Morris County Courthouse

Richard Barrett

      My countrymen. American freedom-fighters. At Concord Bridge, yours was the shot heard 'round the world. At Morris County Courthouse, yours is the voice heard 'round the world. You have been mocked, by some, who suggest that the headquarters of George Washington is somehow inappropriate for this celebration of the nation's birthday. He only camped here twice, they say. What venue, then, would they suggest is more appropriate? The Apollo Theater? There is that old Baptist hymn with the strain, "There is a sweet, sweet spirit in this place." But if one is not a Christian, he cannot sense that spirit. But, at this historic old courthouse, there is a patriotic, freedom-loving spirit at this spot. And every upright American can sense that spirit. When General Pershing arrived in France, he announced, "Lafayette, we are here." For he remembered our past, our struggles, and he came in the mighty name of freedom. Today, I see the statute of our Revolutionary War heros, close at hand, and I remember and revere and carry on. I say, "Thomas Paine, we are here." Perhaps because Paine wrote his stirring words, "these are the times that try men's souls," at this very place that we gather with solemnity, as well as celebration.

      For at that very moment, all appeared lost. There was a price on the head of every patriot who dared to speak out. Much like the so-called hate laws of our own day. Offices were occupied by men who pledged allegiance to the king. Just as politicians pledge their loyalty the Black Caucus. But rule by a few, tyranny by the minority, was so odious that men would risk all to cross the Delaware. You may remember when a diplomat was presented to the Queen not long ago and curtsied. Oh, what an uproar. Americans do not bow, it was said. And rightly so. So, if you do not bow and kneel abroad, why should you be expected to do so, here, at your own home? One thing that despots try to ignore, if they can, or suppress, if they are able. That deep-seated resentment within you. They clamp the lid tighter and tighter upon the cauldron of social justice, while turning up the fire of oppression. Finally, the pressure becomes too great. The steam must escape. The people must be heard. Pauline Hanson, the intrepid Australian reformer, told Parliament in her maiden speech, "If I can choose who comes into my home, I can say who comes into my country." Now that we can decide who stands in the courthouse square, we can decide who sits in the seats of government.

      I have heard it suggested that you have been "allowed" to assemble here, today. But that is not true. It once was required, before Nationalists rallied and paraded, sued and fought, that you obtain permission from officials to meet in a public place. No one would come to your aid, because you were to rude or crude, they said. Too mean and irritable, they complained. But you have crossed that Delaware, as well, and there is no turning back. These are your streets. This is your courthouse. This is your flag. And these are yours words. Freedom. Freedom. Have you noticed reports of the first assembly organized by Nationalists in this place? They did not say, What odds were overcome. What tenacity was shown. Oh, no. They talked about what this rioter said. What that arrestee demanded. They described the projectiles thrown, the ugly insults hurled even the blow-by-blow accounts of the terrorists attacking the ceremonies. But they would not report the words spoken here. The spoken word, my countrymen, is what they fear and loath the most. They will try ignoring it. When that fails, they will ridicule it. But they cannot shut you down or hold you back. For, you are the American People.

      I visited the old homestead, as it was called, at Meridan, New Jersey. We would call it only an old cabin, by today's standards. I met some of the old-timers related to me and was shown old documents where my kinsmen had signed their names with an "X". Oh, how I wish I could have heard their words. But, in a sense, I can. We know the Pledge of Allegiance to the flag which they recited. The songs they sang about America, the Beautiful and My Country 'Tis of Thee. And the wars they fought and blood they shed spoke volumes more than whatever words I might utter here and now. Last year, my greatest concern was about rain, but the stormclouds rolled away just in time. Then, there was the thunder of rioters, but that too yielded to the rainbow. And yet, we know that not all welcome the carrying forward of the yeoman values from your patriot forebearers. Some even say that Americanism is dead, even as they claim that God is dead. On this spot, last year, some tried to shout down the National Anthem, when it was sung. Others waved the Puerto-Rican flag, when Old Glory was saluted. But the scene was quite different from only a few years ago, when patriots would be clubbed and driven back by police. And sued and broken by aliens and minorities. Now, you hold the high ground. Because, you have used the system to change the system, for the better.

