By the time you read this, both Canada and the United States will have just celebrated their national holidays. It is usually a time for flag-waving, military parades, family picnics, and speeches by dignitaries. This year’s Canada Day celebrations were highlighted by the appearance of the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, who were on hand to help Canadians celebrate. Exactly what we as a nation were celebrating is a good question to ask. There is no doubt that we have received many blessings as a country in terms of our material riches and a relatively stable and peaceful society in which to live. One of the things we often hear mentioned is the freedom we have in Canada. By that, we usually mean the freedom to live a life as we see fit - to do what we want, to work, to play, to raise a family, and so on. As Christians, we know that freedom does have limits. We are free only to the extent that we live within the bounds established by our God and Father. True freedom does not consist of license to do whatever man’s heart desires; that leads ultimately only to slavery of the self. One of the freedoms we possess is the freedom to have and maintain a Christian political party such as the Christian Heritage Party. We have the freedom to participate in the public square by offering our Better Solutions for the problems which beset us as a nation. It’s not a freedom that we should take for granted, as we can see in the various cases that come before the Human Rights Commissions (HRCs) of this country. The freedom to speak out on moral issues, for example, is being trammelled, as we’ve seen with people such as Linda Gibbons, Bill Whatcott, and many others. We ought to support such individuals in their right to speak out on moral issues in our democratic society. Better yet, we should encourage them, and like-minded individuals, to unite with us in defending freedom of speech. (In unity there is strength.) CHP is the only political party to boldly defend our freedoms against the HRCs. As we reflect on the privileges of being Canadian citizens this July, let’s remind ourselves and our fellow Canadians of the necessity to maintain and preserve the hard-won freedom to engage in political activity. It’s a precious part of the heritage we’ve received from previous generations. Let’s not squander that freedom - for the sake of our children and grandchildren.