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8 Steps to Understanding America's Freedom

"I already know all this stuff!" you may say, "I don't need to study freedom!"

And you are right, in part. Because freedom comes from the rules of right and wrong we already know in our heart, all of us do understand freedom. But then, tell me, why is the budget of the U.S. Agricultural Department greater than the value of the entire output of all of America's farms?

Why is the crime rate growing faster than the population? Why is it we can no longer speak about God in the classroom?

The truth is all of us must study freedom, and be vigilant to see it's preserved, because freedom's enemies never stop thinking of ways to take it away from us.

Listed below are the 8 best movies and books to get you started learning about how freedom works, and how it has been won. These are the resources we at Citizen Soldier constantly find ourselves giving to friends who are hungry for the truth. Some of them you can rent at your video store or read on the web - and we give you the links. Some of them are audio books you can listen to in the car.

All of them will make you a better American, and give you ideas to share with friends.

The list is arranged by Title, Format (audio, video, book), and Brief Description. Click the format you want and we'll link you to where you can order the resource on the web.

Best Movie of the Year and Best Director for 1995, based on the true story of how the Scots won their freedom from England in 1314. Directed by and starring Mel Gibson as William Wallace, the Scot who would be free. Book and screenplay by Randall Wallace, a Christian and member of the Wallace clan. Rent it at your video store or buy it online from amazon.com. You can view clips and pictures here!
Why? - Braveheart shows at an emotional level why government must be limited. What motivates Wallace to fight are not the violations of moral rules the King commands, but the violation of the rules against adultery and murder the King simply allows.

If you read no other book, read this! - The 50th Anniversary edition of Henry Grady Weaver's 1947 classic. Mr. Weaver was the head of GM Customer Research and was honored on the cover of Time in 1938.
Why? This short, easy to read book is the very first to suggest that God's moral rules create freedom and prosperity because they are efficient. Mr. Weaver scans swiftly through history to show that the fundamental conflict has always been whether men would be allowed to direct their own lives. He proves that the relief of human misery and want that has happened in America in the last 200 years results directly from God's moral rules that restrain citizens in government from controlling others, and allow ordinary citizens to unleash their God given talents to create new ideas and wealth.

Could a French economist writing in 1850 predict the shape of American society in the 1990's? - Frederic Bastiat did, in this book, The Law. Bastiat predicted that if politicians tried to buy votes by breaching the Constitution's General Welfare clause and using the law to take property from one citizen and give it to another, America would fragment into special interest groups all trying to buy laws to take property from others.
Why? In 70 quick pages, Bastiat explains the proper functions of a government limited by moral rules. Bastiat was brilliant, and as Henry G. Weaver recounts in Mainspring, above, refuted Marx's 1848 theory of communism as soon as Marx proposed it. This is the type of book you buy in quantity (100 for $147) to give to friends, but you can read it on the web.

First heard on BBC during WW II - the simple, logical case for Christianity, made on the basis of reason and common experience by C.S. Lewis, lecturer at Oxford and Cambridge and noted author. Mr. Lewis was a dedicated atheist who reasoned his way to faith. No fire and brimstone, no scripture verses, just plain common sense.

Why? Beneath the moral rules that create freedom and prosperity lie simple, profound truths that the trappings of religion can obscure. You'll find yourself re-listening to these tapes every six months or so.

Does America really have a Godly heritage? This colorful, engaging, and superbly researched video proves that America does have a Godly heritage that has been stolen from us bit by bit over the years. Historical researcher David Barton presents the results of years of research into the lives and writings of America's Founders to show that the moral rules found in the Bible were central to American government and society until about 120 years ago. Barton documents how this history has been lost and how that loss has effected our government, law, and society.
Why? - Our schools used to be the place where we learned the three r's and America's true history. Now the three r's have become racism, reproduction, and recycling, and we have to seek out the truth about America's history on our own. We always found history dull until David Barton gave us a passion for it!

What makes Good Government? Good laws, good men, or good ideas that are shared and preserved by an active and informed citizenry? In this fast-paced video, David Barton presents more of his fascinating research into America's Founders to show that they believed freedom and properity could only be maintained if citizens understood and stood up for the ideas on which our Nation was founded. Barton juxtaposes what the Supreme Court, government leaders, and popular culture figures have said and done in the last 120 years with statements and anecdotes from our Founders. He presents shocking evidence of how the loss of the Founders' ideas has impacted America.
Why? This is the history PBS and the mainstream media always ignore, but it is essential to understanding where our freedom comes from, and how it is being lost.

Liberalism - a word that used to mean freedom! Does it surprise anybody that the ideas that are slowly killing our freedom and prosperity have come to be known by a name that is itself stolen? But the word Liberalism, derived from Liberty, used to mean those ideas that unleashed man's talents and creativity to spark an increase in man's living standard unmatched by any other ideas in history. In his 1927 classic, the "Economist of the Century," Ludwig von Mises, explains that the ultimate morality is efficiency, and shows how the moral rules allow man to live together in peace and maximize his productivity.
Why? Although it is an earlier work, Liberalism picks up where The Mainspring of Human Progress leaves off, giving you a more detailed and specific look at how freedom's ideas shape government and society. Von Mises singlehandedly kept the ideas of liberty alive through the first half of this century - you'll probably want both the tape and hardcopy versions of Liberalism!

What if the less you know about God, the harder it is to understand how His moral rules create freedom and prosperity? And the closer you are, the easier it is. At Citizen Soldier, our own lives prove this is true. The Bible is really the first place to turn to understand freedom, but we have put it last because it is the one book you never finish reading. And it is the only book whose author you can talk to 24 - 7. All you have to do is pray. You can read along as Alexander Scourby reads the Bible right on the web!

Why? "Behold, I stand at the door, and knock, If any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me." Revelations 3:20