      My heart is full, in gratitude to you for staying the course, flying the flag and marching on. As for those who felt that they could not come and join with you, now, some have said they do not like our words or approve of our methods. But, would they say, I do not want to hear a prayer, because I do not like the look of the church or the demeanor of the preacher? Of course, they could. But, may each in his own way and heart and deed honor those we honor here today. We salute George Washington, who said: "I will give you good laws under a free government." In striking down the $8 million fee to meet here today, you have ridden yourselves of bad laws, even as Washington, himself, would have done. In theory, then, if good laws are passed and bad laws thrown out, there should be freedom. Should I, then, submit to you a list of good laws? What about as an addition to the endangered species law, a listing of the yeoman, non-hyphenated, all-American American? A law to guarantee that the very existence of the American people is assured. But who would pass such a law, you ask. And, indeed, if such a law were passed, how would it be enforced?

      But laws are not self-executing. Without popular support or passive acquiescence, a law is no more than a scrap of paper. Prohibition could not be carried on, because it had lost popular support. Immigration cannot be continued, if the people rebel against it. Diversity cannot be imposed, if the people shun it. Sometimes, a lawyer asks a judge to give the "dynamite" charge to the jury. That means he says no lesser charge. Either innocent or guilty. Straight up or down. This is the call to lawmakers, therefore. Either America shall be American or it shall not. I had said that there must be good laws, so I must ask, what is good? And, the answer must be either right or wrong, good or evil. Those who have left their homes in Newark and evacuated to Sussex, Hunterdon and Morris Counties, are you evil for fleeing the slums? If so, every law should penalize you. And those who you have left behind and fled from must be given every advantage, subsidy and favor to catch up to and overtake you. If it means constricting your numbers, punishing your children, dragging you down into the most abject privation, you must pay. If your flight has been evil.

      But if setting up your shop in a more pleasant clime, communing with those more of like mind and reflecting a bit of the glow of the campfires from Morristown is good, then every law should lift you up, magnify your inheritance and make you strong. When I called for good laws, do I mean more laws? I call for more freedom. You should not have to find another job in order to work beside someone who is as productive as yourself. That would be forced labor, worthy more of some penal farm or communist labor camp. You should not have to move away in order to have neighbors who speak your tongue or share your ways. That would condemning you to be an exile or refugee in your own country. Strip every law from the books, pass any measure required, to give Americans freedom from want and fear, persecution and oppression, corruption and gouging, crime and violence, invasion and conquest. Judge John Bissell reminded of the once-popular slogan, "we reserve the right to serve whom we please." The way you vote and marry, commute and live, says the same thing. "We reserve the right for our children to play with whom we choose, to worship among whom we wish, to trade with whom we desire and place in office whom we see fit."

      More laws? Why? When we have enshrined here in the Declaration of Independence that it is our right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. Call it a general strike or a general strike back. But you have evacuated cities to protest the wretchedness and deprivation of rights which others would send scurrying after you. The Tories held the cities, as well. But Washington, after being pushed out and back, finally stopped and pushed back. And now, so do you. Boston had marched on Evacuation Day, marking when the Tories finally quit their occupation. But minorities disliked the parade and judges sided with the minorities and the parade was canceled. But the Nationalists marched anyhow. And the judges finally conceded that even they could not block the people. So, the parade has been returned to Boston, the minorities have been set back and Americans are making a comeback, even in the most sunless sections of America in despair. And, according to the Boston Herald, it was done with a little help from FFM: Friends from Mississippi. And, so, a salute to the fight for freedom. And to the small band of freedom-fighters who know neither fear nor danger. Thus, we revere Thomas Paine, who said, "He who stands deserves the thanks of man and woman." And, Paine stands here with you, now, today.

      I now call the honor roll with the name Henry Schaad. The young policeman was so like Mike Moran, the young fireman killed by rioters in Newark, who was honored here last year. Officer Schaad was gunned down by rioters in York, Pennsylvania as he tried to quell their violence. He gave his life for a way of life that has come into eclipse, until you became the sun. He would have rolled away the stone and let the light shine forth from the tomb, but you have been the angels to do it for him. I was about to say that the good die so young, but in looking into your eyes, I know that the good lives on. And in Charlie Robertson, as well. The former police officer and now Mayor of York who for over thirty years has held steady to one slogan: the majority must rule. I doubt that Mayor Robertson would accept being knighted by the Queen. He is too much the common man. I cannot picture him across the street charging the barricades and assaulting men behind the badge. He is too much the public servant. I call the names of New Jersey State-Troopers James Kenna and John Hogan. We honor them, as we did their superintendent Carl Williams before them, because, as so many of you have said quietly and now say aloud, they have been men of honor.

