Whatcha gonna do, take away my birthday?

I refused to be ruled by fear.

I refuse to let all their anti-American legislation to force me to walk away from what I do here. I will NOT let their arm-twisting and legal wrangling make me shed the part of me that is willing to speak freely.

I am an American. I am a child of the 1st Amendment.

I will not be told to hold my tongue. If I am, I will not obey. The right to speak freely, to criticize those who hold high places, to condemn those who commit heinous crimes in my name. I reserve this right without being called a traitor, guilty of sedition, or un-American.

I am none of these things. I'm a believer in America, in Americans, in the dream that was America.

I once saw a tee-shirt that said:

"If this is no longer the land of the free, I sure hope it's the home of the brave."

I find this an appropriate phrase, even though I spotted this shirt in the mid-eighties. Hell, I thought it was fairly appropriate then.

I was pretty radical in my youth. Not noisily so. But radical still the same. I had a feeling this stuff was coming, and tried to warn everyone throughout the Reagan years. I even pointed out the things that made me edgy during the Clinton administration.

Like the acceleration of the Drug War, which I saw as a way to test the public's response to attacks on the 4th Amendment in particular. How much liberty they'd be willing to trade for the illusion of security.

I won't bow under the pressure or shrink in fear from their bullying. I had my fill of bullying when I was a kid.

Never again.

After all, what are they going to do--take away my Birthday?

Fuck these nazis !

Beautifully said.
:kick:

... the only appropriate response is:

:applause:

Got to get a new sweatshirt for that one!
That should be a great slogan for all!

...as the ones who've helped to take your freedoms -- the SPINELESS mass media and the compliant, terror-driven COWARDS that believe every lie they spew -- are still there...

Make sure you get the quote right. There's a big difference.

which is March 20

three years ago, on my birthday
the day we went into Iraq
I went on a mission
to find an elegant gold peace symbol
to put on a gold chain and wear
and I wear it still

I can't belileve that was three years ago

I found it (how's this for irony)
in a kiosk in the mall
run by a middle eastern couple
we exchanged sad little looks

My Birthday's on 9/14... in 2001 I didn't really feel like celebrating three days later. No one did.

I hear ya about birthdays.