Independence Day Propaganda, by
Anthony Gregory, 4 Jul 2011
Argues that the American Revolution, albeit of a libertarian flavor, had several unsavory shortcomings both before and after 4 July 1776
July Fourth celebrations did not become tacky or hypocritical only recently ... The word "holiday"—holy day—clearly has a religious connotation. It is a day set aside for sacred observation. Those who regard Independence Day revisionism as profane should ask themselves which religion is sacrosanct to them. The Fourth of July is ultimately a celebration of the American nation-state's birthday. It is a ritual in the U.S. civic religion. This is why it has been a militarist tradition since 1777, when the occasion was marked in Philadelphia with 13-gun salutes and imagery of the battle flag ...
Why Are We Afraid To Be Free?, by
Butler Shaffer, 27 Nov 2001
Examines the question of how to bring about freedom in individuals' lives, discussing how government influences people to be in conflicted states and how one must look within oneself and act accordingly to begin to be "free"
How many of us have minds that are free of conflict? Since most of our holidays have long been co-opted by the state in furtherance of its interests–even Independence Day has been turned into a celebration of state militarism!–our minds are subjected to a steady iteration of how those who have fought in wars were "fighting for our freedom." But is this true? Those who have been conscripted to fight on behalf of the state were not able to defend their own freedom: how can they be said to defend the freedoms of the rest of us?