      They defended themselves, when attacked by criminals. They defended us all, when they pursued culprits. They reflected a bit of each of you, when they put the greater good before their own personal gain. They did not have to patrol the highway and encounter traffickers in drugs decimating your children, motorists drunk and out of control trashing public safety, Instead of Trooper of the Year, they might have sought the title of Rock Star of the Year. Or held any number of other safe and secure jobs. But they placed their lives on the line – even as you soldiers have done – not for thanks or pay, but for duty and with honor. Cincinnati Officer Steven Roach is called, as well. Were it not for his quick wits and brave stance in pursuing criminals, we might have had to read his name posthumously. Perhaps the thought once entered his mind, Maybe I should run after a football rather than fleeing criminals. Maybe I could take my licks at some gym, rather out in the streets. But he chose to serve you in a calling as high as going off to war on some foreign shore. Making you safe, here at home. How then, in a democratic country, do we properly honor these men? We cannot give them knighthoods or lordships, because they are, in reality, the same as we are. Just with stellar qualities.

      We would not be haughty in declaring them better than others, although their conduct has been exemplary. So we come to the challenge of the day. How to honor and follow those who excel and inspire, while shunting aside those who demean and destroy? Until now and all through the last generation, the discussion has been a monologue. You have made it, however, a true dialogue. For the question on every lip is: Can there be untouchables in our society? Even to ask the question is regarded as heresy by some. But, you want to know. You hear it said that vestiges of slavery should be rooted out. But, you wonder, should vestiges of royalty be put down? A common man is not supposed to touch the Queen of England. She is "untouchable," so far above all others. An ordinary person is not supposed to touch the outcasts of India, either. They are "untouchable," for being vile and low. It was once fashionable for certain men to cast themselves as "untouchables" of the high and mighty. Their riches and positions as oil barons, railroad magnates or Hollywood moguls, they said, set them apart. They manipulated the stock market, strapped working people with staggering taxes and played politicians like so many chessmen. Until called to account.

      New Jersey led the revolt against taxes before, Jim Florio, and it shall lead the revolt, once again, against privileged-characters, Donald DiFrancesco. Because, in our day, it is not only the rich who seek favored treatment, but the minorities. Not just the blue-bloods who would demand their ransom, but the swarthy hordes who would hold you hostage to their demands. I did not say that a man is not entitled to repose. A picket fence and a quiet home. But not exemption from a subpoena. Keys to the car and a wide-open road. But not exemption from arrest. But to the untouchables, the police are forever the pigs. The law is forever slop for the swine. And authority fit only to be butchered by their knives. With you driving ever so carefully to avoid getting a ticket, paying your taxes so copiously to avoid an IRS audit and keeping silent even to avoid controversy, you would naturally be aroused when it was suggested that anyone should be "above the law." So, the tactic has been to back off from enforcing the law against the untouchables. Or, even, to put those less likely to enforce the law in uniform.

      Mayor Milton Milan of Camden insisted that he had been singled out for prosecution -- for bribery and corruption -- because he was a minority. Never mind that minorities make up 80% of the prison population, but only 10% of the general population. Or that 25% of them are on probation or parole. Or that they conduct most of the drug trafficking, rapes, murders and robberies in the nation. Yes, we may turn the other cheek to abusers as our Christian duty, but we shall not turn the other way to criminals, as is our American duty. It has been suggested that instead of Independence from Crime Day, those seeking reform should simply write letters or, perhaps, a book on the subject. But we have taken the fight in the most dramatic, grass-roots and democratic way of all – to the stump – to honestly diagnose the malady and forthrightly proclaim the cure. A dose of freedom. A transfusion of equality. But first, honesty. My countrymen, there are those who would turn every minority on death row aloose, simply because they are minorities. Unlock every one of their cells. Exempt them from every law.

