Blogged by Brad from somewhere on Washington State’s Olympic Peninsula…
Perhaps next year, for the first time in five years, we won’t feel that we must post the following document on the Fourth of July. Perhaps.
But once again this year, it seems necessary to remind readers that this country’s founders once described King George thusly: “A Prince whose character is thus marked by every act which may define a Tyrant, is unfit to be the ruler of a free people.”
With a right to be free from tyranny and for a system of self-governance that derives its power from the consent of the governed, the founders declared: “Whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive to 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 power 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,” they wrote. “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.”
We concur.
And thus, we recommend, once again this year, that you read the following document in full if you have not done so recently. We also challenge you to not notice the extraordinary irony. In the bargain, we wish you the best and most free holiday you are able to enjoy this year…
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.
He has forbidden his Governors to pass Laws of immediate and pressing importance, unless suspended in their operation till his Assent should be obtained; and when so suspended, he has utterly neglected to attend to them.
He has refused to pass other Laws for the accommodation of large districts of people, unless those people would relinquish the right of Representation in the Legislature, a right inestimable to them and formidable to tyrants only.
He has called together legislative bodies at places unusual, uncomfortable, and distant from the depository of their public Records, for the sole purpose of fatiguing them into compliance with his measures.
He has dissolved Representative Houses repeatedly, for opposing with manly firmness his invasions on the rights of the people.
He has refused for a long time, after such dissolutions, to cause others to be elected; whereby the Legislative powers, incapable of Annihilation, have returned to the People at large for their exercise; the State remaining in the mean time exposed to all the dangers of invasion from without, and convulsions within.
He has endeavoured to prevent the population of these States; for that purpose obstructing the Laws for Naturalization of Foreigners; refusing to pass others to encourage their migrations hither, and raising the conditions of new Appropriations of Lands.
He has obstructed the Administration of Justice, by refusing his Assent to Laws for establishing Judiciary powers.
He has made Judges dependent on his Will alone, for the tenure of their offices, and the amount and payment of their salaries.
He has erected a multitude of New Offices, and sent hither swarms of Officers to harrass our people, and eat out their substance.
He has kept among us, in times of peace, Standing Armies without the Consent of our legislatures.
He has affected to render the Military independent of and superior to the Civil power.
He has combined with others to subject us to a jurisdiction foreign to our constitution, and unacknowledged by our laws; giving his Assent to their Acts of pretended Legislation:
For Quartering large bodies of armed troops among us:
For protecting them, by a mock Trial, from punishment for any Murders which they should commit on the Inhabitants of these States:
For cutting off our Trade with all parts of the world:
For imposing Taxes on us without our Consent:
For depriving us in many cases, of the benefits of Trial by Jury:
For transporting us beyond Seas to be tried for pretended offences
For abolishing the free System of English Laws in a neighbouring Province, establishing therein an Arbitrary government, and enlarging its Boundaries so as to render it at once an example and fit instrument for introducing the same absolute rule into these Colonies:
For taking away our Charters, abolishing our most valuable Laws, and altering fundamentally the Forms of our Governments:
For suspending our own Legislatures, and declaring themselves invested with power to legislate for us in all cases whatsoever.
He has abdicated Government here, by declaring us out of his Protection and waging War against us.
He has plundered our seas, ravaged our Coasts, burnt our towns, and destroyed the lives of our people.
He is at this time transporting large Armies of foreign Mercenaries to compleat the works of death, desolation and tyranny, already begun with circumstances of Cruelty & perfidy scarcely paralleled in the most barbarous ages, and totally unworthy the Head of a civilized nation.
He has constrained our fellow Citizens taken Captive on the high Seas to bear Arms against their Country, to become the executioners of their friends and Brethren, or to fall themselves by their Hands.
He has excited domestic insurrections amongst us, and has endeavoured to bring on the inhabitants of our frontiers, the merciless Indian Savages, whose known rule of warfare, is an undistinguished destruction of all ages, sexes and conditions.
In every stage of these Oppressions We have Petitioned for Redress in the most humble terms: Our repeated Petitions have been answered only by repeated injury. A Prince whose character is thus marked by every act which may define a Tyrant, is unfit to be the ruler of a free people.
