A version of this article was published in full on TheHill.com, linked below.
By Rick Manning
Americans have the wrong idea about the 4th of July.
Perhaps it is due to the fireworks displays celebrating the holiday, giving the appearance of a bombardment suitable for the flag still being there at Fort McHenry as memorialized by Frances Scott Key in our national anthem.
Perhaps it is vague recollections from school of Valley Forge, Bunker Hill, Lexington and Concord, or even Yorktown.
Or, it may even be people equating Independence Day with all the battles fought for freedom over the past 238 years.
But America is unique.
