the 1775 Battle of Lexington. Arming himself with a musket and two pistols, he stationed himself behind a stone wall and waited for the Redcoats. He killed three of them before being shot, bayoneted, beaten, kicked and left for dead. When found he was lying in a pool of his own blood reloading his musket. Everyone though he would die, but he didn't. Against all odds, Whittemore recovered from his wounds and lived another 17 years, dying at age 95. He died an American!

 

There still exists a cadre of older fellas, the guys that have lived life, many with military experience in their long past. The government knows they are out there and this still keeps it somewhat in check. The fear of the guys that have lived a satisfying life and will give it all up to secure that life for their offspring and others. They are out there living their lives, having the Sunday cookouts, knocking back a few beers while watching football, and doing their best to provide for themselves and their families while knowing in their heart that a trigger may come calling their conscience to right the wrongs. These will be the fighters the government fears. Not the weekend warriors playing soldier with their militias, not the gym rat SEAL wannabees, and certainly not the keyboard kommandos. No, their true fear is the awakening of the everyman, the older folks who will make the decision that they have lived a good life and are willing to lay it down to protect what they have enjoyed. They know that if the time comes, this small percentage will step up and bring hell on Earth with them. Just be one of those guys.
I had a conversation years ago with a retired FBI agent client about this, about why they allow militias and other groups to exist and his answer was simple: They know who they are and where they are and have the pins on their maps. He said the threat was the unknown and that there were exponentially more of those unknown out there.His fear was a mass trigger that brings those guys out because there was no way of knowing who or where they are. So to address the OP, be the guy. Be ready to step up when the time comes. The butchering of the British by guys like Washington and Marion kept the elected in line for over two hundred years. They rose to the call and brutally destroyed a superior force and the lucky went home to live their lives again.

 

Speak softly and carry a big stick, our time may be coming. This election is a very very important one. Either way it goes there could be trouble!!!

 

We just have to make it through November, after that, we can deal with things as needed!

One man with a Rifle can change history, One angry shot can change EVERYTHING, be that man with his Rifle!

 

Good advice, as usual. Would like to add that it's not necessarily the strongest nor the smartest who survive but those who best adapt to change, and there has been some BIG changes in the last few years. I hope saving America doesn't require armed conflict, but Americans did it in 1776 and then again in 1812. Like all of you, my preparation includes the mindset of a survivor, not a victim.

 

Well said... I also think you are correct, these two fights, expanding the USSC and control of the monetary system (including digitalizing it), indeed must be won at all costs. One gives them complete control of the monetary system as well as complete control over every individual and the other would be able corrupt our Constitutional laws via their interpretation. Either of them means complete tyranny. We cannot lose either of these.

Isn't it strange that Julius Caesar tried to do the same thing with the Roman Senate. He also wanted to expand the size of it greatly with individuals beholding to him who would rubber stamp whatever he put forward. It didn't out well for old Julius as some saw it for what it truly was and took action.

The shot that kicked off the Lexington/Concord scrap which led to the war of Independence is a good example. The assassination of Austrian Archduke Ferdinand which started WW1 is another good one. The Lincoln and Kennedy assassinations both had huge repercussions and changed history. I can think of a lot more throughout history...

On a different note, I cannot understand where this support for Harris/Walz is coming from. Makes no sense to me - yet - the betting in Vegas now favors Harris. WTH? I ignore the polls, but I find the Vegas betting worrisome...

 

I'm thinking mobsters recognize each other.

 

As to your point about Harris/Walz polling as high, NO, don't believe what you see/hear, it's all lies spun by the Media to inflate their standings in hopes it will inspire more to lean that way then most would! It's all a psy-ops to make the left feel like their winning, when they know full well Kamal Toe and co ain't doing well at all! Expect to see the left ramping it up in the coming days and weeks, they gotta keep the numbers up so it inspires more on the left to get out and vote, as it is, Kamal Toe is a Lost Cause, if only they could see it from the outside like we do they would know she ain't got a snowballs chance!

 

I said there was no way Clinton would do 2 terms. I said there was no way Obama would do two terms. I said there was no way in hell Biden would beat Trump. I obviously was wrong every time. Harris may pose the biggest threat to our freedoms and our constitution to date. Make no mistake, this is mortal danger for our country.

 

I truly hope you are correct and while I don't believe the polls (way too easy to fake) the Vegas betting (odds makers) is what I find really disturbing - yet - thinking about it, like the polls, these too could easily be faked. Anyway, I am one that always expects the worse, a pessimist at heart so...

Yeah, me too! Frankly, I have no idea what I will do if Harris wins this. I honestly do not know and totally agree it is 'mortal danger for our country' and there is no place to run to...no options.

 

I was born in California and never in my wildest dreams thought of leaving. As the "woke" crowd gained more and more influence (like Governor Nuisance) my wife and I began to entertain thoughts of moving to some more conservative state (like Texas). Now, with the Camel and the Clown running for office, there isn't any state that could escape the potential fiasco. If those idiots win the election (God forbid) we're staying in California to deal with the results anyway we can.

 

How to save America ---I have the solution but if I say the ATF, FBI, HLS, SS and the rest of the government alphabet would be knocking at my door