Nor have We been wanting in attentions to our Brittish brethren. We have warned them from time to time of attempts by their legislature to extend an unwarrantable jurisdiction over us. We have reminded them of the circumstances of our emigration and settlement here. We have appealed to their native justice and magnanimity, and we have conjured them by the ties of our common kindred to disavow these usurpations, which, would inevitably interrupt our connections and correspondence. They too have been deaf to the voice of justice and of consanguinity. We must, therefore, acquiesce in the necessity, which denounces our Separation, and hold them, as we hold the rest of mankind, Enemies in War, in Peace Friends.
We, therefore, the Representatives of the united States of America, in General Congress, Assembled, appealing to the Supreme Judge of the world for the rectitude of our intentions, do, in the Name, and by Authority of the good People of these Colonies, solemnly publish and declare, That these United Colonies are, and of Right ought to be Free and Independent States; that they are Absolved from all Allegiance to the British Crown, and that all political connection between them and the State of Great Britain, is and ought to be totally dissolved; and that as Free and Independent States, they have full Power to levy War, conclude Peace, contract Alliances, establish Commerce, and to do all other Acts and Things which Independent States may of right do. And for the support of this Declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes and our sacred Honor.
“Perhaps next year, for the first time in five years, we won’t feel that we must post the following document on the Fourth of July. Perhaps.”
Excuse me, but why wouldn’t you just want to post the Declaration of Independence this year or any year? It is, after all, our stated reasons for being and remaining Americans first and foremost.
I also suggest people read:
http://www.mcclatchydc.com/homepage/story/43123.html
and thrust it into the face of every one of their Congress critters.
Thanks for posting this, Brad.
Although this has to be the worst Fourth of July to date because of the ever growing realization of our failure to become what we strove to be, it is at least a happy one for me because a truly great American is featuring little old me on his web site. Micheal Moore has put a link to my story on his wonderful site.
I am on cloud nine!
Enough for my fifteen minutes. Now back to Brad!
i think a lot of people in the govt have forgotten about this document
at least it is the last one with GWB (or i hope it is)
Brad, we were on the Olympic Peninsula many years ago and saw one of the coolest, though somewhat stinky, things ever, a dead whale on the beach. My husband saw seagulls circling over something too far away to make out, so he figured it was probably interesting. Do you know how big those things are? It had been there long enough for many bones to be visible. Just the size of the vertebrae was amazing. Keep your eyes open; it might still be around.
Dear Brad,
Happy Fourth to you and everyone! In the last two days, CNN has announced that litigation between Viacom and YouTube is underway. Google is the recipient as they are the Owners of YouTube now.
Less than two weeks ago, I protested your use and acceptance of Flashplayer (the viewer of choice for YouTube) due to its incredible invasive abilities to access everything on just about anyone’s PC. As a RTA (Remote Terminal Access) viewer, it does more than request a Cookie or two. It is now a tool of choice for YouTube/Google/FBI/CIA/NSA/Choicepoint, et.al., etc., etc.. These are people and Agencies with utterly no respect for Fourth Amendment rights or any other right under the Constitution by “virtue” of the wholesale acceptance of Thirty Five Articles of Impeachment and doing not one thing about them. Each is an egregious Offense. And, Mr. Kucinich cand add another Twenty Five on his next Presentation. Criminality flourishes for the lack of Patriots.
So, CNN scooped you and even Truthout is on it. Think of Choicepoint and you have the Billion dollar pattern for pirating citizen’s data or just plain illegally snooping. Those contracts for that type of data are not solely for Choicepoint. These are politically motivated and subverted agendas in the name of national security. Nixon used it and claimed exemption for political purposes. Reagan had his clever agendas and now the Bush Regime. These are crimes against the people of this country. Too many individuals in service to special interests (as opposed to the people) are running from the oversight necessary to prevent the appalling looting, corruption and criminality that is part of eight years of this Administration. Should there be New Laws regrading Secret Laws? Should a FISA-Like Agency be created (with Teeth and a Baseball Bat) to be convened whenever these a__holes evoke national security or executive priviledge over any criminal allegation?
So many instances have roiled up, and so many Administration Claims have been made that are False (as did Nixon and Others) that this criminality in Government hidden by priviledge in void and without Confidence.
So, another viewer option and more privacy is needed, even on your Site, Brad. Always in support of the voices of people and the First Amendment. Were it that the tyrants realized that without it they would be silenced.
From Kailua-Kona, Hawai’i, Buckley Lofton on the Fourth of July
Interesting modification….
Hallelujah! Someone else gets it!
Please God, protect us from this tyranny.
And thank You, God, for taking Jesse Helms and his poison away from all of us.
May Jesse NOT rest in peace. I am fairly certain he will not. Hell is not hot enough for him.
