The United States of America has a remarkable history. Born in wilderness and exile from European “civilization”, settlers in the new world built the most prosperous, most tolerant and generous society the world has ever known. All this was done in freedom; built from voluntary association and cooperation. America is truly a shining example of what can be done if a community works together with a shared vision.

I believe in that vision. I believe that people, working together with a common vision, organized by voluntary association and cooperation, can accomplish amazing things.

The vision requires understanding of the fundamentals that hold us together. We hear a lot about our faults as a nation, and that is as it should be. We should be critical of ourselves, but we also need to remember our strengths, and our core values. We must celebrate what is great and good about our nation and our culture. We must never take our nation for granted. We must love our country.

We are the “shining city on a hill”.