|
Written by Belinda Z.
|
|
Tuesday, 26 May 2009 08:22 |
http://freedomgen.com/images/stories/flag.jpg In his Sunday radio address, President Barack Obama spoke of the national Memorial Day and of its significance to the men and women serving in the militia today. What he clearly failed to understand, however, is how the powers of war have been abused, contradicting the Constitution he swore to uphold and defend, as evidenced by his remark: "I will send our servicemen and women into harm’s way only when it is necessary.” This statement can be broken down into two parts for analysis:
1. "I will send our servicemen and women..." Note the emphasis on the sentence's subject: I. So the President dictates when we ought to employ the national militia? Not according to Article 1, Section 8 of the Constitution: "Congress shall have power to...declare war." Can the facts be given more simply? Unfortunately, ever since the Korean War, Democratic and Republican presidents alike have simply followed the trend of their predecessors and sent out our servicemen and women all over the world.
2. "...into harm's way only when it is necessary." With a worldwide total of 195 countries, U.S. troops currently occupy 150 of those. Since we can't really have that many enemies (at least not yet), what in the world created these staggering figures? Is it really necessary to occupy that many places? Even when the causes seem legitimate—as in the case of more recent events such as Vietnam and the so-called War on Terrorism—a closer investigation proves that these affairs could have been easily avoided had we simply adopted a non-interventionist foreign policy like the one the founding fathers recommended long ago.
As we honor Memorial Day, we run the risk of incidentally affirming and accepting the decisions made by recent administrations about our military powers. Just because we have soldiers doesn't mean that we ought to simply deploy them wherever we like, which at this point has been going on for decades. At the local city parade I saw a series of banners declaring that we once fought to defend our freedoms; now we fight to gain them back. By returning to a constitutional, liberty-promoting foreign policy we will not only give back Memorial Day its due honor—we will make every day an opportunity to reflect on our national pride.
Writing for fun and for profit since childhood, Belinda Z. is a homeschooled high school student who is a strong advocate for constitutionally-limited government and hopes to make a difference in politics someday.
|
|
Last Updated on Tuesday, 26 May 2009 08:47 |
|
Written by Mary Benoit
|
|
Thursday, 14 May 2009 10:52 |
http://freedomgen.com/images/stories/the%20gang.jpg
As I announced last week, I would like to start highlighting examples of volunteerism from all across America. For this first entry, however, I am going to highlight a young lady who took her passion for helping others a place where many young women would not venture alone. That place is a small country called Nepal.
After graduating high school Maggie Doyne took a “gap” year before starting college and set off to travel the world. After backpacking through various countries Maggie found herself in Nepal where she was deeply touched by the kindness of the people, and saddened by the poverty that surrounded the war-torn country.
Maggie wanted to do something to help the children who were orphaned and homeless. Upon returning home to Mendham, New Jersey, Maggie shared her experience with family, friends and community leaders. The support she received was overwhelming! Soon, Maggie found herself using her life savings (money earned from babysitting) to purchase land in Surkhet, Nepal and began constructing what is now called the Kopila Valley Children’s Home.
Since its completion, Maggie has become a “mother” to over 20 children who now live at the Children’s Home and enrolled dozens of others into the school sponsored by her program. She also established her own non-profit organization called BlinkNow which raises awareness of poverty and encourages young people to get involved because “in the blink of an eye, we can all make a difference.”
Readers may follow Maggie on her frequently-updated blog which contain videos and pictures of life in Nepal.
It is truly amazing the difference that one person can make when vision, organization and perseverance are all in alignment!
|
|
Last Updated on Thursday, 14 May 2009 16:05 |
|
Volunteering Across America |
 |
 |
 |
|
Written by Mary Benoit
|
|
Tuesday, 05 May 2009 06:49 |
http://www.freedomgen.com/images/stories/volunteers.jpg Summer is coming and to many that means extra time for outdoor activities! Some of you will undoubtedly have summer jobs that will limit your ability to go and do as you please, but for most of you, the summer months are open for any number of recreational or sport activities.
