The Waterbury Democrat., 1941-12-13
Politics in Passing
By RAYMOND '. J.F1TxPATRrCK

By RAYMOND '. FKTxPATRTCK @ America goes to meet her destiny Recur0 in the knowledge that right sA on her side. She is ready to pay any price to keep the priceless flame of liberty burning through aaae ages. She faces the power-nad leaders of the Axis confident that Abe justice of her cause will serve Rs an inspiration in the dark and Troubled days that lie ahead. meM ss e-V
 It might be well to remember, as we 20 to war against the most W ruthless coalition of tyrants the 8n world has ever known, that She things we fight for are more than lofty ideals; they are, fortunately, part of our everyday life In .aly America. It Is true that we fight for liberty, for freedom, for de- lnocracy but what we must keep in mind Is that these, and our other goals, are not instructions, are not something above and be- yOnd us. They are plain, simple, eo real, everyday things-~things that are worth fighting and dying for even though generations fa- miliarity with them may have niade us take them too much for granted, e-V
 ..,.y. The things We fight for arc both noble and earthly; they are both spiritual and material nll inter- twined into the patterns of the lives that we live as free Americans.
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 What, then, are these things for which we fight? We all know them. they are part of our daily lives. Too often, though, we pass over them. not realizing how in- valuable they are until we see them threatened by the greedy, dlctatorial forces of aggression.
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 We are fighting for the right to a live our own lives and for the right of our children and In turn their children, to live their own lives are fighting for the right to live as free men men who need hsIve no fear of an arreSting hand on the shoulder us they speak in criticism of their leaders, For the right of our children to play hap plly among themselves, without drills or any other form of regimen t0tion to puff out further the al- ready swollen chests of any dieta- tor so s-V
 We are fighting for the right of the America First Committee, OF any other such body, Co be heard, We are fighting for the right of every man Co air hls own opinion, to criticize hlS govern- ment as much aS he wishes. We Can disagree as much as we want tO with what he has Go stay but we yOin with him In all strength tO defend his right to say what he pleaSes, when and how he pleascs.
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 These are only . few of the many fomely, taken granted things for which we have gone to war. We ight for the right to worship as we pleasO, to honor our Maker as VIC zee At. We fight to have free minds md let our children have free M ahds, to learn the truth, loathing Hhnoct more than anything elSe the Aphilosophy which believes in raiss ing children on lies. We are, on tiae surface, too unromantc people to say SO, but wo want our chil- dren to have their dreams and the chance to make them come true We want to give them that chance more tiercely than we would ever adanis. s-V
 We are Americans all, though It ls unfortunate that we need SO tFagic . stimulus as war tO make iis all realize it. Whether we are as'ef the second or the eighth gen- aratlOn we ell pledge allegiance to the same flag and the same cause; we are all ready Co give our all, whether we be of Irish, Italian, German, Polish, English or any ether descent.
 We fight for . land which gave Co us, through our parents, and thelr parents and grand parents back over 300 years, . haven In which to make our own way on our own merits. The fact that here In our city the ma jOrity of us HFe children of parents who came -to the New World t0 seek eGOs fsemiC, political and religious free. dom makes us alI the more ready Co make sacrifices Co show our appreciation of what they have done for us. When we think of what they did. how small do any possible sacrifices seem. They braved an unknown world, In rlCkety ships across stormy seas tO give Us . chance Co live free lives. We cannot, and we will not, y let them down.
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 The Ideals for which we fight are nlade up of homeiy things we oil kllow. Let us oil remember that through dark and bright. The aims we hold are aG bright as those of sAlly Crusader of old but they are best reflected and understood in the s1Ektle things the seemingly little things, that make them up.
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 .-ss Little things? We fight for the right to seek and write as we see easiit; we fight for your right to NcOfR at and criticize anything In thls newspaper, for my right Co criticize our officials, whether high or low.
 z We fight for the right of our u~Chlldren tO laugh and play in . free world, for the right of our families tO live in peace and com- fort, for the right of Americans *tO live their lives in thelr own way. eO e-V
 We fight, too, for our right to Nerlticize our government as we dLs- cIiss politics over a glass of beer. For the right to complain about our mayor, our governor, our congress- -.aan and anN0nA nlsn fna. tln tlnhi