New Hampshire’s Motto, “Live Free or Die” is Under Attack Once Again
New Hampshire’s motto, live free or die, has been under attack before and now it is under attack once again. This time it is under attack from “The Governor’s Task Force for the Recruitment and Retention of a Young Workforce for the State of New Hampshire.”
From a New Hampshire Union Leader editorial on the subject, this is what the above mentioned task force says about New Hampshire’s motto:
Our State portrays an unfriendly message that every individual has to succeed on their own, rather than count on a support system for assistance (Live Free or Die is not a friendly, supporting message that appeals to young people)
Believing in individual freedom is somehow unfriendly and unpopular with young people while becoming dependant on a “support system” IE big government is what appeals to young people?
Giving up personal freedom to acquiesce to government is supposed to give us more freedom? I don’t get it.
Here is the Union Leader editorial reprinted in full, it sums up my feelings on this issue:
In nine days, New Hampshire’s state motto will turn 200 years old. It was July 31, 1809, when Gen. John Stark wrote to his comrades from the Battle of Bennington to offer this toast: “Live free or die. Death is not the worst of evils.”
It is a horrible irony that weeks before this historic anniversary, “The Governor’s Task Force for the Recruitment and Retention of a Young Workforce for the State of New Hampshire” stated in its official report: “Our State portrays an unfriendly message that every individual has to succeed on their own, rather than count on a support system for assistance (Live Free or Die is not a friendly, supporting message that appeals to young people).”
How soft we have become. That ridiculous assessment is far from the reaction had by Stark’s fellow Bennington survivors, who wrote to him in 1810, “The toast, sir, which you sent us in 1809 will continue to vibrate with unceasing pleasure in our ears.”
They only won us our freedom. What do they know?
To the ears of modern 20- and 30-somethings consulted by the governor’s commission, the motto vibrates with stabbing pain. “Independence,” they hear, and recoil. Their parents probably still make their car and student loan payments.
The commission reported this recommendation from people interviewed: “Rebrand NH and make it more appealing; the Live Free Or Die motto is prohibitive to what young people are looking for in their home community.”
The commission members might like to know that “Live free or die” is not a brand. It is not a marketing slogan to be modified for maximum appeal to the ever-changing 18- to 34-year-old demographic. It is a motto, which curmudgeonly old Webster’s defines as “a sentence, phrase, or word inscribed on something as appropriate to or indicative of its character or use.”
Nothing is more indicative of the character of New Hampshire than our great motto. It is not to be changed to please the ears of lost youth fickle enough to pick a home state because it has a catchy slogan.
What a joke the “live free or die” state has become under Governor John Lynch!
America's Watchtower 
The youngins these days are so pampered, they have no sense of reallity. The Statists have dumbend them down so much on our history they have no sense of National Pride. Society is breeding a bunch of wimps, unless things change , and change quickly our future is doomed.
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The way that this organization is twisting the meaning of “live free or die” has to make you wonder what else they are teaching our children about our history and about government’s role in peoples lives.
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Traditional American values are being challenged at every turn. And whats being taught these days in elementary and secondary schools is a revisionist view of history—trying to have history to conform to what some see as contemporary values. I keep up with these things as I have a number of family member who teach. And keep in mind, this is in Mississippi a very conservative state. The public schools have now become part of the blame America crowd and increasingly even the founding fathers are coming under attack. I do know however that these things run in cycles and I firmly believe if we hang in there things will change—the battle for the minds of the young must continue for they are the future of the nation.
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Yes, America’s youth is being indoctrinated into this type of mindset. That is one of the most troubling aspects in my opinion. How they hell are we going to compete when the children are being taught this type of bullshit from day one of school?
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Home school them.
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Libbers are so easily offended…
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Every individual has to succeed on their own is now “unfriendly”? So the alternative of reliance is now “friendly”? Would we be then alluding to someone who is a self-made-millionaire as something negative?
There are lots of other friendly countries and states out there. The people should seek them.
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When did it become wrong to succeed on your own and when did it become admirable to live on handouts? I just don’t get this at all.
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Several things hit me with this news.
