Be proud to be an American

There are very few things in our nation that really distress me, but one of those is when I see students rioting on college campuses and waving a flag other than “Old Glory,” the stars and stripes of the United States of America. Without a doubt, we live in the greatest nation in the history of the world. When students come here from other countries, most do not know the background or the history of our nation and what it took for us be called the “Land of the Free and the Home of the Brave.” Obviously when these students came to America, they came looking for something better, otherwise they would have stayed home or gone somewhere else.

To be sure, our nation has real problems, both economically and culturally, but thankfully they are solvable. When the vast majority of our citizens work together, we can have an even brighter future. I am honored to be a small part of making our nation even better for future generations. The thing that really sets us apart is the uniqueness and power of the United States Constitution that established a nation where the power is in the hands of the people. This statement has two factions: First is when we have an election system that gives our citizens the power to choose who we want to lead us, and the right to a free and fair election to choose our leaders. And next we have an economic system that allows us to own property and production facilities to produce products and services, to earn a profit and keep most of it to ensure a higher standard of living.

See DAVIDSON, page A6

Jim Davidson Common Ground DAVIDSON

From page A4

When our citizens huddle together in big cities, most never get out to travel and see what a truly beautiful country we have. Sometime back I counted up and I have been to 32 of our 50 states, and I am also blessed to live in one of the most beautiful states in our nation, the great state of Arkansas. In the days when I was working with our schools, plus speaking to lots of other groups, I made speeches in 72 of our 75 counties. All my travel was done by automobile, so I have seen it up close and personal. Some of the most beautiful country in all the world is the Buffalo River country in North Arkansas. It is literally breathtaking. In addition to our nation’s natural beauty, we have the opportunity for our average citizens, like me, to become an outstanding success.

I thought about this a while back and came up with some names that were household words back when I was growing up and into my later years.

See how many of these names you are familiar with and can identify what kind of career they had: Jimmy Stewart, Bob Hope, John Wayne, Barbra Strei-sand, Charlie Pride, Roger Staubach, Tony Dorsett, Patti Page, Cousin Minnie Pearl, Paul “Bear” Bry-ant, Tom Landry, Eddie Arnold, Mary Lou Retton, Mickey Mantle, Roger Maris, Shaquile O’Neal, and Johnny Carson. These were all famous people back in the day.

Do you think any of these people could have had the success they achieved anywhere else in the world?

The answer is of course “NO.” How many of us take that for granted and never realize just how blessed and fortunate we are? We all truly live in a unique country, and we must instruct our children and grandchildren to love America. There is nowhere on earth like it.

Jim Davidson is an author, public speaker, syndicated columnist, and Founder of the Bookcase for Every Child project. Since its inception in the Log Cabin Democrat in 1995, Jim’s column has been self- syndicated in over 375 newspapers in 35 states.