Happy Birthday America! July 4, 2012

 

 

 

“That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it…”

 

 

IN CONGRESS, JULY 4, 1776

The unanimous Declaration of the thirteen united States of America

When in the Course of human events it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature's God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation.

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. — That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, — That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness. Prudence, indeed, will dictate that Governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes; and accordingly all experience hath shewn that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed. But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future security. — Such has been the patient sufferance of these Colonies; and such is now the necessity which constrains them to alter their former Systems of Government. The history of the present King of Great Britain is a history of repeated injuries and usurpations, all having in direct object the establishment of an absolute Tyranny over these States. To prove this, let Facts be submitted to a candid world.

This is followed by a long list of grievances against the tyranny of the King before continuing with the redress: our Declaration of Independence.

Please read the entire Declaration of Independence. Read it to your children, your grandchildren, the neighbor’s children. They need to know. God knows, they will not learn about it in school any more - probably because His name is invoked with such reckless abandon therein, with no concern whatsoever for the separation of church and state.

For our part, let us remain forever vigilant against those who would impinge on our inalienable rights by throwing open the very gates designed to hold tyranny at bay.

Dewey has some additional thoughts on Independence Day you might enjoy also.

 

annotated portraits courtesy of Cripes Suzette

“The shepherd drives the wolf from the sheep’s throat, for which the sheep thanks the shepherd as a liberator, while the wolf denounces him for the same act as the destroyer of liberty, especially as the sheep was a black one.  Plainly the sheep and the wolf are not agreed upon a definition of the word liberty” Abraham Lincoln

Now get out there and enjoy yourselves! Hot dogs, burgers, potato salad, watermelon ( is that racist?) cherry and apple pie a la mode! If you don’t feel like cooking yourself, scamper on over to Adrienne’s; she’s putting out quite a spread that you can enjoy vicariously!

Happy Birthday America!

Linked By: BlogsLucianneLoves, and Larwyn’s Linx on Doug Ross@Journal, and NOBO2012 on Free Republic, and MRM on twitter, Thanks!