      Raynard Johnson, a minority, killed himself by hanging himself from a tree in Mississippi. Oh, no. It had to be a killing by those hateful people who look like George Washington and who would turn out for Fourth-of-July ceremonies. Yes, the suicide took place not far from where a city council voted to outlaw the Fourth-of-July because they said it was offensive to minorities to celebrate the Independence of this country. Well, there were investigations by every law-enforcement group from the Attorney-General on down. Countless hours. Forensic scientists. Lavish expenditures. And the conclusion was: suicide. But no minority should ever die, without blaming someone else. "The Man." The law. Even patriotic flag-wavers. All are responsible, so it was said. We should be celebrating that a man is presumed innocent today, under our Bill of Rights. Instead, we must condemn the growing practice that a policemen is presumed guilty if he arrests a minority, stops an alien or accosts a foreigner. So, instead of saying, "we are above the law," they say, "we are against profiling." Meaning, you are guilty if you touch us. We are untouchable because we are minorities. And if you persist in pursuing us, we will demand your job, your badge or, even, your freedom.

      What is profiling? Making a decision based on facts. If you were investing in stocks, you would look to see what stocks performed well. You would avoid those which were headed down. If you were looking for a house, you would profile prospective neighborhoods to see which ones suited your needs. You would avoid those in which you were uncomfortable or unsafe. If you were seeking to prosecute criminals, you would determine the modus operandi to be on the lookout in your search. You would be attentive to those most likely to shoot or knife you, along the way, as well. Tim McVeigh would likely still be driving some Ryder truck full of explosives seeking another target were it not for criminal profiling. Investigators pieced together that he was likely a male of a certain age, intelligence, disposition and nationality. And, their police-work paid off. Likewise, with the Unabomber Ted Kaczynski. His looks, habits and methods were all profiled, until the culprit was eventually apprehended. It should be no different for Keshon Moore or Milton Milan, Colin Ferguson or Mumia Cook.

      For to approve an untouchable caste system does not achieve what its proponents seek. Those in their group are not regarded as lofty, but lowly. Not worthy, but vile. But, if abolishing profiling serves their needs and keeps them from rioting and looting, is society not all the better? Is a store-keeper all the better if a robber cleans out his cash-register, without pulling a gun? The theft is still a theft. Are you safer in your car if a policemen turns a drunk-driver loose, because he is a minority, or if a law requires him to back off? A dangerous driver is still a dangerous driver. Time was when men were imprisoned who could not pay their bills. But that was too harsh and society became unjust, as a result. I did not say to jail those who were innocent. Or, those who simply are poor or downtrodden. But to enforce the law. I supported the execution of McVeigh because no matter how many files were concealed, the man was guilty. But, I condemned, as well, a rogue FBI bent on using every device to prosecute some, but exempt others. To move heaven and earth to get a conviction in Alabama, but sweep the dust under the rug in Idaho.

      Those of you who witnessed the attack on these ceremonies last year by terrorists may have wondered, why have there been no federal charges filed against the culprits? And why, despite a pattern of attacks, year after year, driven by conspirators who openly announce their tactics and taunt their violence, Attorneys-General just yawn. Were it not for you, I could not envision a Safe Society. We would be faced with the prospect of the never-ending Scary Society. If your loved one lay dying in a pool of blood, should the only report which could be broadcast say: "Suspect fleeing south on Main Street." Why not, "Rapist fleeing in late-model Cadillac." Oops. The broadcaster would lose his job because such a vehicle is too closely associated with a certain group. Murderer with Afro hairdo? Hispanic driving a low-rider? Oops. Ax that reporter, because the hair-cut and vehicle description is associated with a certain group. Weighing 300 pounds? Insensitive to another easily-offended group. I did not say that criminal profiling stops crime. But, good police work deters crime. Deterring criminals means less break-ins, fewer muggings, decreased homicides. My countrymen, profiling saves lives.

