A friend of mine and I were talking yesterday about this country and what it means to be an engaged citizen. It is a privilege to live in this country, even with its imperfections. We strive to correct them. Men and women serve this country everyday to protect the voice and freedom of its citizens. Because of this, we have the power to shape and mold this country through discourse and will. We hold that power; not a monarch or tyrant, but the people. My friend reminded me of this quote from Jefferson.
'The people cannot be all and always well informed. The part which is wrong will be discontented, in proportion to the importance of the facts they misconceive. If they remain quiet after such misconceptions, it is lethargy, the forerunner of death to the public liberty... What country ever before existed a century and a half without a rebellion? And what country can preserve its liberties if their rulers are not warned that their people preserve the spirit of resistance? Let them take arms. The remedy is to set them right as to facts, pardon and pacify them. What signify a few lives lost in a century or two? The tree of liberty must be refreshed from time to time with the blood of patriots and tyrants'.
If those we elect abuse their power, it is our job to remove that power from them. Remember, they work for us.
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