Something for us that care to work on:
http://www.constitutioncampaign.org/
Larry # 3, I wondered if that was you. Very cool and good for you to be out there with your sign!
Everybody should re-read this at least once a year.
http://blogs.pioneerlocal.com/religion/2008/07/why-didnt-our-founding-fathers.html
We have to know where we come from to move forward.
Here’s another 15 minutes of fame. 🙂
Picture of Larry
Brad,
My 7 yr-old boy and I hiked to the top of West Rock in New Haven today, to Judge’s Cave, where Members of Parliament hid from the forces of the Crown after signing the death warrent of King Charles I. On the entrance to the cave is inscribed these words:
Opposition to Tyranny is Obedience to God.
Tuesday, we are off to Philadelphia, where it all began.
Thanks GWN. I took my sign out today and talked to a guy who seemed intelligent, but didn’t have a clue about the problems with our elections, (what else is new), so I made a deal with him. He said he would come to BradBlog if I would check out the CATO institute. Does anybody have any information about that organization that would be enlightening. I’ve come to mistrust most organizations because of all the phony grass roots causes out there, (Heritage Foundation, American Enterprise Institute ect..). Is this one more organization with problems I wouldn’t find by looking at the website?
Cato Institute
Yes! Read and re-read the Declaration, as well as the Constitution.It’s the only way we’ll know when we are being robbed of what they give us. I carry a copy of the pocket version made by the American Bar Association.
I like the closing of the first segment, “… a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare….” Foreign policy from the outset!
Happy Fourth everyone!
Phil
I’m sorry. You had three comments here that didn’t make part of a lick of sense, and they seemed to be related to each other, but that was all I could tell. Since the first in the batch was a long string of letters and numbers that went off the column by a mile, I’m thinking you were maybe celebrating so hard you couldn’t quite tell. Feel free to restate…. Thanks.
Wilbur ~ This 4th was much like celebrating the birthday of a friend with terminal cancer.
(AMAZING work, Larry! Loved that read…so proud of you!)
Greetings to all from YORKTOWN, VA–where I spent the 4th on bended knee at the graves of our forefathers (Thomas Nelson specifically–one of my fav’s)–apologizing.
He sends his best to you all, says thank you for all your work in restoring this great Republic that he (did, indeed) give his life, his fortune and his sacred honor to defend.
July 4th in Yorktown is some sight to behold…they go all out. Fife and Drums, reading of the Declaration, bad Elvis impersonators–you name it. I’m so glad Brad posted this, as I found myself lonely solo welling up teary to re-visit these connections in the Declaration this year–Yes, irony abounds, Brad! All grievances sound as if they could have been written yesterday about our terrible King George BUSH the second…
The turbine engine sound of our heroes, the great men who wrote and signed that document, spinning in their graves was loud enough to drown out even the most soaring Sousa brass. Moreover, the military families all spread out on the monument lawn with their kids and puppies and hot-dogs and pinwheels and flags…did not seem to make the connection. This post and the comments here have helped assuage.
BAMBOO HARVESTER writes:
“This 4th was much like celebrating the birthday of a friend with terminal cancer…”
You nailed it, friend.
(Also passing along this gem…
The Muppets on the Constitutional Convention
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aAVpj_Vo7zk
The Muppets take on the Constitutional Convention in a 1982 special created by Norman Lear for the People for the American Way.)
Jeannie Dean (not in) FL-13:
Thanks for the kind words. Glad you liked it! Since the letters to my mom were featured so prominently in the article, you may as well read the whole letters here, and here. I have been allowed to contribute to OneUtah.org as a result of being seen with my sign by the owner of the blog.
After reading the letters that were written by a full time optician, you may be able to understand why I outrightly reject the Democrats that have been saying “if we had known then what we know now” we wouldn’t have voted to give Bush the authority to invade Iraq. It’s important to note that most of the Democrats did NOT give him that permission.
Floridiot:
That is amazing! I went to your link thinking Bush’s writers omitted a paragraph out of a Jefferson statement, but they truncated it RIGHT OUT OF A SENTENCE?
This should be an outrage even to a religious person. If they are willing to cross that line, they would be willing to cut and paste Jesus too. What am I saying? I’m sure they’ve done that already.
Larry, they’ll do anything, say anything (or leave shit out) to push the right wing agenda forward, won’t they?
We don’t call them Pukes fer nuthin’ 😛
Nice write up about you BTW, my fist is clenched and thrust up in the air to ya man