cannabisnews.com: DrugSense Weekly June 30, 2000 #155





DrugSense Weekly June 30, 2000 #155
Posted by FoM on June 30, 2000 at 12:04:15 PT
Feature Article
Source: DrugSense
Just a little food for thought as the 4th approaches.... Have you ever wondered what happened to the 56 men who signed the Declaration of Independence?Five signers were captured by the British as traitors, and tortured before they died.Twelve had their homes ransacked and burned.
Two lost their sons serving in the Revolutionary Army; another had two sons captured.Nine of the 56 fought and died from wounds or hardships of the Revolutionary War.They signed and they pledged their lives, their fortunes, and their sacred honor.What kind of men were they? Twenty-four were lawyers and jurists. Eleven were merchants, nine were farmers and large plantation owners; men of means, well educated. But they signed the Declaration of Independence knowing full well that the penalty would be death if they were captured.Carter Braxton of Virginia, a wealthy planter and trader, saw his ships swept from the seas by the British Navy. He sold his home and properties to pay his debts, and died in rags. Thomas McKeam was so hounded by the British that he was forced to move his family almost constantly. He served in the Congress without pay, and his family was kept in hiding. His possessions were taken from him, and poverty was his reward.Vandals or soldiers looted the properties of Dillery, Hall, Clymer, Walton, Gwinnett, Heyward, Ruttledge, and Middleton.At the battle of Yorktown, Thomas Nelson Jr, noted that the British General Cornwallis had taken over the Nelson home for his headquarters. He quietly urged General George Washington to open fire. The home was destroyed, and Nelson died bankrupt.Francis Lewis had his home and properties destroyed. The enemy jailed his wife, and she died within a few months.John Hart was driven from his wife's bedside as she was dying. Their 13 children fled for their lives. His fields and his gristmill were laid to waste. For more than a year he lived in forests and caves, returning home to find his wife dead and his children vanished. A few weeks later he died from exhaustion and a broken heart.Norris and Livingston suffered similar fates.Such were the stories and sacrifices of the American Revolution. These were not wild-eyed, rabble-rousing ruffians. They were soft-spoken men of means and education. They had security, but they valued liberty more. Standing tall, straight, and unwavering, they pledged: "For the support of this declaration, with firm reliance on the protection of the divine providence, we mutually pledge to each other, our lives, our fortunes, and our sacred honor."They gave you and me a free and independent America. The history books never told you a lot about what happened in the Revolutionary War. We didn't fight just the British. We were British subjects at that time and we fought our own government!Some of us take these liberties so much for granted, but we shouldn't. So, take a few minutes while enjoying your 4th of July holiday and silently thank these patriots. It's not much to ask for the price they paid.Remember: freedom is never free! It's time we get the word out that patriotism is NOT a sin, and the Fourth of July has more to it than beer, picnics, and baseball games.Click the link to read all of DrugSense Weekly's Update News:http://drugsense.org/dsw/2000/ds00.n155.htmlCannabisNews MapInc. Archives:http://cannabisnews.com/news/list/MAP.shtml
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Comment #2 posted by MikeEEEEE on June 30, 2000 at 19:03:44 PT
Brave Men
Evil always destroys itself, however, until it does brave people sometimes suffer.Suffering will continue until this war is lost. People with vision already know it's lost. Sick people continue to make mistakes more than a few times, very sick people never learn from mistakes. Drug warriors never learn.
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Comment #1 posted by dddd on June 30, 2000 at 18:02:43 PT
the Fourth
These patriots that had their lives destroyed by signing the Declaration,would be appalled and disgusted if they were to see how dimented the government is now,and how limited and oppressive ,"independence",has become. The 4th of July fizzles out when I think of all the peaceful,innocent citizens that are under lock and key.From their cellblocks,they will hear the fireworks,but I consider "Independence day",to be heavily tainted with a hollow,false glory,when I think of all the good people who are rotting in jail. It's not easy to be patriotic,when the red glare is from a rocket that is aimed at you.Our flag is still there,but it is quite tattered,and no longer waves like it should,here in the land of the kinda free.....dddd
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