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Week of March 15 – March 21, 2013
From the Publisher’s Desk: Red Dawn
by Chad Beatty Saratoga TODAY
Last weekend I decided to checkout Red Dawn, a remake of a 1984 film which featured the late Patrick Swayze. Although the characters and the times were different, the theme was the same: the U.S. is under attack by foreign aggressors. Within days the majority of the population was forced into camps or methodically tracked to ensure order. But fear not, because unfortunately for the occupiers, small groups of rag-tag patriots, many of whom are H.S. children, band together and save the day. Here is where the story gets interesting; the aggressors in the movie are the North Koreans. If you haven’t been following the news lately (in real life), North Korea has just threatened a nuclear
strike against America and threatened to end the 60-year-old armistice that ended the Korean War. Coincidence? Odd? Scary? Yes to all of the above. While the idea of foreign aggressors taking over the United States by flying in and parachuting throughout our country is farfetched, sometimes fact can be stranger than fiction. When the movie was over, I envisioned all of us, you, me and other patriots throughout the country, banding together to save America. Whether from foreign or domestic aggressors, I am confident that patriots will rise up to save a nation. However, there are some problems with my futuristic vision. Here is an overview: As we scrambled to unite our forces and prepare to defend our homes, we would be severely outgunned as we loaded our limited semi-automatic weapons with a maximum of seven rounds. For every 30-round clip the enemy fired, we would need to reload four times. As if that didn’t put us at a tactical disadvantage, finding ammunition will be a bigger issue as the
President has now enacted restrictions and tracking programs on any non-government ammunition purchases. He has also limited the amount of magazines a household can possess, so reloading, and damaged magazines, will compound any problems. To further exacerbate the issue, the government has taken the infamous soft drink size limitations from New York City and expanded it to all drinks and food items, so gathering supplies has become a problem throughout the country. Luckily, a limited water supply is not an issue because the government has had us on lowflow shower heads and toilets for years. (I still have problems getting all the soap rinsed off.)
Okay, you get the picture. Here’s the bottom line: freedom and liberty are precious. Every time the government reaches into your pocket, whether for your money or your freedom, a small part of us and a small part of liberty, dies. Stay alert. Read the Constitution and the Bill of Rights. Understand the founding principles that created the greatest nation on earth. Do your homework, stay vigilant and live free. “Freedom has its life in the hearts, the actions, the spirit of men and so it must be daily earned and refreshed—else like a flower cut from its life-giving roots, it will wither and die.” —Dwight D. Eisenhower