"If the First Amendment means anything, it means that a state has no business telling a man, sitting alone in his house, what books he may read or what films he may watch."
"The measure of a country's greatness is its ability to retain compassion in times of crisis."
"Sometimes history takes things into its own hands."
All of these quotes are by Thurgood Marshall.. Thoroughgood Marshall was born in Baltimore, Maryland on July 2nd in 1908. He didn't like writing such a long name, so while in second grade.. he shortened it to suit himself... When he was naughty in school.. his punishment was to copy the Constitution of the United States.. . After high school at Baltimore and Lincoln University at Oxford, Pennsylvania, he wanted to study law at the University of Maryland... At that time, the school's segregation policy would not allow him to attend there and he took his law degree at Howard University School of Law.. graduating first in his class. He went to work for the NAACP and started winning civil rights cases, including Brown v. Board of Education. President Johnson made him the first black Supreme Court justice in 1967.
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I hope each and every one of you are having a wonderful and safe holiday week-end.. Dave and I are staying at home and will be grilling some chicken and vegetables later today.. Please remember the military men and women who are stationed all over the world.. who give so much.. to insure our Independence! Many of you will enjoy fireworks and other displays of freedom tonight and tomorrow in celebration of Independence.. Please remember those who often give their lives that the rest of us may celebrate this holiday!
May God Bless the USA!
Patsy
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Independence
Individual choices.. Identities allowed
No King to rule.. to none we bow
Determined are you to reach the top
Each of us can rise or flop
Perhaps you're one who doesn't care
Even that's allowed.. It is! I swear!
No one will ever force you to matter
Dance if you would at the foot of my ladder
Energy and drive heeds freedoms call
New recruits prepared to fall
Can we ever forget the price they pay
Ever thankful for Independence day!
Written By: Patricia Sawyer
7-3-2010
*********************************I have combined two word lists this week to write the following short piece..
I hope you enjoy the short story..
This week's words from~
Three Word Wednesday!~ hassle, inject, wealth
This weeks words from~
Word Beads!~ Gilt -Irritable- Corporation - All -Disable
Banishment
The loud oinks of the pet gilt made Sallie irritable.. She had always hated the rule that Corporation decided who or what would become a mother.. Just another part of their controlling schemes.. All decisions were.. of course.. decided by whatever scheme they thought would bring the powerful men the most wealth.. At only seventeen.. She had been one of the first to be injected with the disable serum.. They pretended that it was to save her the hassle of birth control .. They had even gone as far as to promise her that her turn to be a mother.. would come.. That was only two weeks before they had married her to the handsome drone that she knew as Adam.. They had been together for many years now.. She had aged through the years but Adam had remained the very same.. Green eyes following her around and sending his reports straight to corporation.. She wasn't surprised that they had called her in for an interview.. but she had been very careful.. Being one of the corporations chosen travelers had been perfect .. She hadn't minded the long journeys to outer zones.. It was in fact on her very first journey that she had given birth to her son.. unknowingly pregnant before the serum was administered she had been surprised by an onset of pain just before reaching her destination.. Luckily for her the zone she had entered had many babies born that year and one more hadn't even been noticed.. She had been lucky to have been found.. lost and confused.. by the old Granger who loved her son almost as much as he loved the extra provisions that Sallie's trips provided for him.. He had raised the boy to be a bright and cheerful lad.. though she had complained to Adam repeatedly that the boy was slow witted.. Sallie had planned well.. Adam had reported her theft of food just as she had known he would.. He had also reported her dislike of the zone where she had spent her very first mission.. and her almost obscene hatred of the nasty old Granger and his son.... Hands clasped behind her back.. she wept.. as they read out the sentence that she welcomed.. Banishment... to the old Granger's cabin for the rest of her life..
Written BY: Patricia Sawyer
6-30-2010
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