http://www.nationalledger.com/artman/publish/article_27261585.shtml
Veteran's Day Reminder: The Price of Freedom
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------By Chris Davis
Nov 11, 2005Freedom isn’t cheap. It’s the most expensive asset in America. Without freedom, all other assets would become negligible. If we take a look at a balance sheet, freedom would be listed as a long term asset, the kind of asset that takes years and years to pay off.
Who pays it off? The United States Armed Forces. The men and women in the military make that payment on a daily, weekly, monthly and yearly basis. Over the years, those sacrifices made have been an installment to freedom. Each deployment and death has made life in America all the more perfect. Those in uniform have provided us with a balance sheet of long term assets like no other country in the world.
As addressed by John Jay in the Federalist Papers: “A FIRM Union will be of the utmost moment to the peace and liberty of the States, as a barrier against domestic faction and insurrection.” This America, this great Republic, would not have been possible had it not been for those willing thirty percent that executed their duties with the utmost of integrity and sacrifice.
They founded a Republic—through perilous efforts—with God’s infinite wisdom. Today, we are led by men like Rush Limbaugh, Mark Levin and many others. We are also represented by women such as Ann Coulter, Laura Ingraham and many others, striking at the heart of liberalism in the defense of liberty.
We have become a superpower through the use of our U.S. Armed Forces. Each entity of those forces—Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines, and Coast Guard—provide us with ample protection against enemies, foreign and domestic. Their blood has allowed the pursuit of excellence, in capitalism, in politics, and around the world.
The freedom to make those daily choices in our lives is provided by strangers at home and in far and distant lands. Every stranger stood at a podium and took an oath to protect and defend the U.S. Constitution. Within the Constitution lie our inherent daily freedoms and rights that must be defended at home and abroad.