Alva Review-Courier -

It’s the time of year when we like to set off – or at least watch – fireworks. The bigger and more colorful and the louder the boom, the better. But beyond the booms and the lights and the oohs and the ahs is the overarching sense of what the Fourth of July is really about: a celebration of the United States of America’s enduring legacy of independence and liberty.

It’s our nation’s 243rd birthday since the drafting of the Declaration of Independence. With this document, our founding fathers announced their intent to throw off the tyrannical chains of Great Britain and its king. The struggle t...