Illegitimi non carborundum

I watched a film a while back called,  Agenda:Grinding America Down. In the film, there was a phone message left by an older gentleman to a state representative. He was giving his support for a position the representative had taken on an issue. He ended the brief call by saying, "don't let them grind you down". The sincerity of the man along with the message and specifically, this phrase, struck me. I began using the phrase quite a bit when giving support to people, mainly on Twitter. It seemed to be a very appropriate thing to say to encourage someone to keep up the good fight. I love the phrase. 

Last week, after posting a letter I had written to quite a few state representatives regarding multiple new pieces of gun control legislation I oppose, A friend of mine, who I admire, politely suggested that maybe I should be careful about voicing such an opinion to those in positions of power in our government. His thought was that I could very easily end up on some list targeted by the government. My response in part said that if I wasn't already on every list they have, someone wasn't doing their job properly. I suspect, as many list as exist, I am on a number of them for various reasons. My stance on liberty, the constitution, gun rights, abortion, environmental issues and displeasure with our current president among others. They know I'm out here. I want them to know that I'm out here.

When I thought about what my friend said, it really illustrated a large part of the problem to me. The powers that be want for us to be silent. They want for us to be afraid to speak up. They want for us to slide back into the herd and let them lead us around the pastures of their choosing. People that speak the truth are a danger to this administration. As long as truth exists, they can;t hide behind lies. Truth exists on its on, but it also needs a voice to proclaim it to those who are otherwise deaf and blind to it. 

As I was thinking about writing this, I was drawn back to the phrase, "don't let them grind you down". That is the goal, to shout down those that would speak the truth, to badger them into submission, and to silence them and the truth they proclaim. I will not, willingly, be silenced. I don't think anyone who chooses to speak up should ever bend to the pressures to be quiet. The progressives/liberals/statists use this as one of their main tactics to get what they want. Silence the opposition and the opposition, in essence, goes away. 

I was trying to remember, specifically, where I heard the phrase so I could include it here. It took me a few minutes to dig it up, but in the process, I found all kinds of information on it. Information I had previously been unaware of. It originated during World War II and has been used by General "Vinegar Joe" Stillwell, Barry Goldwater and oddly enough, current speaker of the house, John Boehner(who has seemed to do just the opposite and let them grind him down). Illegitimi non carborundum is the phrase originally used and is a kind of fake Latin aphorism meaning "Don;t let the bastards grind you down". Learning this, I was even more enamored with the gentleman in the movie who used the phrase. I can only guess, he knew more of it's history than I did. 

Our founders and others knew the importance of being able to speak our minds. The first amendment to the constitution tells us this to begin with. Freedom of speech is essential in maintaining liberty. Benjamin Franklin wrote years before:

Freedom of speech is a principal pillar of a free government; when this support is taken away, the constitution of a free society is dissolved, and tyranny is erected on its ruins. Republics and limited monarchies derive their strength and vigor from a popular examination into the action of the magistrates.

Frederick Douglass said of free speech:

To suppress free speech is a double wrong. It violates the rights of the hearer as well as those of the speaker.

Charles Bradlaugh, a famous atheist who I disagree with on many things, said:

Without free speech no search for truth is possible... no discovery of truth is useful.

With that, I agree whole-heartedly. This is the beauty of free speech, it gives those with a voice, the freedom to use it. We don't have to agree with what is being said, but we must agree with our rights to say it. If we abridge unpopular speech, we have essentially abridged speech of any kind, especially in the partisan world in which we live today.

I believe that we not only have the freedom to speak up, but we have a responsibility to do so. I spoke of this in my initial post here. You can read that if you would like to know more of my thoughts on that. Responsible Liberty

If we don't take an active role in our own freedom, who will? Our government is one that is hell-bent on removing the freedoms that we so enjoy. If we don't speak up, we might just soon find out that our silence is no longer optional.

Illegitimi non carbonundrum! Don't let them grind you down!