      So is a safer society a better society? Immediately I am suspect, because I have suggested the word "better." How dare he say that something is better than another? The ones who hurl this charge are heard day after day. Now, for once, they are drowned out by the force of reason and the lungs of logic. Those of you today who revere George Washington are better than those who revile him. Because you honor your country. You are the flag-wavers. You who memorialize these officers are better than those who assault them. Because you are peacemakers. You are the lamp-lighters. You who look to the campfire of Revolutionary War soldiers at Morristown for your inspiration are better than those who look to the riot-torn slums of Newark for guidance. Because you are patriots. You are the torch-bearers. Here is your temple mount. This grandest of places for all public occasions. Where you celebrate not only your victory over James Rosenberg, who would have charged you $8 million to stand here, but your pride in your American citizenship. Even as the Lord, said, "Whither I go, so you may go, also," it can be said, "Those who we have defeated, you may now defeat, also."

      You stand erect and cry aloud, as the humble souls you are. Avowed that those suffering servants of the people, wondering and grieving, shall be redeemed. Begone, persecutors. Leave us, rude and wicked liars. I was not inclined, from looking upon the place of my birth in New York City, to set those concrete sidewalks above the grassy knolls of Ireland. Or the cobblestones of England. Or, even the boulevards of Paris. Each, has a place and is distinct, in its own way, I thought. But I was soon compelled to attest that America ascends higher than all others. For your presence here today proves it so. In Hungary, if you displayed this flag, the law says that this meeting would be dispersed by the police. In England, if you criticized criminals, as is done here, you could be jailed under the so-called Race Relations Act. In Canada, you could be fined and jailed for the so-called crime of offending minorities. In Germany, The Nationalist Movement would be banned and its spokesmen jailed. And this in so-called civilized countries. In Zimbabwe, you would be hacked to death by bushmen, if you took the stand taken here today. In Rwanda, you would be run through with spears. And, in Red China, you would be whisked away to prison and your body parts sold to the highest bidder.

      There is no country comparable to, better than or even equal to America. Yes, you have a right to call America the greatest of nations, even as you have the right to call Troopers Hogan and Kenna the most honorable of our countrymen. But if one uses the term "greatest" and "best," will that cause others to be jealous, offended and prone to violence? My countrymen, I ask this working man. When you return to your lathe and produce a fine vessel in your craft, are you ashamed when you are hailed for being the best in your trade? You would be ashamed if you did not aspire to be the best. I did not say to be haughty. Nor did I say not to seek higher wages for better work. What I did not say – and which you have not sought – is special privilege. You may get an award for exceptional work, but that does not get you two votes at the polling place. You may receive a prize for being the most productive in your shop. But that does not exempt you from getting a speeding ticket.

      Lincoln did not mind if certain states had different tax laws, manners or customs. It was only when one section attempted to thrust itself above the entire nation that the cry went up. The Union. It shall and must be preserved. One nation, indivisible, does not allow for untouchables and privileged characters above the law. No segment must be permitted to outrage and disturb the society of the entire nation. The destructive and infamous. What are your empty hopes? To replace every mayor, police chief and teacher with one of your own? And, then what? When none can read the inscription on the Paine Statue any more. Or write as in the Declaration of Independence any longer? The dark and nasty. What misery have you in store? To install your own behind every badge, in every shop, at every desk. And, then what? When the books in libraries are covered with dust? And the wheels of industry grind to a halt? When the so-called Voting Rights Act imposed affirmative-action upon Jackson, Mississippi it was said that it would be a paradise on earth if only minorities were forced into the seats once held by the majority. It is the same thing being touted for the New Jersey State Troopers.

      William Gormley welcomes it. Christine Whitman salivated over it. But Affirmative Action is a crazy folly, summoned by hard-heartedness and imposed against all truth and reason. No sooner had minorities seized control of the Mississippi capital, than they voted to abolish the Fourth of July. There seems to be something about this day which arouses their ire. Perhaps it is the image of Minutemen standing guard with their flintlock. Or recitation of the words from the Declaration of Independence that "all men are created equal." For such words surely choke in the throats of those seeking favors for the few, as Gerald Cardinale can attest. Soon, minorities were forced onto the police force. And, it wasn't long before minority councilmen were going to jail for bribery and corruption. Minority policemen were, also, jailed for protecting drug dealers and taking bribes. The city went broke, the schools bankrupt and the water so poisonous that danger signs had to be placed on faucets. The courthouse became so dilapidated that the place had to be shut down. And Jackson became the car-theft capital of the country, replacing even Newark in that dubious distinction.

