Happy Fourth of July

Independence Day so a lot of people get the day off including yours truly. Around here we are going to fall off the diet regimen for the day as I scored some pork spare ribs at the ridiculously low price of $2 a pound. Low and slow ribs over a hardwood fire are on the menu for today as well as some fresh veges from the garden including heirloom tomatoes, of course. We had a nice little rain last night and more thunderstorms are predicted for this afternoon so I'll the get ribs on in a bit so that they will have the requisite 6 hours or so. Everybody have a safe and fun holiday.

Oh, and as Bryan at Why Now? reminds us...yes we declared our independence way back in 1776 but it wasn't until 1964 and the Civil Rights Act that a lot of Americans were actually approaching "independence" and the reality is that we still aren't fully there. A lot of folks are suffering from the economy, ongoing discrimination and other injustices and while the shackles aren't iron they bind the souls just as firmly. Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness taken in its full measure means the freedom from want for the basic necessities, freedom from the fear that one illness can destroy your family economically forever. The founding principles of our country, while drowned in the insanity of  today's political chicken dance, were that all citizens are vested with inalienable rights and that with those rights comes a responsibility to contribute to ones best ability in the governance and success of our society. Working for the common good, helping our fellow countrymen realize the best that our system can offer is what this is all about. The escalating economic disparity and insanity in the country is making the dreams of our fathers and grandfathers a more distant goal each day but they are not out of site yet. Maybe today would be a good day to remember the dreams and think about what we might do to bring them a little closer.