The president's recent talk on the war reminded us that the freedom the fireworks celebrate comes with a price tag.

Both presidents and parents find it hard to say out loud, "You have to take responsibility; there's no free lunch, no rights without responsibilities and money doesn't come without sacrifice." We would like to think it does, but in spite of tax breaks and credit cards, we'll have to pay up eventually.

Each parent has a responsibility to teach, and enforce, these obligations. Your example is the most powerful influence in your children's lives. Show them the way. Other people will not help much.

Not even your school or church will raise your children for you. Schools will give up on discipline. Churches will waver on gambling and eventually give up preaching against it. But parents should hold to their standards about gambling, about alcoholism, and about TV filled with disgusting language, glorified drugs, and attitudes and verbal habits that are destructive to the family.

Parents should not duck their own responsibility by asking the government to pass laws that further restrict the freedoms of others just to set better examples before their children. Don't ask the government to do what you cannot find the courage to do yourself.

So what should we teach our children on the 4th of July? Not only their rights and freedoms in our community, so costly won and defended by our soldiers' sacrifice, but also their responsibilities to that same community. They can do better than the stories on TV that batter them everyday. They can volunteer for community service and behave in a way that shows self-respect and respect for others - foregoing gutter language, respecting their own body, and being proud of their community.

Children start out self-centered and learn slowly that the world does not turn around them. Others have rights to be considered. In fact, the best measure of maturity I know is consideration of others. True grown-ups know the value of freedom of speech for others as well as themselves.

There's a bonus in taking responsibility. You feel good about yourself for doing your part. It's an especially important feeling for children. Show a good example and catch your children and teens doing their part in the family and outside of it. Compliment them on their efforts to show mature responsibility when you see it.