Already today, I am seeing a lot of people on social media using the phrase "Happy Memorial Day."

I always have mixed feelings about this phrase. Memorial Day is a holiday to remember the fallen, the men and women who gave their lives so that our 243 year old experiment with representative democracy could survive.

There is a reason that the United States is the only country on earth with a representative democracy that is more than 200 years old. Our Republic has survived because 1.3 million American men and women in uniform paid the ultimate sacrifice so that our flag could advance.

There really isn't a lot that is "happy" about that. We honor their sacrifice, but so many lost lives can never be a cause for celebration. And yet, Memorial Day is also a holiday for barbecues and partying with family and friends.

For so long, I scoffed at the idea that Memorial Day can be a cause for celebration. There are 364 other days in the year to barbecue and party. Do people really have to choose this day, of all days?

But the Pandemic changed my view of all of this. For almost three months, most Americans have had to endure some kind of quarantine or shelter-in-place order. They were forced to stay indoors, prohibited from spending "unnecessary" time outside. We have seen lives and livelihoods ruined by what history will describe as the biggest overreaction ever to a virus that the CDC now reports has a survivability rate of over 99.7%.

We have seen tyranny take root in this country at a level that we haven't seen since the colonial period. Mayors and governors got just a small taste at the extent of their emergency powers and it didn't take long for those powers to corrupt them absolutely. Gun stores were forced to close without any justification (other than the fact that the politicians who signed the orders hate the 2nd Amendment). A protester in New York City had the "audacity" the challenge that state's lockdown and a police officer tackled her to the ground.

The President of the United States on Friday ordered states to allow churches to reopen and Democrat politicians accused the President of violating the Constitution. Think of that. These Leftists accused the President of infringing on States' rights…

The fight is nowhere near over. But as I watch my neighbors barbecuing and partying in their backyards, I understand the cause for celebration on this solemn holiday.

As I said, over 1.3 million men and women in uniform have given their lives for our country. Each and every Memorial Day, we tell our community members and readers to make sure that they live a life worthy of these heroes' sacrifices. Make sure that their sacrifice was not in vain. And what would those fallen veterans say if they saw us cowering in our homes, afraid of being caught disobeying unconstitutional stay-at-home orders?

So, while it might seem counter intuitive, this memorial day truly is a day for celebration. We celebrate the fact that despite their best efforts, the radical Leftists behind these draconian lockdowns did not break us. Our 243-year-old experiment with representative government will go on, despite Democrats' promises to use this crisis as an excuse to rework the country and drive us towards socialism.

While I usually spend Memorial Day in solemn remembrance of the fallen, today, I will fire up the barbecue. I will crack open a beer. I am going to go out into the backyard and play with my son.

Why? Because there is a shockingly large number of Leftists who, if they had their way, would use the virus as an excuse to block me from doing this.

The way to honor the fallen today is to celebrate. Not to celebrate their deaths, mind you. That would be terrible.

No, today we celebrate the rights that they died defending. We celebrate the fact that these 1.3 million Americans died so that free men and women would never need to ask the government's permission before being allowed to go outside. And we celebrate the fact that even though Democrats tried to use this pandemic to erode our rights, they have ultimately failed.

So, yes, honor the fallen, remember their sacrifice, and celebrate the fact that the rights that they died to protect survive, and will continue to survive!

All the best,

Max McGuire

Advocacy Director

Conservative Daily