We are fortunate to live in this great country!!!!

I know that there are problems in this country but for the most part they are pretty minor compared to those that many countries have.

We do not have to worry about our personal safety on a daily basis.

We can own our personal property pretty much unimpeded.

Most of us can afford to have hobbies(IE old tractors) to enjoy.

Even with many flaws, our health care system is a modern day marvel. Many of us have had health issues that would have killed us in times gone by. Even those with serious heath concerns usually have a better quality of life than they would have in many other countries.

So we, as a group, have much to be thankful for. The freedom, that this day celebrates, is a real treasure that we all need to enjoy to its fullest.

So I wish you all the best in your different endeavors. I like how there are so many different opinions and likes on this great board. IT is interesting to see the many different things that people have and are using/playing with.

IT is interesting to see things from across the country and world. This forum allows us to see things that we never would see in person. To be in contact with people with similar interests from around the world.

So Thanks to you all for sharing little bits of your life and times with us.

Well said JD , and thank YOU for being an active member of our YT family.

Happy 4th of July !


:>)

JD
I agree. This country is far from perfect, but it is way ahead of whoever is in second place.
My Mother was 3 1/2 yr old, her sister about 6, & brother about 1 when the family immigrated. Grandpa never let on where he got his information, but told us many times about the trip.
He said that there was going to be a big war, & when it was over, he wanted to be on the winning side. So in the winter of 1909 he packed up his family & left the Germany/Poland border area & set sail for America.
The war started in 1914, & when it ended in 1918, they were sitting high, dry, & safe on the winning side, in the Cedar Rapids Ia area.
He also told of the end of the boat trip. Seems that the Captain pulled up short in New York harbor during the night. When the rising sun started to shine on the top of Lady Liberty, he laid long & loud on the boat whistle. Everybody on board ran out on deck in their nightshirts, cheering as loud as they could, they had safely made it to the good old USA.
He had a bit of trouble with the language change, so by the time he & Grandma got their citizenship, the kids had already become of age & got theirs as adults.
Willie

Wise words, JD. We enjoyed the day with extended family at the lake. Thank you to all the Vets that kept us free all these years.

Larry

I think its the things we take for granted that a majority of the people in the World can only dream of having we should be thankful.I have a spring up on the mountain on my farm and I pipe the water down to my garden it runs 24/7 about 4 gallons per minute most of the time I just run it back into the creek that comes from the spring but also use it to water the garden and livestock.Just this would be a Godsend to many people to have a source of clean pure water to drink as many people have to drink out of what amounts to sewers.Also property ownership and
personal freedoms but we all need to keep in mind that the cost of freedom is to constantly battle those that would take them away for their own benefit.

Very well said JD Seller! As I stood in my driveway with my wife and two girls twirling sparklers I couldnt help but think about the sacrifice a lot of service members went through just to give us that freedom.

I couldn't agree more. Thanks for that reminder.

I think very frequently how fortunate I am that I was born here in the US, and Over my lifetime I have donated thousands of hours to public service. On the other hand I think almost daily of our national debt situation and how artificial our lifestyle is because our government is borrowing so much more everyday, and we spend more on debt service than anything else. how long can it be before it all crashes down? I can expect that I may be gone before it happens but I expect it to be very difficult for my children and grandchildren.

I also loveum this country.
That is why I would rather hear people say,Yah-ta-hey
Instead of hearing Vaya-con-Dios

Amen, Harvey! I spent about a year working with some Navajos in Las Vegas. They were very interesting and honorable people, very good workers,

JD,...... AMEN!
Later,
John A.

I have to agree with everything you say. Now we have the people who seem to have power who would destroy everything we have here. To what end??? That's the part I cannot bring myself to understand. Do they not understand or know that most any other place in the world will not allow people like that to exist if they are critical or their government? The very freedoms they would strike down are the ones that allow them to be here and complain. It's a mystery to me...

My folks came primarily from Germany in the 1840's. Legally! By way of Tennessee and Kentucky they ended up in Texas. But, evidently my ancestor was prolific and there are branches traceable to him living in states all across the southern half of the country. By definition so to speak, we ARE a nation of immigrants, but the early ones became Americans first, with ties to the homelands that make us what we are. Now we have the ones who would make us like the homeland they run from. Again I ask why? If it was so bad they had to leave, why destroy what we have here to make it like where they come from?

I am thankful every day while watching the news, that I don't have to worry about being blown up or killed for what I believe, or being compelled to do some kind of "honor killing" lest I be persecuted by my peers.

Yes, this is the greatest nation on earth, and we need to recognize and protect it and set the pace for the rest of the world. A good place to start is changing the dependence on foreign oil. We have it here. We have the ability, for now. If the naysayers were really serious about environmental concerns they wouldn't consider buying foreign oil for the same reasons.

I'm side tracking here, sorry, my flag is red white and blue and I fly it proudly.