"The Second Day of July 1776 will be the most memorable Epocha, in the History of America. . . . It ought to be solemnized with Pomp and Parade, with Shews, Games, Sports, Guns, Bells, Bonfires, and Illuminations from one End of this Continent to the other from this Time forward forever more."--John Adams to Abigail Adams, July 3, 1776
Well, gang, as we can see, John Adams, the Forgotten Founder, was off by 2
days. July 2nd was the actual day that Congress took a vote to declare its
independence from England. July 4th was the day it was proclaimed throughout the
colonies.
It's easy in hindsight to see how this all turned out. But at the time...
these men had taken a large bold step. They were aware that what they had done
could be considered treason.
These representatives from 13 assorted colonies,
who often were in competition with each other for trade and business, had united
on this monumental issue (ok, NY abstained, but it was not a "nay" vote). As
Franklin put it, "We must all hang together, or surely we will all hang
separately", as in 'on the gallows'. And he was right. Had history taken a
different turn, Benedict Arnold might be considered a hero, and Washington a
traitor. It was by no means a "slam dunk". As Adams put it, "1/3 of the country
was for independence, 1/3 for loyalty to the crown, and 1/3 just wanted to be
left alone". He was quite right.
As we gather for our cookouts and parades, let us think for a minute of the
men, and the women who stood by their husbands as they put themselves in harm's
way, who took such a chance in those heady days of July, 1776.
I want to thank all of those who came out on a very hot and humid June night
to attend our meeting. We had a nice turnout of 21 people that evening. Courtney
Spies brought in some very good Roger Corman Poe movies. We wound up watching
the excellent "Masque of the Red Death". A big "thank you" to Daryl for setting
up the projector, since Charlie was catching Joan Jett in concert.
That evening showed how unpredictable showing movies outside can be. The heat
was unbearable. We will probably try to have these in September- it's cooler,
and it gets dark earlier than 9:00.
Next month we will be featuring our "Salads and Sundaes" meeting- a change
from our usual Pizza Night, which we will hold later in the year. It's also an
"ICS-ACADEMIC" night. A reminder to da board and Onederful John Weber- send game
questions to me, please, and I will put together a list. John Weber will be our
host. The winning team gets "Double Vote Cards"- where you get a card that you
can use to get 2 votes that night for a movie rather than one. We'll explain it
more later.
Speaking of sending things, if you get a chance over the holiday, send your
top 150 list to John Ward. I know it's hard to remember- I haven't done one yet,
either. But John needs them by the end of July.
Our treasury is in great shape. I don't have the exact amount on me, but it's
over $1,900. We are getting bucketfuls of cash from Amazon.com. So remember to
go to our website, click the "Amazon" button, and we get a kickback each time
you do when you purchase something.
Hey, are you on FACEBOOK? Well, we have a page there, too. Why not like us?
Also, if you've seen a movie, or something else you think the club would like,
post it!
That's all for now! May everyone have a safe and enjoyable July 4th
Holiday!
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