During these precious months of “freedom” one thing inevitably creeps in and occupies our time and destroys a little of the summer vacation appeal that we so desperately long for during the school year.
Boredom!
If any of you have suffered from this condition you have likely heard of such phrases as:
"Do you need ME to find something for you to do?"
"I’m throwing that T.V. out on the curb…"
"Can’t you find SOMETHING more productive to do with your time?"
"It’s 11:30…why are you still in bed?"
Sound familiar? If so, you probably encountered an unhappy parent or two at one point in your life who made it their mission to find “more productive” things for you to do with your time.
So how to you cure the summer-time blahs? One suggestion I would like to propose is volunteering in your area. There are literally dozens of things young adults can do to volunteer in their local communities from religious-based activities to political campaigning.
People choose to volunteer for a number of reasons. Whether it is because they are working for a cause they believe in, gaining experience for a desired career path, or just because it feels good to help out, there is something for everyone when it comes to volunteering.
For the foreseeable future I would like to highlight examples of volunteerism across America. For that reason Freedom Generation will frequently highlight worthy examples and share them with our readers.
Additionally, we will explore different ways to volunteer that will meet various lifestyles and talents.
Do you have a volunteer story that you would like to share? Please send it to Mary Benoit at
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
. Freedom Generation wishes to capture the spirit of volunteerism that has always been a staple in the success of our nation. |
|
Last Updated on Friday, 29 May 2009 10:36 |
|
Legally Illegal Wire-Tapping |
|
|
|
|
Written by Belinda Z.
|
|
Wednesday, 22 April 2009 12:07 |
http://www.freedomgen.com/images/stories/man_on_phone.jpg Last Wednesday The New York Times released a story about how the National Security Agency (NSA) has intercepted millions of private emails and phone calls from innocent, law-abiding American citizens over the past several months. Although the NSA officials claimed, “when inadvertent mistakes are made, we take it very seriously and work immediately to correct them," one cannot help but wonder whether or not if there was some systematic infiltration rather than an unintentional blunder. Congress is on the case, examining the extent of the damage. Nonetheless, President Barack Obama has released his own statement concerning eavesdropping on Americans:
While I believe strongly in transparency and accountability, I also believe that in a dangerous world, the United States must sometimes carry out intelligence operations and protect information that is classified for purposes of national security. I have already fought for that principle in court and will do so again in the future.
This said principle is none other than the same order our previous executive issued violating the Fourth Amendment of the Constitution.
The New York Times lightens up the gravity of the issue by claiming that the main problem seems to lie in the NSA's technical difficulty in distinguishing overseas communications from domestic transmissions. Readers, on the other hand, debate and disagree in over 200 comments received on the Times’ website. One man in Sydney, Australia sarcastically stated, "To the operative in charge I am sorry to be so boring but if you need any information about me please just email [my email address here] and I would be happy to bore you to tears with the details over coffee." Another user quotes Benjamin Franklin's wisdom: "They who can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety, deserve neither liberty nor safety."
Perhaps the most dangerous statement issued so far comes from the authors of the Times report: "There was an 'overcollection' of domestic e-mails and calls of Americans by the N.S.A., officials said. Comments are no longer being accepted."
Writing for fun and for profit since childhood, Belinda Z. is a homeschooled high school student who is a strong advocate for constitutionally-limited government and hopes to make a difference in politics someday.
