What better way to celebrate Independence Day than with patriotic quotes that define us as a nation? If these patriotic quotes don't get you in a patriotic spirit, nothing will.

1. "What is the essence of America? Finding and maintaining that perfect, delicate balance between freedom ‘to' and freedom ‘from.'" ~ Marilyn vos Savant

2. "This nation will remain the land of the free only so long as it is the home of the brave." ~ Elmer Davis

3. "America is much more than a geographical fact. It is a political and moral fact - the first community in which men set out in principle to institutionalize freedom, responsible government, and human equality." ~ Adlai Stevenson

4. "The liberties of our country, the freedom of our civil Constitution, are worth defending at all hazards; and it is our duty to defend them against all attacks. It will bring an everlasting mark of infamy on the present generation, enlightened as it is, if we should suffer them to be wrested from us by violence without a struggle, or to be cheated out of them by the artifices of false and designing men." ~ Samuel Adams

5. "Patriotism is easy to understand in America; it means looking out for yourself by looking out for your country." ~ Calvin Coolidge

6. "Let every nation know, whether it wishes us well or ill, that we shall pay any price, bear any burden, meet any hardship, support any friend, oppose any foe, to assure the survival and success of liberty." ~ John F. Kennedy

7. "Patriotism is your conviction that this country is superior to all other countries because you were born in it." ~ George Bernard Shaw

8. "They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety." ~ Benjamin Franklin

9. "If a man does not keep pace with his companions, perhaps it is because he hears a different drummer. Let him step to the music which he hears, however measured or far away." ~ Thoreau

10. "I know not what course others may take; but as for me, give me liberty or give me death!" ~ Patrick Henry

On this Independence Day, let us remember the sacrifices that have been made for our freedom. Let us also remember that America is not defined by the politicians who run it, but the people who LOVE it. These patriotic quotes remind us that patriotism in America does not mean following blindly, but rather it means holding to the ideals that gave birth to this great nation.