Greetings Fellow Patriots & Countrymen,
I have been remiss in getting this month’s newsletter out. Call it writers block or too involved in other things. But, the day of reckoning is here.
I’ll say Happy New Year as a matter of semantics, we’ll see what the new year brings. Remember, we create our own happiness, it’s not doled out by any government entity.
As I stated above, my writers block. It ended of all times while watching last night’s Browns v Steelers game. You see, it was quarterback Ben Rothlisberger’s last home game after 18 years in the NFL and one of the announcers made reference to ‘the man in the arena’. The phrase gave me pause, I knew I had heard of it before so, I used AlGore’s wonderful interweb and searched it.
On April 23, 1910 President Theodore Roosevelt delivered a speech entitled “Citizenship in a Republic” at the Sorbonne in Paris, France. It came to be known as “The Man in the Arena” speech. After rereading it last night, one paragraph stuck out. I’ve added it below but edited out any reference to the international community that does not pertain to our current situation. You can find the full text of his speech here.
Today I shall speak to you on the subject of individual citizenship, the one subject of vital importance to you, my hearers, and to me and my countrymen, because you are great citizens of great democratic republics. A democratic republic such as ours—an effort to realize in its full sense government by, of, and for the people—represents the most gigantic of all possible social experiments, the one fraught with great responsibilities alike for good and evil. The success of republics like ours means the glory, and our failure the despair, of mankind; and for us the question of the quality of the individual citizen is supreme. Under other forms of government, under the rule of one man or very few men, the quality of the leaders is all-important. If, under such governments, the quality of the rulers is high enough, then the nations for generations lead a brilliant career, and add substantially to the sum of world achievement, no matter how low the quality of the average citizen; because the average citizen is an almost negligible quantity in working out the final results of that type of national greatness. But with us the case is different. With you here, and with us in my own home, in the long run, success or failure will be conditioned upon the way in which the average man, the average woman, does his or her duty, first in the ordinary, every-day affairs of life, and next in those great occasional cries which call for heroic virtues. The average citizen must be a good citizen if our republics are to succeed. The stream will not permanently rise higher than the main source; and the main source of national power and national greatness is found in the average citizenship of the nation. Therefore it behooves us to do our best to see that the standard of the average citizen is kept high; and the average cannot be kept high unless the standard of the leaders is very much higher.
Although not mentioned in that paragraph, we are the men & women in the arena. Do not be lulled into a false complacency. Do not fall for the hype of a ‘red wave’ coming in November. Benjamin Franklin reminded us “we are a republic, if we can keep it”. With Covid and it’s variants still very much alive, the powers that be will do everything within their grasp to repeat the maleficence of 2020. Mark my words.
You cannot sit back on your laurels thinking “We got this”. Vet your candidates, get behind them and work with them and, if they, the candidate, ever gets to feeling a little too cocky, remind them to run like they are 10 points behind.
We have an obligation to fight for this experiment we call America, and a responsibility to pass on to future generations a better Republic.
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Our next meeting will be in one week, Wednesday 12 January 2022 at the Elks Lodge on Waverly Drive. THIS IS A CLOSED MEETING: MEMBERS ONLY.
We may have a special guest or 2 but, by and large it will be a State of FCCC address and a Path Forward for 2022 & 2024. I’m not sure about the menu yet but, $15 will get you your dinner and a non-adult beverage.
Upcoming Events
This Saturday 9 January 2022 our own Justin Wages launches his campaign for the Maryland House of Delegates 5:30pm at the American Legion in Woodsboro located at 101 W Elizabeth St, Woodsboro. Come on out and show your support for a great candidate! Ticket info is here. And Justin’s website for more information is www.wagesfordelegate.com
Next Thursday 13 January 2022 our own Education Not Indoctrination Slate for Board of Education are putting on a FREE event with Sheriff Chuck Jenkins at the Elks Lodge on Willowdale Dr, Frederick from 6:30 -9pm.
This event is open to the public and the Sheriff will be addressing School Safety. More information for the event can be found on the ENI Facebook page here.
Then on Saturday 15 January 2022 our own April Montgomery is holding her campaign kickoff for her race for the Board of Education, once again at the Elks Lodge on Willowdale Dr, Frederick starting at 6pm. Ticket information can be found here.
Rounding out the month, there is a Defeat The Mandates Rally on Sunday 23 January at 11am. If there is enough interest, 25 people or more, FCCC will hire a bus or 2 to take us to the event. Please respond to this email if you are interested in going with us. More information is available here.
For those who may not know, FCCC sponsors a Stop Human Trafficking website. On Wednesday 26 January 2022 they are hosting a Human Trafficking 101 event at the Elks Lodge on Willowdale Dr, Frederick starting at 6pm. Guest speakers include, but not limited to, Sheriff Chuck Jenkins, Michelle Shay and Kira Wynne. This is a FREE event, open to the public. A fried chicken buffet will be available for a nominal cost.
It is up to us to make 2022 a great year. Don’t let any government entity steal your joy or dictate what you do.
Godspeed,
11 And that, knowing the time, that now it is high time to awake out of sleep: for now is our salvation nearer than when we believed. 12 The night is far spent, the day is at hand: let us therefore cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armour of light. ~ Romans 13:11-12 KJV
