Working Up

by Dwayne Phillips

This is the third or fourth time I wish us all a happy birthday.

Happy birthday America.

We are free to address our grievances to those who govern us. That one happens so often and freely that we forget someone had to put it in the Constitution. Congress cannot stop us from complaining. If we could jail anyone who complains, well you know how that wouldn’t work out well.

We still struggle with the freedom from search and seizure. At least there is something on paper that allows us to push back.

There is this right to due process. We do pretty well with that one. It keeps down the urge to “string ’em up right now.”

And we sure are glad that if we do something here, we won’t be tried by folks over there. Folks over there are nice folks, but they don’t live here and don’t understand here very well. And, by the way, folks here don’t understand there very well, either.

If we don’t like a judge, we can have a jury instead.

Then comes the tenth amendment. We haven’t figure that one out, yet. We are trying.

All in all, a pretty nice place to have a birthday.