“Honor, justice, and humanity, forbid us tamely to surrender that freedom which we received from our gallant ancestors, and which our innocent posterity have a right to receive from us. We cannot endure the infamy and guilt of resigning succeeding generations to that wretchedness which inevitably awaits them if we basely entail hereditary bondage on them.” —Thomas Jefferson (1775)
No doubt you are familiar with our regular Profiles of Valor devoted to Military Patriots, mostly Medal of Honor recipients. Their recognition represents, by extension, the combat heroics exhibited by countless thousands of our Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen, and Marines who have been awarded Distinguished Service Crosses, Silver Stars, and Bronze Stars for Valor.
More than 41 million Veterans have served our nation since the first shots of the American Revolution.
Honoring our military men and women is central to our mission, which is deeply rooted in our nation’s Patriot founding and its core tenet: “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness.”
As a direct descendant of Revolutionary War fighters and Veterans of every major conflict since, my devotion to our mission is bonded in generational blood. But my family’s history is just a speck in the American heritage we all share.
Take a brief stroll down the path that gave rise to our Republic, when a ragged band of radical right-wing Patriots stood in defiance of those representing the most powerful military force on earth.
The battles of Lexington and Concord in April 1775, which launched our quest for Liberty, were among the 10 most critical engagements of the Revolutionary War.
Upon hearing about those first shots in what would become an eight-year struggle for American Liberty, Samuel Adams wrote to fellow Patriot John Hancock, “What a glorious morning this is!” He added, “The People alone have an incontestable, unalienable, and indefeasible right to institute government and to reform, alter, or totally change the same when their protection, safety, prosperity, and happiness require it.”
Indeed, it was a glorious morning, as is every sunrise over America today.
In January 1776, John Peter Gabriel Muhlenberg, a pastor and member of the Virginia House of Burgesses, famously preached a sermon on Ecclesiastes 3:1 — “For everything there is a season and a time for every matter under heaven.” Muhlenberg closed his sermon with these words: “In the language of Holy Writ, there is a time for all things. There is a time to preach and a time to fight. And now is the time to fight.” He then removed his clerical robes and revealed to the congregation his Continental Army officer uniform.
His sermon was a clarion call to arms that resonated throughout the colonies, inspiring the campaign to reject tyranny and embrace the enduring challenge of securing Republican Liberty, and sustaining it for future generations.
Fifteen months after the opening salvos, 56 delegates representing the first generation of American Patriots gathered in Philadelphia to draft our Declaration of Independence. Its principal author, Thomas Jefferson, called it the “declaratory charter of our rights, and the rights of man.”
That was the first Independence Day, and thanks to millions of American Patriots since, next year we will celebrate America’s 250th anniversary.
In Philadelphia, Samuel Adams declared: “If ye love wealth better than liberty, the tranquility of servitude than the animated contest of freedom — go home from us in peace. We ask not your counsels or arms. Crouch down and lick the hands which feed you. May your chains sit lightly upon you, and may posterity forget that you were our countrymen!”
Those timeless words are as applicable today as they were then.
Why would that first generation of American Patriots and all those since forgo “the tranquility of servitude” for “the animated contest of freedom”?
The answer to that question defines the timeless spirit of American Patriotism then, just as it defines the spirit of American Patriots today.
From the first shots of the American Revolution until this day, we have been devoted to something much larger than our own self-interest, something eternal, not temporal — a willingness to sacrifice all in defense of Liberty, for ourselves and our posterity. We are the beneficiaries of generations of Americans “who with a firm reliance on the protection of divine Providence” have mutually pledged “to each other our Lives, our Fortunes and our sacred Honor.”
For that reason, our character and values are a mystery to the statists at the helm of the socialist Democrat Party today, and their narcissistic legions of useful idiots.
On Independence Day this year, hordes of those Demo-dunces, who are devoid of any foundational understanding of Republican Liberty, will be holding another round of nationwide “No Kings” protests — a repeat of their charade last month on Army/Flag Day.
Their mantra is: “The flag doesn’t belong to President Trump. It belongs to us. … We’re showing up everywhere to say no thrones, no crowns, no kings.”
Somebody tell them they are 249 years late for a No King protest.
They might even use some American flags as props, but as George Washington warned, “Guard against the impostures of pretended patriotism.”
We face a David-and-Goliath matchup every day on the battlefields for the heart and soul of our nation, relentlessly pursued by the political and media enemies of Liberty aligned against us. Take one minute and support our 2025 Independence Day Campaign.
Please help your Patriot Team hold the line!
