Many ' true believers' of the sweet hereafter follow a simple premise: " What is not of love is not of God". Nicely put. Those of us who walk this secular laden path of life ( with spirit guiding us) believe that " Without truth there can be no freedom ". Truth. For those Trekkies out there, truth really is ' The final frontier' , or doorway, if you will, to real and lasting freedom.

Think about a marriage. Can there be a true and lasting love relationship if there is not truth? If either partner is living a lie, how can the marriage blossom and grow?

Take the roots of a tree. If they begin to rot away, what happens to the tree? Little by little, the bark, the branches, the whole thing finally dies. If a branch is rotting, it can be pruned away and the roots will not be affected too much. When the roots whither, the entire tree dies.

The tree of America, of our culture, of our very being as a nation, is our government. Lincoln's words " Of the people, by the people and for the people " tell it all. The government should reflect the very values we hold dear. What primary value cannot be debated or diluted or distilled at all? Truth. Without it, all else will rot away.

For 24 months straight my neighbors and I stand on a street corner in Port, in protest to the illegal attack and occupation of Iraq. Our main concern, and hope, is that the truth must finally surface in the public consciousness. The truth of what really occurred on 9/11. The truth of why Iraq was singled out and attacked. The truth of why torture, despite the Geneva Convention accords, has become a norm rather than an exception.. Finally, the truth of just how great a role Big Oil plays in our foreign policy, sacrificing 2600 plus young Americans and hundreds of thousands of Iraqis to fulfill its agenda. And on and on. Truth! The final frontier.

Alas, after 24 months, only 20-30 show up each Tuesday, in a town with a population boom of now over 60,000. Factor in the adjoining towns, and the population swells to over 200,000. Yet, 20-30 show up, on a good day! Truth, the final frontier. When will my neighbors learn? When will they realize that I am not simply out there to represent them, rather to influence them. Alas, all we have is our truth, and the freedom to express it..... until that too may be taken from us!