When in the course of human events...

"Liberty, according to metaphysics, is a self-determining power in an intellectual agent. It implies thought and choice and power." - John Adams

As I sit here, looking out the window of our apartment, I see Philadelphia, birthplace of American freedom and independence. Today is the Fourth of July, Independence Day, and I am genuinely awed at the history before me.

Many complain that the United States has lost its way, that it has become corrupt, a shadow of its former glory. Some suggest impeachment, some suggest boycotting the system entirely. Some even go so far as to suggest flying the flag upside-down in protest of how things are.

Our Founding Fathers knew the troubles that had plagued civilization since the dawn of humanity - Greece, Rome, the Holy Roman Empire, England; they knew that there were mistakes to be made, hardships to endure. They knew, though, that the only way to prevail would be to gather a representation of America - not all lawyers, architects, statesmen; but also cobblers, farmers, and working men. These men represented the soul of America given flesh, allowing them not only to give birth to a fledgling nation-state, but to nudge it out of the nest and see it soar into a future of uncertainty, one of freedom and opportunity that no other nation had yet seen. But it is that sense of gambling that continues to make this nation great: as Bismark once remarked, "a special Providence takes care of fools, drunks, and the United States of America."

So today we celebrate our Independence Day. Today we take a moment to enjoy the fact that we have liberty in which to celebrate that notion - independence. Most of us take that for granted, as we have always had this freedom; but despite all of its problems, the United States of America is still the greatest nation the world has yet seen. Today is the celebration of America's birth, of her independence and freedom, and what it means to every single citizen of that republic. I am, as ever, eternally grateful for what living under her wing allows me to think, say, and do: truly, the Land of the Free and the Home of the Brave.