      What should keep the wayward from going astray? One thing would have been the fear of dishonoring their father. But what if they have no father? Then, there should be the Father of our Country -- of our one nation -- whose goodness and greatness sets the example. Should you be celebrating today that you have only been maimed, but not killed in some riot? That someone else has been robbed but that your home has not been broken into? You have seen the ruins of Newark, the miseries of the Oranges, the death-throes of Camden. Critics have coined the term, "Not in our town." But it is time to say, "Not in our state. Not in our country!." My countrymen, here then is the nub of contention over favors. When minorities hang a picture of some rap star on their wall or speak to each other in Ebonics, the police need not bust down their door to stop them, if they do not impose their ways on someone else. But, if the minority attains power over the majority, the few have privileges over the many, that is a tyranny -- which summons, again in the words of the Declaration, the people to rise up and alter such a despotic state of affairs.

      Some will say, "But we cannot go back." Yes, New Jersey is so disfigured by crime and corruption that it is hard to image her as the blithe and graceful maiden she once was. The Garden State with laurels in her hair and rose-petals in her hands. Then avert your eyes from Morris County, New Jersey to Forsyth County, Georgia. There, Nationalists, also, won in the courts and in the streets. The same rowdies who amass against you, here, attempted to seize power, there. They were not prepared to wait until they had outbreeded the residents. They would not even trust local officials, as here, to give them everything they wanted. No, they demanded to rule outright, without even the formalities of an election. But today, fourteen years later, after rallies and speeches, assemblies and petitions, citizens aroused, citizens empowered, no rule of ignorance has been imposed. No tide of darkness has swept over. No nation has been created within our nation. English remains the language. The father is still head of the home. The laws are still obeyed. And we remain one nation, indivisible. Unless Morris County is permitted to secede from the Union, by preventing the people from speaking on the courthouse steps on the Fourth-of-July, in violation of the First Amendment. Unless New Jersey is permitted to deny equal protection of the laws, by ousting policemen who do their duty for not being minorities, in violation of the Fourteenth Amendment.

      Today, you celebrate Independence Day. But, in a sense, you celebrate the return of Morris County to the Union. Where James Rosenberg must obey the same laws you do. But we know that when President Bill Clinton can argue over the meaning of the word "is" that just passing good laws and chucking bad laws may not be enough. This is the day when instead of fat-loss remedies being labeled "this product will do nothing for you," it says "results may vary." And policemen who do their duty to protect their communities are labeled as "profilers." To explain why minority rule is despotism does not explain such despotism away. I did not take this stump to fill the pages of books, but to give you hope. Not to give reporters "one-liners," but to give you slogans to shout. Once, when all seemed lost, the cry was "Remember the Alamo." Then, "Remember Pearl Harbor." Today, I commend to you, "Remember Hogan and Kenna."

      So, when a school board member sits down to consider minority scholarships for the favored few, "Remember Hogan and Kenna." That the brightest and best are not shut out. When a lawmaker is handed a bill to fill jobs with privileged characters, "Remember Hogan and Kenna." That the loyal and hard-working are not given the shaft. The untouchables have already reached their pinnacle. It came on April 17th when every minority big-shot, every left-wing reporter, every special-privilege seeker took aim at Mississippi. The vote on the Confederate flag was not a foregone conclusion. Mississippi has the largest per capita minority population. The biggest payout is welfare checks to minorities. And the Voting Rights Act has forced more minorities into office than anywhere else. If the Confederate flag were adopted, minorities would be set back in their place. Democracy would be given a jump start. But, if Mississippi lost, the fight for good government, safety and freedom could be lost forever. I am now humble and honored to say that Mississippi's victory for majority rule signals New Jersey's victory. I clasp your hands and raise your flag, for we have come closer, as well we should, to being, once again, one nation, indivisible.

