Day: July 4, 2024

Get To Know Your History

As we celebrate one of our most cherished documents we should take a closer look at the history around it….we should all there is to know about the Declaration of Independence.

America’s first contested presidential candidates, John Adams and Thomas Jefferson, advocated for the earliest annual Fourth of July celebrations. They believed that people of all political views should celebrate the United States’ creation as a momentous historical turning point.

Jefferson asserted republican reasons for celebrating, saying, “For ourselves, let the annual return of this day forever refresh our recollections of these rights and an undiminished devotion to them.”

Adams’ more nationalist views were reflected in his statement that Independence Day “ought to be solemnized with pomp and parade, with shows, games, sports, guns, bells, bonfires, and illuminations, from one end of this continent to the other, from this time forward furthermore.” Adams adds, “Posterity! You will never know how much the present Generation costs to preserve your Freedom! I hope you will make good use of it.”

Despite the American Revolution being a dramatic, democratically inspired inflection point, many people today do not enthusiastically observe the holiday as recommended by Adams and Jefferson. Many cite the shortcomings of the Declaration of Independence as reasons to downplay the holiday, noting that the “all men are created equal” line did not include non-white people or women.

While the flaws of the Revolutionary Era society are undeniable, three critical founding legacies form a beneficial political and societal foundation. First, while the Continental Congress argued over various issues, they agreed on a common goal – independence – illustrating that partisan compromises are vital to political cultures of continual improvement. Second, the founding generation established a flexible political system that allowed changes and advancements in implementing the founding ideals. Lastly, President George Washington, in his farewell address, cautioned the nation against excessive division due to bickering party politics and emphasized the importance of individual agency. Despite not achieving constitutional equality, the Declaration of Independence united a divided population to pursue a pioneering democracy and republican government.

Over the past 248 years, Americans have seized opportunities from the revolutionary generation to build a more democratic and equitable society. Successive generations have achieved significant milestones, including abolishing slavery, expanding voting rights, and advancing women’s and minority rights.

However, progress has faced challenges of slow headway and periodic setbacks. Instances like Andrew Jackson’s Indian Removal, the Jim Crow laws of the Reconstruction Era, and FDR’s incarceration of Japanese Americans have marked painful regressions in our quest for political equality. These events remind us that expanding and restricting political and societal rights are ongoing processes that need constant vigilance and investment.

https://www.realclearhistory.com/articles/2024/07/04/why_celebrate_the_fourth_of_july_1038916.html

Can we truly understand our history if we do not understand the founding document?

Spend some time and get to know the very document we celebrate today…..get to know your history.

Be Smart!

Learn Stuff!

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

 

04 July 2024

Today is the day that we celebrate the signing (not actually on this day) of the Declaration of Independence which would not have been possible without Thomas Paine’s influence. A day that is special in the hearts of Americans….but why?

I am sure I can get all kinds of responses to that question….but let’s take a short look at what transpired….

By the 1760s, colonists began to push back against what they saw as unfair British control and taxation. The colonies were not directly represented in Parliament, leading to protests with the slogan, “no taxation without representation.” After the British Parliament placed new tariffs on a variety of imported goods, tensions erupted in violence. During the Boston Massacre of 1770, British soldiers shot into a crowd of a few hundred angry colonists, killing five.

In 1773, Boston colonists dumped an entire shipment of taxed tea into the harbor. Parliament responded to the Boston Tea Party by passing the Intolerable Acts. These acts punished Massachusetts by taking away the colony’s charter and limiting its self-governance.

Great Britain had hoped this would discourage any more protests or rebellions. It did the opposite. The Congress published a list of the colonies’ grievances and called for a boycott of British goods. It also petitioned the king, who rejected the colonies’ demands. The Congress also petitioned the king, who rejected its demands.

As the Revolutionary War began, the Second Continental Congress met in 1775 and discussed breaking away from British rule. In 1776, Congressional delegates drafted and passed the Declaration of Independence.

This Declaration expressed several of the new nation’s principles and values, including:

  • Natural rights — people are born with certain rights that should not be violated
  • Popular sovereignty — a government gets its power from the people it governs
  • Social contract — people agree to give up power to their governments in exchange for protection of their freedoms
  • Rule of law — the laws of the land apply to everyone, and no one is above them

Far too many Americans have lost sight of what this country set out to do and unfortunately it appears as if the great experiment is failing.

Sadly that historical snapshot is losing ground….the four main points are slowly being eaten away by bickering and partisan politics.

The government, including all three branches is destroying the very things that help give America its freedom from Mother England.

Will the original ideas ever return to the nation and its people?

This will probably be my only post today for Sue and I want to spend the day doing whatever we like.

Please if you are celebrating this day be very careful and always….Be Well and Be Safe….

Happy 4th my friends.

Until tomorrow when I will return with more stuff.

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”