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History Lesson 01 - Dollar Bill
THE
UNITED STATES ONE DOLLAR BILL
Take out a one dollar bill, and look at it. The one dollar bill you're looking at first came off the presses in 1957 in its present design.
This
so-called paper money is in fact a
cotton and linen blend, with red and
United
States
Treasury Seal.
On the
top you will see the scales for a balanced budget.
In the
center you have a carpenter's square, a tool used for an even cut.
Underneath is the Key to the United States Treasury.
That's
all pretty easy to figure out,
but what is on the back of that dollar bill is something we should all know. If you turn the bill over, you will see two circles.
Both
circles, together,
comprise the
Great
Seal of the United States.
The First
Continental Congress
requested that Benjamin Franklin and a group of men come up with a Seal. It took them four years to accomplish this task and another two years to get it approved. If you look at the left-hand circle, you will see a Pyramid. 
Notice the face is lighted, and the
western side is dark. This country was just beginning.
We had not begun to explore the West or decided what we could do for Western Civilization.
The
Pyramid is uncapped, again signifying that we were not
even close to being finished. Inside the capstone you have the all-seeing eye, an ancient symbol for divinity.
It was
Franklin 's belief that one man
couldn't do it alone, but a group of men, with the help of God, could do anything. "IN GOD WE TRUST" is on this currency. 
The Latin
above the pyramid, ANNUIT COEPTIS, means,
"God
has favored our undertaking."
The Latin below the pyramid, NOVUS ORDO SECLORUM, means,
"a
new order has begun."
At the
base of the pyramid is the Roman Numeral for 1776.
(MDCCLXXVI)
If you look at the right-hand circle, and check it carefully, 
you will learn that it is on every
National Cemetery in the United States.
It is
also on the Parade of Flags Walkway at the Bushnell, Florida National
Cemetery,
and is the centerpiece of most hero's monuments.
Slightly
modified, it is the seal of the President of the United States ,
and it is
always visible whenever he speaks, yet very few people know what the
symbols mean.
The Bald Eagle was selected as a symbol for victory for two reasons: First, he is not afraid of a storm; he is strong, and he is smart enough to soar above it.
Secondly,
he wears no material crown. We had just broken from the King of
England.
Also,
notice the shield is unsupported. This country can now stand on its
own.
At the
top of that shield you have a white bar signifying congress, a unifying
factor.
We were
coming together as one nation.
In the
Eagle's beak you will read, " E PLURIBUS UNUM", meaning,
"one nation from many people". Above the Eagle, you have thirteen stars, representing the thirteen original colonies, and any clouds of misunderstanding rolling away. Again, we were coming together as one. Notice what the Eagle holds in his talons.
He holds
an olive branch and arrows.
This
country wants peace, but we will never be afraid to fight to preserve
peace.
The Eagle
always wants to face the olive branch, but in time of war, his gaze
turns toward the arrows.
They say that the number 13 is an unlucky number.
This is
almost a worldwide belief.
You will
usually never see a room numbered 13, or any hotels or motels with a
13th floor
But think
about this:
I always ask people, "Why don't you know this?" Your children don't know this, and their history teachers don't know this.
Too many
veterans have given up too much to ever let the meaning fade.
Many
veterans remember coming home to an America that didn't care.
Too many
veterans never came home at all.
Share this page with everyone, so they can learn what is on the back of the UNITED STATES ONE DOLLAR BILL, and what it stands for... Otherwise, they will probably never know...
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