1. The motto is not unfriendly…it is honorable and patriotic!
2. Change doesn’t come as a result of the minority’s wishes but as a result of the majority’s wishes.
3. If the young people don’t like the message (which I doubt who really has the issue with this) then they don’t have to live here. They can move to Massachusetts where the motto is “we will tax you to death” (being funny! )
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I do’t think that the young people have the problem with the motto, I think that the liberals have a problem teaching what the motto really means. They just don’t agree with it and they are trying to use the children as the excuse to get rid of it.
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“Live Free or Die” is unfriendly? Man, give me a break! How dare a state have a motto that promotes self-reliance and liberty over tyranny. And really, I don’t think the motto says that you can’t help one another out in times of need, so that line of criticism is bogus. Critics just don’t like the message that people are capable of living their lives without the loving care of the nanny state.
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The whole argument of that groups is ass backwards.
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This is only relevant in the sense it is about New Hampshire. Did you know that we created 50 jobs out of the stimulus money? Each job cost over 8 million dollars!
http://anunlikelyperspective2.squarespace.com/aup2/2009/7/24/saving-a-job-832-million-dollars-at-a-time-1.html
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i for one DO NOT like this motto just because john stark coined it didnt make it a motto and not 200 years as motto a lot less then that i hate it on my number plate obviously it means different things to different people not just young ones i am 67 years old and dont feel that i should feel obligated to have it on my car many other quotes would have been more appropiate luckily we still have a right to our own opinion and this is mine my husband disagrees with me on the subject but “OH WELL” to each their own
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Mom,
Use some punctation.
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sorry paul im used to text messaging. also twittering doesnt use it really either.
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What we have here is a failure to communicate!! I say this to the free people of the great state of New Hampshire, LIVE FREE OR DIE!!! Get to that state house and quick.
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Hmm. Let’s forsake our proud state history to make it more appealing for the younger people? We might as well get rid of Semper Fidelis for the Marines, the momunet sayings in DC, on all state buildings, etc. . It’s mostly all in latin and might offend young people because it is an “old” language and they don’t understand its’ meaning without googling it, if they get off their I-pods long enough.
All the hand holding and coddling of the last 30 years has made a generation of bottle sucking whimps that need everything done for them.
We can’t even get recruits without enticing them with bonuses. When I went in 30 years ago I didn’t get a bonus. I did it for the Esprit de Corps (latin again, darn) and pride of nation.
When the liberals finish destroying our past, present and eventually future, hopefully someone with a set will push them all back into the abiss of spinless whinning they came from and make us a great nation again.
Leave well enough alone liberals. You have done enough damage.
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“Live Free or Die” is unfriendly? Man, give me a break! How dare a state have a motto that promotes self-reliance and liberty over tyranny. And really, I don’t think the motto says that you can’t help one another out in times of need, so that line of criticism is bogus. Critics just don’t like the message that people are capable of living their lives without the loving care of the nanny state.
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Very well said!
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I agree with the comment Wellsy and I have the same opinion about it!
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leave he motto alone
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“To the ears of modern 20- and 30-somethings consulted by the governor’s commission, the motto vibrates with stabbing pain.”
Good. Go live someplace else…
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It’s for the children. (sarcasm)
http://www.newsmax.com/InsideCover/christie-new-jersey-spending/2010/11/27/id/378190?s=al&promo_code=B301-1
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I grew up in New Hampshire…This state is my home…Live Free or Die is how I live, its how I’ll teach my children to live, and I believe it fits our state…If these liberal’s take this down we really have lost all power to the government…I mean I get it you want us young people to be soft, and babies, well try and see how that goes where i’m from bro..It aint happenin…LIVE FREE OR DIE!!!
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LIBERALS ATTACKING US AGAIN, GOVENOR LYNCH, THIS IS YOUR LAST TERM! THE REASON WE ARE FREE IS BECAUSE OF LIVE FREE OR DIE
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Only a few more months and Lynch will be gone, here’s hoping Hassan doesn’t take his place!
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Fred has it right! A state motto like that does not fit into the political correctness embraced by liberals and the national Democratic Party. Plain truth is frowned on my the american left–seems they just cannot tolerate the truth in any form unless it fits into their talking points which is delivered daily by the party elite.
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Exactly Ron, the left doesn’t understand what the motto represents because they see it through a politically correct prism.
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Ironically Ben Franklin said it best, paraphrasing (Those who would sacrifice freedom for security, deserves neither).
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