Having enjoyed my 95th birthday with family and Optimist Club celebrations, I am energized to renew my monthly writings published these past 10 years in the News Tribune.
Over the years I have focused much more on national rather than local affairs largely because so much of a negative impact on us Americans is as a result of the goings-on in our national capital, Washington, D.C.
This applies especially to our President and Commander-in-Chief Barack Obama and his administration bloated with czars, advisors, regulators and others, many of whom escaped congressional approval.
Yet, there is no national Obama budget. Neither was there one in the Democrat-controlled Senate in 2010 nor again this year in 2011. A budget is a necessary rudder for proper guidance of the ship-of-state.
Our USA has so long been a beacon of hope and freedom, not only to our own people but also, literally, to millions of all faiths and colors who struggle to emigrate properly (and illegally) to our great, generous and caring nation.
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Going back, the Civil War, the Spanish-American conflict, World Wars I and II, the Korean War, Vietnam, Iraq and, currently, the Afghanistan-Pakistan Wars, all were fought at great costs of lives and treasure for Americans. They weren't fought for conquest but to bring freedom to the people.
It is well and proper to remind ourselves of the positive role our exceptional nation has served on an almost global basis over more than a century and the sacrifices involved for our generous and caring Americans. What a legacy!
Yes, I am proud to be an American. I trust many, many millions of others feel the same way.
Art Barschdorf
Hermantown