      It is time to bring the epidemic of corruption and social unrest to a close. America has laid up the greatest treasures of language and art, medicine and law, education and productivity, of all time. To defend the American Way of Life is a national and patriotic duty. Be gone, lazy and cowardly, who would let democracy be carried alive to its grave. Hold back, serpents and wild beasts, for your fangs cannot deter us. I have said that I would not refrain from saying that America was best, in every sense. Now, I shall state what is worst, in every sense. Those who would reconstruct society to prevent you from ever forming that more perfect union. They arrest your political development by gripping lawmakers by the very hair of their heads. They have perfected envy and malevolence to an art form. And they are the wellspring of subversion at every turn. Yes, I say subversion. Because if there had been criminal profiling at Los Alamos laboratories, Wen Ho Lee would have been spotted and apprehended before he conveyed missile secrets to Red China. Jonathan Pollard would have been scrutinized and caught before he turned defense intelligence over to Israel. And Lamont Jenkins would have been spotted and nabbed before his pals rioted, assaulted the police and wound up behind bars.

      Speak softly? Tread lightly? Why? Lest the loathsome and lecherous rise up with even more pugnacity? Let us say that Justin Blasi, Paul Heymount and all their minions had succeeded in breaking through these barricades and that we had fought with bare fists to the last of us. And I were pinned down and pummeled, nay slashed and ripped apart, would they have won? They have made their intentions clear. They say they want those who stand in their way carried out in body bags. And you can have no doubt as to their murderous intentions. But I did not ask, are they capable of murder? Nor did I inquire if their terrorism might indict them. Or their conduct cause men to gape and pull away in horror. I asked, would they have won? And I say no. Because the words which have been propelled from this place have not been vapors, evaporating into the air, but darts, like Cupid's arrow, with, oh, so much more force, reaching their mark in the heart. But did I suggest that love of country be like a cup of hot tea, soothing to the body, giving a warm sense of comfort inside? Oh, no.

      The challenge is that patriotism be repeated, in word and song, from heart to heart, hand to hand. A flag. A torch. Passed from one to the other. Which is why the appeal falls inexorably upon youth. Impetuous, daring, bold. The ones to call Rosenberg's speech-fee a sham, defy the Freeholders to their very faces and proceed with the flag down Washington Street -- against orders of judges, warnings by police and rocks of assailants -- were all young lads. To them, life is a struggle. And the quest for justice is immediate. They were too brash to wade through ream after ream of paper, to wait year after year for courts, to bury their heads in their books until titles or security, wealth or position, came their way. Such is the power of this marvelous place. The Morris County Courthouse has become democracy's fountain of youth. The spirit here has been as a mighty rush of pure, spring water, cascading down, refreshing the thirsty, invigorating the weary.

      The potion of patriotism should inflame the soul, but never addle the mind. The great virtue of youth is the ability to see so clearly. Pretense has not yet become your staff. Diplomacy has not yet become your blinders. You have been rude to the rowdy. Impolite to usurpation. Even downright ornery to oppression. Your belligerence has displayed your shirt emblazoned with your stance, no matter how offended your opponents may have been -- thank you, Thomas, Bryan and Matthew Sypniewski. Speaking a forbidden word, no matter how chagrined your hearers may have been. But what has attracted you to this spot is not just the belligerence, but the discipline, of Nationalists. Until now, you have been an annoyance. And you reveled in being a "rebel with a cause," whether you were a Boy Scout, defying the New Jersey Supreme Court's siding with homosexual lobby, or a flag-waver, defying the University of Mississippi Chancellor's siding with the Black Caucus. But there seemed to be a need for a graduation day. Placing the cap of effectiveness upon your head and the diploma of successfulness in your hand.

      It has been asked why your grievances should not be presented in some other way. Perhaps by a letter or resolution. Or in some other place. Perhaps at the state capitol or White House. But here is the place of your victory. You could have been the ones jumping barricades and shouting threats. But you took the high ground, instead. That took discipline. You could have spoken intemperately or conducted yourselves outrageously, but you lifted your heads, instead. That took obedience. You might have looked at the rottenness around you and lashed out in some violent way or dropped out in some reclusive retreat. But you honed your skills and straightened your back. That took stamina. So, when the tale is told, the ugly forces of hate and meanness must be exposed for the losers that they are. For the ascendant forces of love and honor have won the field and carried the day. But who will tell your story? Those who mocked you as insignificant must now record that you bested everyone from the Governor to the Attorney-General to the Mayor to the Freeholders. Those who predicted that you would be run off of your turf and sent scurrying for cover must now report that neither fists nor threats, assaults nor rioters, could turn you around.

