“My Two Cents”
By Andy Sutton

7/4/2006

I had a reader email and ask me to do a column on Independence Day. There are about a zillion directions that one could take with regards to approaching the topic of Independence, and I fought hard to resist the urge to just dive into an oily, sonorous lecture on Ben Franklin, John Adams, and perhaps even Patrick Henry. 230 years ago, we declared our Independence, but it would take another 7 years after that to actually achieve it. I thought it might be beneficial on this Independence Day to spend a little time reflecting on what Independence really means to me and to invite you to do the same. I'll publish on my website www.my2centsonline.com any reflections that you care to share with regard to this or any other topic.

Every July 4th, I try to take a few hours and watch a favorite musical of mine, 1776. It is an irreverent, comical analysis with an injection of gravity here and there to remind the viewer of the import of those times and events. As I watch John Adams dancing up and down the stairs of Carpenter's Hall in Philadelphia, I can't help but wonder what must have been going through the minds of those great patriots as they crafted what is perhaps the greatest document mankind has ever known. What motivated them? Surely, it wasn't money or the knowledge that they'd be remembered in the history books. Fame perhaps? Somehow, I doubt it.

Lacking a better descriptor, these guys, pure and simple, had courage; miles of it. In any event, they, and the thousands of Continental Army regulars who fought gave us a new nation. "A Republic", as Ben Franklin so wisely stated, "If you can keep it".

Which leads to my main area of reflection on this Independence Day. Freedom, and independence are a journey, not a destination. You don't simply become free and call it a day. Freedom runs contrary to the darkest whims of the human mind, at times a nuisance, at other times intolerable. It is no accident that freedom has found itself on many battlefields throughout human history, always the underdog, occasionally the victor. However, to the victor go not just the spoils, but so does the duty to be vigilant, watchful and ever-mindful of the responsibility that freedom carries.

Andy Sutton holds an MBA in Economics from Moravian College and is a member of Omicron Delta Epsilon International Honor Society in Economics.

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