Ridecamp: [RC] History Lesson...

DID YOU KNOW?

Take out a one dollar bill, and look at it. The one dollar bill you're
looking at first came off the presses in 1957 in its present design.
This so-called paper money is in fact a cotton and linen blend, with red
and blue minute silk fibers running through it.  It is actually
material.
We've all washed it without it falling apart. A special blend of ink is
used, the contents we will never know. It is overprinted with symbols
and
then it is starched to make it water resistant and pressed to give it
that
nice crisp look.

If you look on the front of the bill, you will see the United States
Treasury Seal. On the top you will see the scales for a balanced budget.
In
the center you have a carpenter's square, a tool used for an even cut.
Underneath is the Key to the United States Treasury. That's all pretty
easy
to figure out, but what is on the back of that dollar bill is something
we should all know.

If you turn the bill over, you will see two circles. Both circles,
together, comprise the Great Seal of the United States.  The First
Continental Congress requested that Benjamin Franklin and a group of men
come up with a Seal. It took them four years to accomplish this task and
another two years to get it approved.

If you look at the left-hand circle, you will see a Pyramid. Notice the
face is lighted, and the western side is dark.  This country was just
beginning.

We had not begun to explore the West or decided what we could do for
Western Civilization. The Pyramid is un-capped, again signifying that we
were not even close to being finished. Inside the capstone you have the
all-seeing eye, an ancient symbol for divinity.  It was Franklin's
belief
that one man couldn't do it alone, but a group of men, with the help of
God, could do anything.

"IN GOD WE TRUST" is on this currency. The Latin above the pyramid,
ANNUIT
COEPTIS, means, "God has favored our undertaking."  The Latin below the
pyramid, NOVUS ORDO SECLORUM, means, "a new order has begun." At the
base
of the pyramid is the Roman Numeral for 1776.

If you look at the right-hand circle, and check it carefully, you will
learn that it is on every National Cemetery in the United States.  It is
also on the Parade of Flags Walkway at the Bushnell, Florida National
Cemetery, and is the centerpiece of most hero's monuments.  Slightly
modified, it is the seal of the President of the United States, and it
is
always visible whenever he speaks, yet very few people know what the
symbols mean.

The Bald Eagle was selected as a symbol for victory for two reasons:
First,
he is not afraid of a storm; he is strong, and he is smart enough to
soar
above it. Secondly, he wears no material crown.  We had just broken from
the King of England.  Also, notice the shield is unsupported. This
country
can now stand on its own.  At the top of that shield you have a white
bar
signifying congress, a unifying factor. We were coming together as one
nation.  In the Eagle's beak you will read, "E PLURIBUS UNUM", meaning,
"one nation from many people".

Above the Eagle, you have thirteen stars, representing the thirteen
original colonies, and any clouds of misunderstanding rolling away.
Again,
we were coming together as one.

Notice what the Eagle holds in his talons. He holds an olive branch and
arrows. This country wants peace, but we will never be afraid to fight
to
preserve peace. The Eagle always wants to face the olive branch, but in
time of war, his gaze turns toward the arrows.

They say that the number 13 is an unlucky number. This is almost a
worldwide belief. You will usually never see a room numbered 13, or any
hotels or motels with a 13th floor. But think about this: 13 original
colonies, 13 signers of the Declaration of Independence, 13 stripes on
our
flag, 13 steps on the Pyramid, 13 letters in the Latin above, 13 letters
in
"E Pluribus Unum", 13 stars above the Eagle, 13 bars on that shield, 13
leaves on the olive branch, 13 fruits, and if you look closely, 13
arrows.
And, for minorities: the 13th Amendment.

I always ask people, "Why don't you know this?"  Your children don't
know
this, and their history teachers don't know this.  Too many veterans
have
given up too much to ever let the meaning fade.  Many veterans remember
coming home to an America that didn't care. Too many veterans never came
home at all.

Semper Fi....

Jim, Sun of Dimanche, and Mahada Magic


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