The Over-the-Hill Army

The average US household headed by a person age 65 or older has a net worth 47 times greater than a household headed by someone under 35, according to an analysis of census data released recently. Some more; some less.

Younger folk like to call us senior citizens, old fogies, geezers, and in some cases dinosaurs. Personally I prefer the expression, "recycled teenagers." Some of us are "Baby Boomers" getting ready to retire. Others have been retired for some time. We may walk a little slower these days and our eyes and hearing may not be quite what they once were. We worked hard, raised our children, worshiped our God and have grown old together.

We are the ones some refer to as being over the hill, and that is probably true. In my 30's I belonged to a motorcycle group who called ourselves the Over-the-Hill gang. I was the only one under 60. But before writing us off completely and passing us by on the street as though we are invisible, there are a few things that need to be taken into consideration.

In school we studied English (yes, we can express ourselves in clear, concise, complete sentences), accurate and complete history, math (we can actually balance a checkbook), and intellectually honest science, which enabled us to lead America into the technological age.

Most of us remember what outhouses were, many of us with firsthand experience. My grand-dad was considered a well-to-do farmer: he had a three-holer. The better ones were stocked with Sears or Wards catalogs (remember never to use the covers); the lower income families used dried corn cobs.

We remember the days of telephone party-lines, 25 cent gasoline, and milk and ice being delivered to our homes. For those of you who don't know what an icebox is, today they are electric and referred to as refrigerators. The term, "fridge" actually is short for the old Frigidaire. A few even remember when cars were started with a crank-- no, I don't go back THAT far. Yes, we lived those days.

We are probably considered old-fashioned and out-dated by many. But there are a few things you need to remember before completely writing us off.

We won World War II, fought in Korea and Viet Nam. We can quote The Pledge of Allegiance, and know where to place our hand while doing so with a genuine love and honor for our nation and those who purchased our freedoms with their blood. We wore the uniform of our country with pride and lost many friends on the battlefield. We didn't fight for the Socialist States of America; we fought for the "Land of the free and the home of the brave." We wore different uniforms but carried the same flag.

We know the words to the “Star Spangled Banner,” “America,” and “America the Beautiful” by heart, and you may even see some tears running down our cheeks as we sing. We have lived what many of you may have only read in history books and we feel no obligation to apologize to anyone for America .

Yes, we may be older and slower these days but rest assured, we have at least one good fight left in us should it become necessary. We have loved this country, fought for it, and died for it, and now we are going to save it. It is our country and nobody is going to take it away from us. We took oaths to defend America against all enemies, foreign AND domestic, and that is an oath we plan to keep whatever it takes. There are those who want to destroy this land we love, but like our founders, there is no way we are going to remain silent.

It was mostly the young people of this nation who elected Obama and the Democratic Congress. You fell for the "Hope and Change" which in reality was nothing but "Hype and Lies." You youngsters have tasted socialism but not enough to truly see it for what it is, and seen evil face to face, and if at all discerning have found you don't like it after all. You make a lot of noise, but most are all too interested in their careers or "Climbing the Social Ladder" to be involved in such mundane things as patriotism and voting. Many of those who fell for the "Great Lie" in 2008 are now having buyer's remorse. With all the education we gave you, you didn't have sense enough to see through the lies and instead drank the 'Kool-Aid.' Now you're paying the price and complaining about it; no jobs for which your limited genuine education have prepared you, lost mortgages, higher taxes, and less freedom under the previous administration and Congress.

This is what you voted for and this is what you got. We entrusted you with the Torch of Liberty, and you traded it for a paycheck and a fancy house. Or you opted for whining like spoiled little children that the government should take care of you from cradle to grave. Those latter ones fail to realize that what the government can give to you, it can also restrict or take away altogether.

Well, don't worry youngsters, the "Over-the-Hill Army" is here, and in 2016 we took back our nation. We may drive a little slower than you would like, but we get where we're going, and in 2020 we're going to the polls again by the millions.

So the next time you have the chance to say the Pledge of Allegiance, stand up, put your hand over your heart, honor our country, and thank God for the old geezers of the "Over-the-Hill Army."

Can you feel the ground shaking? It's not an earthquake, it is a rumbling of millions of feet in sensible, perhaps orthopedic shoes marching in lock-step.