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-ftappatjannotfe JJetogEstablished 1877 An Independent Newspaper Published Every Thursday Arthur W. Arundel, Publisher Mary Ann Kuhn, Editor Peter W. Arundel, President Bill Walsh, Executive Editor Jan Clatterbuck, Office Manager/Editorial Assistant To Subscribe Phone (540) 675-3338 BY MAIL: $34.32 a year in Rappahannock County Back Copies: Recent 2 months, 75 cents Older copies to 1960, $5 (as available) Office: 249 Main Street, Washington, Va. Mailing address: P.O. Box 59 Washington, Va. 22747-0059 Telephone (540) 675-3338 Fax: (540) 675-3088 e-mail: mkuhn@timespapers.com Hours: 8:30 a m. to 5 p.m., Monday-Friday — ' Member, Audit Bureau of Circulations —. www.rappnews.com THURSDAY, JUNE 25, 2009
Fourth of July
A week from Saturday, this nation will celebrate its 233rd year of independence from Britain. It will be a day of picnics and fireworks, watermelon, lemonade, and family fun. There is a phrase that’s bandied about that goes, “Freedom is not free.” Lives of millions of servicemen over the course of our history have been given in defense of liberty. But it goes much deeper than that. The founders of this country crafted a government that would work only with the intelligent participation of those assenting to be governed by it. Being free from tyranny means stepping up to fulfill responsible civic duties, first and foremost of these is to vote. There is also a social responsibility we have to each other. We do not live in isolation, there are no more frontiers to which we can run to avoid the often difficult realities that manifest in a modem, complex society.
We must work out differences together, and to do this requires consensus - an often tedious, difficult and time consuming process. There are no easy answers, but one thing we are certain of is that no single person, group or ideology is completely right all the time. To assume so, that one is right and others are not, is to disrespect the very nature of our democracy, and it is the root of tyranny. Dictatorships are bom when apathy and self-righteousness stride into destructive anarchy side by side. There are no easy solutions, there is no panacea that will satisfy every demand, there is not a single belief, that if written into law or imposed through fiat, will somehow solve all our problems. What it takes is community, cooperation, understanding, tolerance and patience. Give these a chance and maybe this great nation can endure for another 233 years. Here in Rappahannock, we are fortunate to have a place to come together July 4 as a community to celebrate: The Thornton Hill Race Course just off 522 outside of Sperryville. Gates will open at 1 p.m., and there will be lots to enjoy, including a spectacular fireworks show. And it benefits the Sperryville Volunteer Fire Department. So, on July 4, we hope everyone will take a little time to reaffirm their commitment to representative democracy, to soften our positions and consider that our neighbors are not our enemies. There are plenty of those in the world today already.
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