Devotion to principles above self-interest is the primary character trait embodied by our nation’s most courageous heroes, recipients of the Medal of Honor.
Among them, in chronological sequence, are six American Patriots who have, on July 4th of years past, earned our nation’s highest military award for courage and valor, above and beyond the call of duty.
MAJ Charles E. Capehart: On Independence Day, 1863, he went beyond the call of duty when serving with the 1st West Virginia Cavalry. Capehart charged down a mountainside at midnight through heavy rain in order to capture an enemy wagon train attempting to retreat. His actions resulted in his men destroying many enemy wagons and capturing combatants.
SFT Marcus A. Hanna: He was another recipient whose actions were on 4 July 1863, while serving with Company B, 50th Massachusetts Infantry. During a battle in Port Hudson, Louisiana, he courageously subjected himself to heavy enemy fire in order to get provisions for his suffering fellow soldiers in the rifle pits.
CPL Thomas A. Pope: On 4 July 1918, during World War I in Hamel, France, while serving with 1st Platoon, Company E, 131st Infantry, 33rd Division, Pope moved forward alone in order to rush a German machine-gun nest and save his company. He continued to hold off additional enemy soldiers until American reinforcements arrived to capture them.
PFC William K. Nakamura: On 4 July 1944, near Castellina, Italy, during World War II, serving with Company G, 442nd Regimental Combat Team, Nakamura’s platoon was pinned down by enemy machine-gun fire, and, under heavy fire, he worked his way toward the machine gunner’s position and killed the enemy. Later that day, when covering a withdrawal of his men, he was killed defending his fellow soldiers.
PFC Frank H. Ono: Also on 4 July 1944, during the same engagement near Castellina, Italy, with the 442nd Regimental Combat Team, when Ono’s platoon was in danger of being encircled and ordered to withdraw, he volunteered to provide covering fire for his platoon. At great peril to himself, he deliberately presented himself as a target to draw enemy fire until his men reached safety. He was able to successfully descend the hill and rejoin his platoon.
Notably, both Nakamura and Ono were among more than 12,000 Nisei or Sansei (second- or third-generation Japanese-Americans) who volunteered to serve in North Africa and the Italian campaigns with the 442nd Infantry Regiment, in brutal battles against NAZI strongholds. Remarkably, in less than two years of service, the combined units of the 442nd were among the most decorated in World War II, earning more than 4,000 Purple Hearts, 4,000 Bronze Star Medals, and 560 Silver Star Medals. Moreover, 21 of the 442nd’s members, among them Nakamura and Ono, were awarded Medals of Honor for their valorous actions.
SGT Leroy A. Mendonca: On 4 July 1951, while serving with Company B, 7th Infantry Regiment, 3rd Infantry Division during the Korean War, Mendonca’s platoon had completed an intense battle and captured Hill 586 near Chich-On, Korea. They were attacked by a far superior enemy force, and when his platoon was ordered to withdraw to a more secure line of defense, Mendonca remained in a position exposed to enemy fire in order to cover his platoon’s withdrawal. He fought off enemy combatants until he was mortally wounded, just as his platoon reached the secondary line of defense.
Each of these men, and millions of uniformed men and women who have served our nation with honor since the dawn of the American Revolution, have done so because they placed the safety and security of others above their own.
Our Founders concluded their affirmation of the Declaration by attaching their signatures under these words: “And for the support of this Declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes and our sacred Honor.” In doing so, the signers in effect signed their own death warrants.
On this and every day of the year, join us holding the lines in defense of Liberty!
Our mission is to equip this generation of American Patriots and the next to more effectively “support and defend” the unalienable Rights of Mankind as irrevocably endowed by our Creator. We are all the stewards of American Liberty, as affirmed in our Declaration of Independence and codified in its subordinate guidance, our Republic’s Constitution.
As The Patriot Post enters our 30th year online, the oldest news digest on the Web, we remain steadfast in our mission. Although our annual budget is a mere fraction of that of the big Beltway organization, our outreach exceeds many.
In celebration of Independence Day, the most cost-effective way you can defend Liberty today is to support our team and mission!
We are sustained 100% by Patriots like you!
God bless you, and God bless the United States of America!
Semper Vigilans Fortis Paratus et Fidelis
Pro Deo et Libertate — 1776
Follow Mark Alexander on X/Twitter.
Please join us in daily prayer for our Patriots in uniform — Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen, Marines, and Coast Guardsmen — standing in harm’s way in defense of American Liberty, and for Veterans, First Responders, and their families. Thank you for supporting our nation’s premier journal of American Liberty.