      For today, you begin to form yourselves into that more perfect union which presages the more perfect union of the nation. You task is to conduct yourselves, individually, when you leave this place the same as you would were television cameras and reporters all watching you. Exemplary. Inspirational. Upright. Victory in Morristown means that you no longer need whisper in some corners, but you may declare yourselves before the world. No more should you think of yourselves as isolated, but as part of that mighty column -– from Independence Hall to the Morris County Courthouse – unbroken, unyielding, unstoppable. My countrymen, Morristown has been a birthplace of our nation. Today, Morristown is a rebirthplace of our nation. But this is not just an encore to a concert. Not some short ditty before the stage goes dark. In a sense, these ceremonies are much like a couple which renews its wedding vows. Only, you are renewing your citizenship vows. From that, there is no walking away, no sticking of some card in the pocket and forgetting about it.

      Take with me this holy oath: to character, I shall be my best. To honor, I shall do my duty. To countrymen, I pledge my troth. To country, I give my all. To God, I bide my faith. Just as you, now, take responsibility for yourselves, let it not be said that you are to blame for the wayward ways of those who oppose and oppress you. You who now build a new nation up are not responsible for those who burned Los Angeles down. You who declare Independence from Crime Day stand in stark contrast to those who perpetrate Devil's Night. So, as you impose greater responsibility upon yourselves, so you have a right to demand greater responsibility among others. Somewhere, you know someone who you revere as a man of faith. One whose piety radiates around him. You know of someone who is a man of work. One whose craftsmanship and dedication makes him so much in demand in his trade. Now the challenge is that you become a man of patriotism. One whose love of country glows wherever you are, for all to see. This is not just a cloak you take on or off, but your responsibility for the rest of your life.

      The Muse of history has been forced to affirm that the darkest hours of persecution and ridicule in Morristown have produced the seedlings of liberty and hope. These have been the times when the lifestuff of democracy was analyzed in the test tube of suffering. They begged, pleaded, even threatened you to avert your eyes from this place, today. It was the same for those who camped by here. You may have safety and prosperity, if only you will exchange affection for your country for your personal gain, they said. But Washington felt otherwise. And so do you. Washington would not trade with those who imposed unjust taxes any more than you would barter with those who impose oppressive affirmative action. If nothing comes from this day but to produce more of the character of Washington, that alone has entitled you to the respect of all mankind. How the world marvels at our conquest of space, our delving down into the deepest depths of the seas, our harnessing the very forces of nature. But when Lafayette arrived here, he dismissed even the most imposing of public works and most learned of treatises, observing instead that our greatest national treasure was our "love of country and love liberty" from which came our progress and prosperity. No longer let there be uncertainty of purpose, faltering of spirit, infusion of alien ways. No longer outward appearances masking the innermost longing that the Balkanization of our country shall end.

      Constantine issued an edict in 313 whereby all "diverse" elements within the Roman Empire would be tolerated. But two years later, he realized that subversive elements were eating out the very heart of the nation. So, he changed his direction. Jimmy Carter, likewise, pardoned draft-dodgers, which subversive element, with all its tentacles, has been grasping our institutions and deprecating the majority ever since. It is time to change direction. Today is not a campaign for anyone for office. It is a campaign for a point of view, which can be the starting point for the reunification and resurrection of this nation. Consider an outpost, a garrison here on what was the frontier. A lone defender. His wife has been scalped. His children carried off by Indians into slavery. He is outnumbered, standing his ground against insuperable numbers. You know of his peril and you are enroute to help. What would you, meanwhile, if you could, give him? More ammunition? That will run out. Higher walls of the fort? They can be scaled. You would give him hope. Whether at Bataan or the Bulge. Hope. Morristown or Mississippi. Hope. Rescue, from the scalpers of free institutions. Salvation, from the corrupters of majority-rule. Unconditional surrender, of the slaughterers the Union. Bring forth your inner-most strength. Grasp your colors by the staff. Stand together, with a mighty shout. Hold fast to your heritage, but march forward to your future. No longer theory or dream, but task and duty. Not just hope, but accomplishment. One nation, indivisible.