SOMETHING TO THINK ABOUT THIS WEEKEND…

Fifty-six men signed the Declaration of Independence, but it’s not often that we hear about what they endured because of their mutual pledge to stand up for our Independence from Britain.

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 in the Revolutionary War, another had two sons captured. Nine of the fifty-six fought and died from wounds or the hardships of the Revolutionary War.

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 his properties to pay his debts, and died in rags.

Thomas McKean was so hounded by the British that he was forced to move his family almost constantly. He served in Congress without pay, and his family was kept in hiding. His possessions were taken from him and poverty was his reward.

Vandals or soldiers or both, looted the properties of Ellery, Clymer, Hall, 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. The owner 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 of New Jersey was driven from his wife’s bedside as she was dying. Their 13 children fled for their lives. His fields and 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.

Lewis Morris and Philip Livingston suffered similar fates.

What kind of sacrifices do we see from those in our present Congress and Senate? They rarely take the time to read legislation before they vote on it, because after all…that would mean they couldn’t deny that they knew about the tax breaks they gave their favorite campaign contributor. Many of them line their pockets with money from special interest groups such as credit card companies, mortgage companies, or big oil companies. Some use taxpayer money so they can go on boondoggle trips with their families or they “investigate” golf courses all over the world.

How often does our Congress actually work? Below, Uncle Jay will explain ….

Many citizens of today take their liberties for granted and for some reason, are not opposed to having their rights and freedoms taken away from them, as long as it’s being taken away from the political party they are affiliated with. Isn’t it about time we start holding our elected officials accountable for their actions…whether they be Republican, Democrat or Independent?

“We must all hang together, or, assuredly, we shall all hang separately.” -Benjamin Franklin at the signing of the Declaration of Independence, July 4, 1776