Case: Grateful for freedom to hunt and fish from sea to shining sea

As the United States celebrates its 250th birthday on this Fourth of July, "Guns & Cornbread" columnist Larry Case reminds those who hunt, fish, shoot and enjoy others outdoors pursuits to be grateful for the land and the freedoms that make such activities possible. (AP File Photo/Nam Y. Huh) As the United States celebrates its 250th birthday on this Fourth of July, "Guns & Cornbread" columnist Larry Case reminds those who hunt, fish, shoot and enjoy others outdoors pursuits to be grateful for the land and the freedoms that make such activities possible. (AP File Photo/Nam Y. Huh)

By Larry Case July 4, 2026 5 min read

Happy Independence Day to all of you wonderful “Guns & Cornbread” readers.

If you are like me, you’re currently festooned in the joint endeavors of getting ready for the Fourth of July festivities while enduring the current heat wave. Thank goodness for the luxury of air conditioning, and (just so you know) here at the Case Ranch, your two semifavorite canines — Bo the brown turkey dog and Abby the mountain cur squirrel dog — are snoozing in the house in the lap of luxury (spoiled rotten).

I have to share with you a quick sermon on how indeed blessed we are here in the United States of America with our many freedoms that so many of us take for granted. However, as the flag waves on our nation’s 250th birthday, you are going to be reminded of those freedoms this holiday weekend (as you should) on TV, the wonderful internet and through many other forms of media.

Just let me say that all of this would not be possible without the efforts of all of our men and women in the U.S. military, including thousands who gave their all, the supreme sacrifice, so that we can live in freedom in the greatest country in the history of the world. There, I said it.