Warning, Snigs Rant Ahead

As with most every other holiday out there, the 4th of July seems to be nothing more than an excuse to get shitfaced, knee walkin’ drunk.

I guess that’s all well and good, even if a fool and his money part company during a good drunk.  As long as you’re staying off the roads, not taking a swing at your wife (or husband, girlfriend, mother, brother, or kids), not raping anybody I reckon it’s just fine.

But.do.not.BRAG.to.me.about.how.you’re.too.drunk.to.know.your. own.name.

Like I said elsewhere- big fat whooptiedo.  So you’re over 21, can open your mouth, pour liquid in, and swallow repeatedly.

I’m not impressed.

I’ve seen drunk frogs, moths, and spiders, so that shows me anything can get too drunk to move right.  Wow!  You are drunk!  You have something in common with a frog I once saw!

To borrow Dana Carvey’s line-

Isn’t that special?

Now, you might get the idea that I’m against drinking and/or think it’s a sin.  Nope, not at all.  I like a few select wines, I love Seagrams VO  mixed in my eggnog, and there are some days that you just cannot beat Absolut & tonic- with a twist of lime.  I personally can’t stand beer, but don’t begrudge anyone who likes it.

I’ve been drunk before.  Drunk-off-my-ass drunk.  I honestly could not have told you what color the top light on a traffic signal was a few times.  Somewhere after about age 25 though, I grew the fuck up.  I didn’t need to brag about getting so drunk that I couldn’t remember where I left my underwear anymore.  Not that I have gotten “drunk” many times since then- the few times that I have, it slipped up on me.  Perhaps my tolerance isn’t what it used to be.

My point- I don’t care how drunk you get, but why do you have to tell the world about it like it’s something out of the ordinary?

Tune into Cops or Jail- you can see plenty of folks just like yourself on those shows.  Drunk and stupid.  You think you’re Don Juan when you’re drunk?  The rest of us are probably seeing you more as a Donald Duck.

That don’t impress me much.

(Fireworks from our local show last night)

Have you ever wondered what happened to the 56 men who signed the Declaration of Independence?

Five signers were captured by the British as traitors and tortured before they died.

Twelve had their homes ransacked and burned.

Two lost their sons serving in the Revolutionary Army;  another had two sons captured.

Nine of the 56 fought and died from wounds or hardships of the Revolutionary War.

They signed and they pledged their lives, their fortunes, and their sacred honor.

What kind of men were they?

Twenty-four were lawyers and jurists.

Eleven were merchants, nine were farmers and large plantation owners; men of means, well educated, but they signed the Declaration of Independence knowing full well that the penalty would be death if they were captured.

Carter Braxton of Virginia, a wealthy planter and trader, saw his ships swept from the seas by the British Navy. He sold his home and properties to pay his debts, and died in rags.

Thomas McKeam was so hounded by the British that he was forced to move his family almost constantly.  He served in the Congress without pay, and his family was kept in hiding. His possessions were taken from him, and poverty was his reward.

Vandals or soldiers looted the properties of Dillery, Hall, Clymer, Walton, Gwinnett, Heyward, Ruttledge, and Middleton.

At the battle of Yorktown, Thomas Nelson, Jr., noted that the British General Cornwallis had taken over the Nelson home for his headquarters. He quietly urged General George Washington to open fire. The home was destroyed, and Nelson died bankrupt.

Francis Lewis had his home and properties destroyed.  The enemy jailed his wife, and she died within a few months.

John Hart was driven from his wife’s bedside as she was dying.  Their 13 children fled for their lives. His fields and his gristmill were laid to waste. For more than a year he lived in forests and caves, returning home to find his wife dead and his children vanished.

So, take a few minutes while enjoying your 4th of July holiday and silently thank these patriots. It’s not much to ask for the price they paid.

Remember: freedom is never free!

The Fourth of July has more to it than beer, picnics, and baseball games.