4th of July

Veronaut

New Member
I just wanted to wish everyone a happy 4th of July! In America, we often take our liberties for granted, which is truly a shame, for it is these liberties that truly make us great. For those of us who have seen different parts of the world know that you will not find any other country with our combination of freedom & abundance of riches. We are truly blessed, & dare I say "one nation under God."

It is because of these freedoms & the abundance of riches that we are able to enjoy the common interest that brings us together in this forum, aviation. We all enjoy that feeling of "freedom" that taking flight gives us. We celebrate that freedom every flight at the moment of rotation, & that in itself is a legacy handed down to us by two great Americans, Orville & Wilbur Wright. Where else in this world is it possible to enjoy the freedom of flight as we do here in the United States of America? Nowhere, of course, this is why the rest of the world sends it’s pilots to us to train. What is the state of General Aviation in China? What is the price of avgas in Germany? How many days of VFR are there in England? Is it any wonder therefore that the flight ops of our flight schools are so full of foreigners with a yearning to fly?

For some, none among us I’m sure, airplane noise is an annoyance. For me, it is a sound of liberty. Did anyone else recognize the eerie silence in our skies in the days following 9/11? It really struck me. It took a period of national tragedy to contemplate on what we pilots in America take for granted every day. But it doesn’t take a major act of terrorism to threaten our ability to take flight. Every day around our great Land, airports are threatened with closing by others who do not share our enthusiasm for aviation. This strikes me as incredible when other airports are struggling to reopen fully in the post 9/11 airspace restrictions. I do not begrudge the people who would shut down our airports the right to try to do so, but we too must make our voices heard! Vigilance in the defense of freedom is the hallmark of the patriot. As we all take time to enjoy aviation, we should also take time to help perpetuate it. Join a pilot’s organization, volunteer, speak up at a city council meeting. Thank the people who do so!

Today celebrate our Independence! America is, as President Reagan suggested, that “shining city upon a hill.” It is the beacon of freedom for the world, & blessed are we who call it home.

God Bless America!

‘naut
 
Right on Veronaut,
In the air conditioning business, I have had the opportunity to travel to the Caribbean, Central and South America. No matter how beautiful the Island I visit, I always kiss the ground when I get back to the good old U.S.of A. I for one do not take this country for granted. Happy 4th everyone, and thank a Veteran for your freedom.

Turk

----------> dont drink and fly <-----------
 
Veronaut,

Amen, well said, I'm sure most of us feel the same way. From a personal stand point, right after the twin towers went down last september, I put on my navy uniforms and spent 3 weeks straight along with the FDNY,FEMA,NYPD and hundred of other rescues workers in the disaster area, recovering the victims of this tragedy. I was working at the trade center the night before and when the towers fell, all I could think of was, all those inocents that just died. Those 3 weeks left me with a very deep emotional anger, and impression of how vulnerable we truly are. The hardest part for me was, when we whare on the line (Bucket Brigade) and they passed down a body bag, then for every one on the line it got very silent, all we did is watched as someone put an american flag on top, we saluted and kept on digging. but this guy had sacrificed his life for others. It gives a whole new new meaning to what the american spirit is all about.

Guy's, I'm sorry to bring this up, but I wanted to share my experiance with you, this is supposed be a happy note, but for a lot of us, we are just thanking god, that we are able to come home to our families, and be gratefull that we can.

The events since last sept, and after a dozen funerals, it left me to reflect on my life, and every moment that I spend with my wife and son.

I would like to take a moment to recognize the sacrifices made by all those Firefighter, Police, Men and Women in uniform that died in the line of duty.

Freedom has a price, God Bless and
Happy 4th of July, America.

Best Regards,
Heat2151
 
Nice posts everyone. I have to say I was watching the fireworks last night, and it struck me looking around how diverse this country really is. I think, considering the world we have today, its amazing to have so many different people from so many backgrounds in one country in harmony. Sure, we have our occasional problems with diversity, but, if you think about it this nation is very united. Just look no further then the middle east, were hate is so strong that people will kill men, women, and worst of all children only because they have different beliefs. To me that is almost surreal--its hard to believe I live in the same world as people like that. I look out sometimes and think about how there are people out there that would love to blow up my plane, or have me and my family gone, just because we are "american". I don't think me, or most americans, could imagine hating someone for who they are or what they believe, not to mention killing them and their families. It would never cross my mind. I think that alone is a credit to America and those that had those visions when creating this nation.

So I am thankful as well that we can all live together, work together, and live in prosperity in this country. I think the reason other nations hate us, besides our beliefs, is our prosperity and freedom. What they fail to grasp in those war-torn, embattled, poor nations is that the reason we got this way is a history of freedom and democracy... everything is connected. Happy 4th all and happy flying.
 
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