Kenneth R. Jenkins
“Patriotism is supporting your country all the time, and your government when it deserves it.” — Mark Twain
The Fourth of July is an exciting time when we go to the beach, take in a good ball game watching fireworks light up against the brilliant night’s skies with its multicolor majestically bighting up the skies reminding us of its beauty and presence. The sounds of those bursting in thin air and with the combinations of the powerful noise of the fireworks and the reaction of the crowd observing with amazement and excitement can bring a day like that to honor and remember.
Independence Day is a time of reflection and blessings of why this day is set aside and to celebrate freedom in a new land.
That is all well and good for some but is it for all but.
The majority of those that live here did not land on Plymouth Rock. There were some that were rounded up, chained up and place in the belly of a ship, then later sold like cattle.
We have Native Americans who lived here for so many generations that once settled here and then later removed from lands they once made their home.
Freedom for some isn’t always freedom for all. It isn’t certainly not one size fit all because there are some that had to fight and die for it and there were some that had a silver spoon in their mouths.
Sometimes it cost to pay for the price of freedom to obtain it, while there are some kill and steal for that freedom and sometimes never paid the cost and then expect letting those who on the bottom pay.
The question remains, if this is a day of independence, then who is it REALLY for? The poor man or woman who lost their jobs, their Medicaid and Medicare benefits, the elderly lost in the system.
If independence is such a big thing for our country, and I am not knocking the achievements that country accomplished, then why does feel like there are some groups in our country felt like they were still ripped off?
Here in 2025, we have a renegade president that went rouge, completely off the hinges and with no guardrails and no sense of responsibility in his actions whatsoever.
There’s a thin line between freedom and being free.
Kenneth R. Jenkins is a freelance writer, poet, minister podcaster and devoted husband living in Savannah Georgia.
© 2025 Kenneth R. Jenkins/JAM Radio Media