“It began 190 years ago”
| “It began 190 years ago” |
| There is only one State in these United States of America that has its own Declaration of Independence…that is the Lone Star State of Texas. The quest for Texas independence began 190 years ago in the month of October; the date was the 2nd, 1835. Mexican leader General Santa Anna rose to absolute power as a dictator and demanded the disarmament of the Texians…sound familiar? Yes, it was 250 years ago in April of 1775 when the British landed in Boston and marched inland towards Concord, Massachusetts, in order to destroy a weapons and armaments factory supplying the Sons of Liberty. In both situations, there was no standing military to take on the armed forces of Great Britain and Mexico. As a matter of fact, the British Army was one of the most professional and powerful in the world. The Mexican Army, especially its cavalry, was a renowned military force. Regardless, when it came to the issue of liberty, simple men made a stand. On April 19, 1775, it was at Lexington Green, just a small patch of grass where 77 stood against nearly a thousand. Here in Texas, at a small little town called Gonzales, is where the fight for Texas independence began. As stated, both instances were inspired by men knowing that being armed meant liberty, being disarmed meant servitude. I have been to Gonzales on several occasions, stood on that battleground, same as with Lexington. Just a simple field where the decision was to not return a little cannon; it’s there in the museum. The Mexican Army had lent the cannon to the Texian settlers of Gonzales in order to protect them from attacks by Comanche raiders. But the decree from Santa Anna meant that the cannon had to be returned. The Texians at first hid the cannon in order to buy time to call for reinforcements, more militiamen. The Mexican cavalry returned and met the Texians on a battlefield, demanding the return of the cannon. It was there that the rallying banner was unveiled and the unforgettable words revealed: “Come and Take It.” Again, as the great and wise King Solomon would say in Ecclesiastes, “there is nothing new under the sun.” When the Spartans, led by King Leonidas, stood in the gap of Thermopylae back in 490 BC, the invading Persians demanded that the Spartans lay down their weapons. Leonidas replied with two words in Greek, “Molon Labe,” which translates into English…”Come, take.” Tyranny has always sought to render those who declare for liberty defenseless. That continues to this day as well. It is amazing when you consider that some of the most stringent, and unconstitutional, gun control measures in America are in Massachusetts. Or consider that here in Texas, some embrace the absurd policy called “Red Flag Laws.” As we have more and more new Texans arriving each and every day, it is imperative that we remind them of what began here 190 years ago. There are some in Texas who are making the same demands as the Mexican cavalry, demanding that we surrender our liberty, our individual rights, our children, our property, our border, our future. We have violent anarchists living amongst us here in Texas. We have teachers who refuse to follow a law presenting the Ten Commandments, the basis of law in Western civilization, in our schools. We have churches that are inviting the most heinous sexual perversions into their walls, and allowing it to be presented to our children. So much for Child Protective Services and contributing to the delinquency of minors. Texas, 190 years later, just like America, finds itself still on a battlefield, this time an ideological one. Texas, just like America, needs the same type of men, and their spirit, character, that emboldened to stand on the fields of Lexington and Gonzales. Sadly, I would dare to bet many Texans today are oblivious to the importance of October 2nd, 1835…or even the history of the Lone Star State. As Spanish political philosopher George Santayana quipped, “Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.” Let us not forget what happened here in Texas 190 years ago…and in a greater sense, what was happening in America 250 years ago. These are two foundational periods in the establishment of Texas and America. Sadly, the task falls to us in our homes, and our children, most of them, are not receiving this important history. Instead, most are receiving a revisionist, leftist, ideological-driven distortion of our history. As well, let’s measure our elected officials, and those who wish to be, by a single standard…would they have stood on the field in Gonzales or at Lexington? Or would they have been too cowardly or, worse, traitors to the cause of Texas and American liberty! Steadfast and Loyal. |
Steadfast and Loyal.
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