Contrary to popular belief, I DO have a family member that talks with me-my deceased mother's sister,my aunt. Aunt A.'s 90 yrs old,an avid reader, crossword and 'jumble' puzzle do-er, she's 'sharp as a razor and gets tense w/me because I don't do the 'jumble'. Aunt A called me a couple of weeks ago:

Aunt A: " Louis, did your mother ever tell you about your grandfather's sister ?

me: "no."

Aunt A: "Your grandfather had a sister. She and her family, her husband and eight children were killed at Auschwitz."

me: "WHAT?"

Aunt A: "I thought you should know."

Ok, now I'm past the half-century mark and my mother's sister tells me this-I can only surmise that she wants other family to know. Yeah I know, this begs the question "why now?" Answer: Now because it's on her mind to pass on to me and probably others to NEVER FORGET.

What's this have to do with Independence Day ?-What's the matter?-don't you listen to the show?

Today we celebrate the Fourth of July-Independence Day. I'm NOT going into a lot of "independence from what" -go elsewhere for that.
I'm writing about the responsibility , the obligationS (intentional capitalization of the 'S')
of Freedom ,Democracy,Independence.

There've been many holocausts over 'the years' -too many.

So, why have we come so far from the precepts of the founding of this country ?

It depends-do we deify the "founders" and blame the evolution of this nation on we the people ?

Weren't the founders white,Christian Europeans? Did they REALLY intend this nation to be open to ALL ? or EXCEPT kikes,niggers and spics ?Oh, and the native Americans-push them towards the Pacific Ocean as far as we can then corral them. -hey, but there are MANY better qualified to write about that.

Let me stick to OBLIGATION .

The Founders were stuck up nails. " The nail that sticks up gets pounded down(right Nick?)."

230 years later-where are the nails that stick up?You know, that nail in your hardwood floor that catches your sock or stocking -REALLY getting your attention! Getting you from in-action to INaction! Where are they? Who are they?

Having you ever been pulling something uphill and lost a grip on it? -It starts rolling downhill faster and faster, you vs. gravity. Even if you're really fast and catch up to 'it' and get a hold of 'it', you need to slow it down and down to a stop-THEN start again uphill-this time pushing instead of pulling. (visions of Kramer and the rickshaw).

Have we lost a grip on OUR democracy?


Have we lost a grip on OUR republic?


Have we lost a grip on Our representative form of government?-is it rolling downhill?

OK, OUR representative form of government-do YOU feel represented-and if so-how so?

If you live here in OHIO, how do you feel represented by Timmy Ryan or Teddy Strickland?

We're so very trusting-and that would be a good thing,a GREAT thing if we if fact have TRUSTWORTHY representatives instead of self-interested reps.

Regular show listeners have heard me say this quite a number of times:"Don't worry about your government-your government doesn't worry about YOU!"

So, what's OUR OBLIGATION ? Nick will tell you that one nail stuck up is easy to pound down. The more nails sticking up-the more work to pound down. The more nails sticking up together-the more hammering or bigger hammer necessary to pound them down. We do, by the very nature of this democracy, have an obligation to stick up- to stand up and speak out when injustice is done-not just injustice to us, but to any and all of us,U.S.!

So where have we been on this 04 July 06 while this county's children are dying by the thousands in Iraq ? Dying in an undefined hence un-winnable war? How many souls injured,damaged , murdered by the traumatic stress of war ? How many blind?How many w/lost limbs? Lost minds? Hey-isn't this still a CHRISTIAN nation? "Thou shalt NOT stand idly by thy brother's blood?'" Where are the religious,the believers in this nation supposedly built on Judeo-Christian ethics? Where are the moral and ethical? Voluntarily pounded down?

People swept up and imprisoned off the shore of the United States and held for years w/o trial while we stand idly by ? -and that democracy we're spreading is what?

Oh, and by-the-why, what are we protecting back home from the "terrorists"?-a failing inner-city school system where in my town 40%+ of the children are "falling through the crack"?-EXCUSE ME-THAT'S A GAPING HOLE ! Also locally a dysfunctional criminal justice system that releases violent offenders back into the community as soon as they're "processed"?

In the 'cleansing' of this nation did we also wash away morals and ethics? Did we also wash away the rights AND OBLIGATIONS of WE THE PEOPLE ?
Has the ink of the Declaration of Independence,The Constitution,The Bill of Rights faded after so many years?

Yeah, I know, a couple of flimsy nails gather monthly and weakly at a closed US Federal Courthouse so that they call tell each other that they're fulfilling THEIR obligation as the blood continues to colour the sands of Iraq.

Sure there's a small nail that sticks in the craw of the Dysfunctional Criminal Justice Working(sic) Group that the group has forcibly removed before their unethical and illegal PRIVATE meeting. That nail just can't get others to stick up regardless of the pain suffered by this community.


Q) "Ok,Ok,OK,Louie-so what's all this have to do w/ Auschwitz , Independence Day and our obligations?"

Well, 230 years later, instead of following in The Founders, The Revolutionaries footsteps and obligations, we've all become Pastor Niemollers:

"They came for the Communists, and I didn't object - For I wasn't a Communist;
They came for the Socialists, and I didn't object - For I wasn't a Socialist;
They came for the labor leaders, and I didn't object - For I wasn't a labor leader;
They came for the Jews, and I didn't object - For I wasn't a Jew;
Then they came for me - And there was no one left to object."


- Martin Niemoller, German Protestant Pastor, 1892-1984




c. b.Free Radio,Ltd/Louie b. Free


04 July 06

3:05 p