|
|
Last Updated on Wednesday, 22 April 2009 13:06 |
|
Written by Nathan Prahst
|
|
Thursday, 09 April 2009 13:30 |
|
At the recent Campaign for Liberty Conference in St. Louis, one of keynote speakers was Judge Andrew Napolitano. A frequent co-host of the TV show "Fox and Friends" and recent author of the book “A Nation of Sheep”, Judge Napolitano is seen as one of the most passionate advocates and defenders for liberty and of the Constitution in America today. As the Judge was introduced at the Conference, he was greeted by applause and then by a standing ovation. Napolitano focused his speech upon what he called his “First Principles”, the first principle being that everyone is a unique individual created by God. The second principle is that every individual is greater than the state. And the third and final principle is that government's only function is to ensure the preservation, protection, and defense of freedom and the Constitution. As Judge Napolitano iterated each of these principles, the crowd counteracted with applause. The Judge further stated that these three principles are to be considered as natural law, supreme over any form of government. Napolitano also underscored the freedom of speech and that the Founding Fathers meant it to be a natural right. Judge Napolitano then began to articulate how we as a country have wandered away from that right and have instead begun to set barriers on speech. To illustrate his point, the Judge used the example of the 315 page long Patriot Act, exclaiming that the Act has set impediments upon our freedom of speech. At the Liberty Conference, Andrew Napolitano proved just how fervent he is for liberty to reign in America. The Judge did not hold back as he threw criticism at both the Bush and Obama Administrations and the instances of how both Administrations contributed to tearing down the U.S. Constitution. He boldly stated the mistakes that America has made. Yet, that we as a nation possess the ability to overcome such obstacles is the very essence of what sets the United States apart from any other nation in the world. And it is promising to know that Judge Andrew Napolitano is helping lead the charge as we Americans strive to let liberty reign supreme in America. To watch the video of Judge Napolitano’s enthusiastic delivery at the Campaign for Liberty conference, click here.
Nathan Prahst is a 20-year-old college student who resides in Strongsville, OH. Nathan is actively involved with local politics and is currently running for the Strongsville City Council – At Large. Visit Nathan's website by clicking here. |
|
A "Troubling Security" Administration? |
|
|
|
|
Written by Belinda Z.
|
|
Wednesday, 08 April 2009 12:39 |
March 29th was a relatively normal evening for Steve Bierfeldt, director of development for the popular grassroots organization Campaign for Liberty (C4L) which has been founded on the grounds of the constitutional ideas and theories that 2008 Presidential candidate Ron Paul ran on. Steve was returning from a C4L conference in St. Louis and passed through the Lambert-St. Louis International Airport. Despite his compliance to all the standard security checks, one TSA official (Transportation Security Administration) grew suspicious over the amount of cash and checks Steve carried with him. The money was innocent enough — The Washington Times reported that the money was "received from ticket sales, bumper stickers, books and other conference-related items." But what resulted was a half-hour's detainment by the TSA and St. Louis police and a disturbing interview caught on Steve's handy iPhone (to listen, click here).
Specifically, the TSA agent wanted to know who Steve worked for, why he was in St. Louis and why he was carrying so much money. Steve was insistent on asking, "Am I required by law to answer the question?" Strangely enough, the officers continuously dodged his question, a fact that Mr. Bierfeldt adamantly refused to ignore. The circular dialogue between the parties incited much frustration and rudeness on the part of the law enforcement, although Steve himself remained calm. Unfortunately, the recent strategic report published by the Missouri Information and Analysis Center (MIAC), which indicated in no unclear terms that supporters of candidates like Chuck Baldwin and Ron Paul were essentially enemies of the state, could perhaps have influenced the interrogation of Mr. Bierfedlt. In the end Steve was free to go and he managed to catch his flight. Currently the TSA is investigating the inappropriate conduct of the agent who claimed, "I need to check this out with my supervisor before I’m comfortable letting him [Bierfedlt] through my checkpoint.”
Some may consider this scenario as isolated and extreme, but there is no guarantee that other ordinary citizens just like Mr. Bierfedlt will never have to undergo similar "special" searches at the airport. As Ron Paul told The Washington Times:
"People need to know their rights, and law enforcement officers, even if their intentions are noble, should never be allowed to bully and detain law-abiding citizens. Steve's experience is a prime example of how our liberties are in real peril and that we need to wake up to what's going on in our country."
The Missouri state government has since retracted the MIAC report, issued February 20th 2009. For further details plus the actual document see William F. Jasper's article by clicking here. |
|
|
