6 • JULY 1, 2022 OPINION
bransonglobe.com
America’s foundation: a ‘reliance’ and ‘Pledge’
First Amendment to the United States Constitution Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances. ROB DOHERTY Publisher (504) 583-8907 robd@bransonglobe.com JANET STEINKAMP Editor editor@bransonglobe.com GARY GROMAN, A.K.A. THE OLE SEAGULL Independent Writer
BY GARY J. GROMAN a.k.a. The Ole Seagull
T
he Declaration of Independence states, “And for the support of this Declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes and our sacred Honor.” In the opinion of an Ole Seagull that “reliance” and “pledge” is the foundation as necessary for the survival of America today as it was for the
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mo, overwhelming and killing every one of its 189 defenders. Days into the siege, after receiving messages that no further help would be coming, Colonel Travis explained the hopelessness of their situation. He gave the Alamo’s defenders a choice of escaping, surrendering, or continuing to fight with the certainty of death. The chances of escape were pretty good as people had been going through the Mexican lines during the siege. All, but one, chose to fight on. Unknown at the time was the special place in history where their choice would be forever enshrined. That place where the spirit of honor, dedication to purpose, courage, and willingness to sacrifice their lives all for a noble cause is revered and preserved. The spirit manifesting itself only 46 days after the Alamo’s fall, at the
Battle of San Jacinto. Santa Anna’s army outnumbered the Texas army, under the command of General Sam Houston, by over a two-to-one margin. Despite these odds, the Texas Army, inspired by the sacrifice of the Alamo defenders and shouting the battle cry, “Remember the Alamo,” defeated the Mexican army and captured Santa Anna. What is it about the Alamo that so inspired the Texas army at the Battle of San Jacinto? Impacts the hearts and souls of generations since? What are we to remember? Was it their courage or that they spent their lives for a noble cause? Was it that so few stood against so many for so long? That they could have elected not to give their lives in a battle they knew they could not win, or a combination of these factors? SEE OLE SEAGULL, PAGE 9
Stock Market Insights: Bear market... for now
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“birth” of America on July 4, 1776. It is a “reliance” on God and the “pledge” and sacrifices of individuals, not governments or politicians, that define the American spirit. The actions of the defenders of the Alamo, to an Ole Seagull, personify that individual spirit. History records that on the first day of the Siege of the Alamo, Santa Anna had the scarlet flag of “no quarter” run up on San Fernando Church within sight of the Alamo defenders. It meant surrender or die. Despite the odds against them, it was answered with cannon fire from the Alamo defenders instead of submission. In the early predawn hours of Sunday, March 6, 1836, after 12 days of almost constant bombardment and siege, Santa Anna’s soldiers, numbering in the thousands, made their final assault on the Ala-
BY DR. RICHARD L. BAKER, AIF® Founder & Senior Wealth Advisor at Steadfast Wealth Management
ou’re entering Bear Country! The bear was my high school mascot. We had a big bear painted on the side of our gym (though it was a little controversial) and a sign on the road telling drivers passing through that they had entered “Bear Country.” I’m sorry to tell you our stock market has entered bear country, too, but I think we may be exiting it soon. Bulls and bears are stock-market lingo that gets tossed around a lot in media. Growing up in the
country makes it easy for me to understand. Just like real bulls produce valuable calves and real bears take away valuable calves. A Bull Market is where increase/gain occurs, and a Bear Market is where decrease/loss happens. A market is technically a Bear Market when the indexes fall 20% or more from their highs for at least 60-days. Our current bear market started on Jan. 3 when the S&P 500 Index hit a high. It’s five and a half months old, which makes it older
than six out of eight other bear markets in the last forty years. When this bear market ends depends on how inflation is handled. We need three things to happen: First, we need the Federal Reserve to gently slow the economy to bring down inflation. Second, we need nothing significant to happen such as a major terrorist attack or a big bank failing (which I don’t expect.) Lastly, we need to avoid a recession. If these three things SEE STOCK MARKET, PAGE 8
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