THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Saturday, August 10, 1996 TAG: 9608100004
SECTION: FRONT PAGE: A12 EDITION: FINAL
TYPE: Letter
LENGTH: 34 lines
Today the motivations and inspirations of our founding fathers are being misconstrued, and our Bill of Rights is being torn asunder by the very people we elected and who swore to uphold and to defend our beloved Constitution. Our original patriots were deemed zealots and renegades by the British Crown and its supporters, just as we defenders of the Bill of Rights are being so deemed today.
Our elected leaders, for the most part, are becoming what we sought to gain our independence from so many years ago: They are smug; they get rich off us taxpayers. They are in many ways above the law; many sidestep the truth and are unwilling to give a direct answer. Theirs should be a labor of love, like ours is to most of us in the military. Their salaries, raises and pensions should be voted upon by us, just as Congress votes on my raise and pension, which pales in comparison. Theirs keep going up because of their ``sacrifice,'' while ours go down because we need to ``tighten our belts.'' It is my comrades - fellow sailors, soldiers and airmen - and I who make the true sacrifice in the sea, in the air and on the land every night and every day all over the world and in our graves.
Our Constitution was born of reverence for God and freedom. Both are being trampled to dust. Congress was meant to be by the people and for the people, not a home for out-of-control bureaucrats who increasingly ignore the mandates listed in the Bill of Rights.
Freedom is every citizen's responsibility. We are letting it slip away right before our eyes. It's worth fighting for, and it's worth keeping.
JOHN J. VELASQUEZ
Virginia Beach, July 25, 1996 by CNB