Celebrating America’s 249th Birthday in a Small Town

As California Governor Gavin Newsom was probably sipping on a PlumpJack Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon and bashing the President for the One Big Beautiful Bill passage, as well as hard-timing him over fires which broke out of federal land in California, normal Californians took a day off from the vitriol of living in Newsom’s mismanaged and failing state and enjoyed family and friends while celebrating the passage of the Declaration of Independence by the Continental Congress on July 4, 1776, 249 years ago.

Or perhaps it was Brandon Richards (He/Him) sipping on a Whiteclaw, writing nasty messages on X on the governor’s behalf…

We normals had backyard BBQs, parties for the kids, and gathered with family. We weren’t sipping Plumpjack wines eating crudités, Tartine Fromage blanc, and smoked Salmon canapes. No. We enjoyed hamburgers, hot dogs and all the fixings, chips, salsa, guacamole (from avocados grown in California Chuck Schumer), sipping White trash Margaritas, and drinking incredible Zinfandel, Sauvignon Blanc, Syrah, and Viognier.

As I have reported before, living in downtown Sacramento for more than 30 years hasn’t always been a picnic. I frequently write about crime, encounters with homeless vagrants in downtown, in my neighborhood, as well as in the park near my house, and oppressive state and local government.

A day of celebration was in store on July 4th in Plymouth, CA at the Trucks, Tractors and Trikes parade, as well as a moment of relief.

Plymouth is at the mouth of the Shenandoah Valley, the wine country of Amador County.  There are forty-two wineries located in the heart of the celebrated Sierra foothill Gold Country. And the small towns, Plymouth, Amador City, Drytown, Fiddletown, Pinegrove, Pioneer, Volcano… are nestled into the hills, mountains, near rivers and lakes. And wineries… the fabulous wineries.

The highlight is the Independence Day parade, with kids on bikes and trikes, 4-H kids on horses, decorated horses, decorated farm equipment and tractors, big trucks, little trucks, the random decorated car, scooters, golf carts, kiddie cars, and lots of decorated pets.

Passengers in the trucks tossed candy to the little ones.

Kids raced out into the street for candy… a few adults too.

When you enter the region on highway 16, it’s as if you’ve stepped into a portal back to the old west and historic gold country.  And the people are genuine and the nicest.

The July 4th parade opened with the National Anthem. Then, the Mother Lode Scots led the way.

The fire trucks rolled through, followed by decorated pickups, tractors, more tractors, kids on tricycles, go-carts, vintage trucks, Shetland Ponies, horses, dogs, but no goats this year. I missed the goats!

Parade goers cheered. Adults enjoyed pomegranate mimosas and cold beer – plenty of cold beer.

California’s cities are a hot mess – and dangerous – even deadly.

The streets of cities and towns in Amador County are not lined with squalid homeless tent camps. No one is pooping on the sidewalks in Amador City or Jackson the way they do in San Francisco (home of the public defecation map), Los Angeles and Sacramento.

There are no organized smash-and-grab retail thefts in Sutter Creek or Ione.

People are not pushed into oncoming trains the way they are in San Francisco.

Plymouth has no homicide, rape, robbery, assault, burglary, larceny-theft, arson, or even shoplifting to speak of.

A recent Sheriff’s log included this crime: “Traffic Hazard in Plymouth. Caller advised several cars stopped due to a loose horse in the roadway.” And this: “Suspicious Person in Martell. Possible female transient, approximately 50 years-old, 5’10”, going through trash and making a mess. Business would like her removed.”

This is not to say that everything is coming up roses in Amador County. But it’s normal. And most Californians crave normal again…

What is normal in California? When kids could walk or ride bikes to school unescorted by parents. When we didn’t lock our doors. When kids could stay outside until dark and play. When a single income was enough for a family. When most families had one car. When we started every day in school with the Pledge of Allegiance and sang America the Beautiful, with our hands over our hearts. When the Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts were for boys and girls. When anyone who wanted to work could because college wasn’t a prerequisite. When politicians supported business, agriculture and the oil and gas industry in California. When a classical Liberal Arts education was made up of rigorous disciplines from the natural sciences to the fine arts, and teachers taught these disciplines enthusiastically.

And normal in California was when most people did not have to think about politics because elected leaders actually represented constituents, rather than despising them – and when Gavin Newsom was just a privileged punk in San Francisco that most people hadn’t heard of.

Make California Great Again.