Amazing! Absolutely amazing that this country exists. In the words of New York Times opinion writer Thomas Friedman: “Congratulations, you won the lottery. You were born in the United States of America.”

Well, that is very true, but this country “of the people, by the people, for the people” has been challenged many times in the course of its existence and we who were born here, as well as those immigrants who chose to be here, need to protect this remarkable gift that we presently own.

While loving this country, we have the right to be critical at times. In fact, you might say we have an obligation to be critical, but overall still having the appreciation of the foundation that has withstood the test of two hundred fifty years.

Any fool that would advocate that we throw out the Constitution should be ignored. Is the Constitution of 1776 the same rule book that we should abide by today? Probably not, and that is why a mechanism for making adjustments was built into that special document. Over the years, freedoms have been enhanced. Abolition of slavery, the women’s right to vote, and the right to marry who you love are all challenges of the past and, to some degree, we still must deal with and we will.

America has made major adjustments in the past, and there will be more in the future. We will meet adversity and win. In the words of the beloved Russian immigrant Irving Berlin, “God Bless America.”