"Ask Russ"

Dear Uncle Russ: What ever happened to the 56 men who signed the Declaration of Independence?

____ Jacob (Madiou) Shugars age 5

All right, I confess. Jacob didn't really ask this of his honorary Uncle for this month's column. Furthermore, I cannot take full credit for the response, as some of it has been published so often that it has become public domain and is a matter of historical fact. In the past week, I have been ill, and had much time, more than I'd liked to have had really, to reflect on the correlation between the freedom and choices Network Marketing provides and the so many freedoms we take for granted every day.

The Fourth of July is a uniquely American holiday because it was on this day 246 years ago, that 56 men pledged their "lives and their sacred honor to take a stand for life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness."

It kind of makes standing up to "is this a pyramid scheme" seem a bit paltry, doesn't it?

I bring this up, not just because of the holiday, but because I believe that one day, the freedoms we now enjoy could be gone. What if you were FORBIDDEN to own your own business or company? What if you were not allowed to earn more than a certain amount and your survival, along with everyone else's, was provided by the State... AND basic survival is ALL that you were provided! After all, it must be a level playing field, right? What if doing better than someone else because you were talented, creative, or hard-working was not permitted because it was deemed "unfair" or made them feel inferior? Think it can't happen? Wake up. It's happened before and it's happening now.

The Network Marketing Magazine is a beacon of free thought for entrepreneurs and brilliant, courageous dreamers, who are on a path to plant their individual flags, discover their personal power, and UNITE and join hands to heal the world, physically, and emotionally, spiritually, and financially.

The women and men who read, write for, publish, subscribe to, and CREATE The Network Marketing Magazine each month, to me, are like those 56 heroes who signed the DOI! These contributors put it out there, day in and day out, all the while inspiring others to do the same.

I love my country. Like my father, before me, I would risk everything to preserve the principles and freedoms on which it was founded for all people.

I love this business called Network marketing. I stated last week that I believe that MLM is not a "kind of company" or merely a system of distribution, although the term can certainly apply to both. I hold that it is a philosophy, a culture, and a way of thinking. It is an opportunity, commitment, risk, choice, and love...yes, LOVE of people; good, bad, odd, brilliant, beautiful human beings...warts and all!

I believe we are CURRENTLY living in a 1776 "moment." Your greatness is calling. How will you be remembered? What are you willing to put at stake?

"Have you ever wondered what happened to the 56 men who signed the Declaration of Independence?

Five signers were captured by the British as traitors, and tortured before they died. Twelve had their homes ransacked and burned. Two lost their sons serving in the Revolutionary Army; another had two sons captured. Nine of the 56 fought and died from wounds or hardships of the revolutionary War. They signed and they pledged their lives, their fortunes, and their sacred honor.

What kind of men were they?

Twenty-four were lawyers and jurists. Eleven were merchants; nine were farmers and large plantation owners; men of means, well-educated, but they signed the Declaration of Independence knowing full well that the penalty would be death if they were captured.

Carter Braxton of Virginia, a wealthy planter and trader, saw his ships swept from the seas by the British Navy. He sold his home and properties to pay his debts and died in rags.

Thomas McKeam was so hounded by the British that he was forced to move his family almost constantly. He served in Congress without pay, and his family was kept in hiding. His possessions were taken from him, and poverty was his reward.

Vandals or soldiers looted the properties of Dillery, Hall, Clymer, Walton, Gwinnett, Heyward, Ruttledge, and Middleton. At the battle of Yorktown, Thomas Nelson Jr. noted that the British General Cornwallis had taken over the Nelson home for his headquarters. He quietly urged General George Washington to open fire. The home was destroyed, and Nelson died bankrupt.

Francis Lewis had his home and properties destroyed. The enemy jailed his wife, and she died within a few months.

John Hart was driven from his wife’s bedside as she was dying. Their 13 children fled for their lives. His fields and his gristmill were laid to waste. For more than a year he lived in forests and caves, returning home to find his wife dead and his children vanished.

Also, approximately 1/5th of the colonists fought against the British.

So, take a few minutes while enjoying your 4th of July holiday and silently thank these patriots. It’s not much to ask for the price they paid."

WAKE UP AMERICA MEDIA NETWORK: Russ DeVan "Patrick Henry - The War Inevitable " Poetry

Russ DeVan is a 42-year veteran of Network Marketing; the owner/founder of Success by Design Global, LLC; and a proud contributing editor to The Network Marketing Magazine