Tag: Declaration of Independence

Declaration Of Independence

Today we celebrate the signing of the DoI which lead to the conflict that gave America it’s independence from Mother England.

The document that we celebrate was not the brain child of Jefferson…..as many would like to believe…..personally I think he was just writing a document from notes he had not much original thought there.

All that aside….what is this post about?

Thanks to Benjamin Franklin’s “Poor Richard,” for two decades every member of the Continental Congress was well aware that “haste makes waste.” But the days of late June and early July 1776 cast doubt on the universality of Franklin’s prudent proverb.

By that spring, the colonies had moved closer to independence. Individual colonial assemblies had developed their own list of grievances and calls for independence, many patterned on Thomas Jefferson’s Declaration of the Causes and Necessity for Taking up Arms from the previous year, and on his mass-distributed 1774 pamphlet, A Summary View of the Rights of British America. Colonies were also drafting their own state constitutions to be adopted in a free United States of America.

Jefferson had sequestered himself at his beloved Monticello, suffering from migraines. No doubt the stresses of drafting ideas for Virginia’s constitution and grieving the loss of his mother, who died at the end of March, contributed to his condition. But in May, he descended from his Olympus and made the ten-day journey to Philadelphia to join the Second Continental Congress. He originally found rooms in the city center, but by May 23, Jefferson and his fourteen-year-old slave, Robert Hemmings, had found quieter quarters in the Graff House at Seventh and Market Streets. Jefferson had with him his recently acquired writing desk and Windsor chair.

On Friday, June 7, Richard Henry Lee, Jefferson’s fellow Virginia delegate, presented to the Congress Virginia’s resolution on independence: “these United Colonies are, and of right ought to be, free and independent States.” During debates on the Lee Resolution on Saturday and Monday, John Dickinson of Pennsylvania, Robert Livingston of New York, and Edward Rutledge of South Carolina argued that the colonies were not ready for independence. Samuel Adams and his cousin John took the other side, stating that the citizens were “eager” and “ahead of Congress” on independence

https://www.coolidgereview.com/articles/declaration-not-all-jefferson

It is my opinion that we celebrate on the wrong day…..yes the DoI is integral part of our fight for independence but I think that the real celebration should be on Constitution Day in September for that is when it officially became the United States of America.

The DoI was a list of grievances against England but these were covered in Paine’s Common Sense…..

Common Sense provided a persuasive argument to leave England and their model of governance for a republic directly elected by the people. While it deals largely with the American case, it also considers larger topics of political philosophy—anti-monarchism, theories that republics will engage in less conflict, and discussions of the state of nature and how the first societies were created. Common Sense answers the question: What does the ideal government look like? In these ways, it is more relevant today than ever.

This is for those that have NO idea what Paine was writing about….it is quick and painless….

https://www.sparknotes.com/philosophy/commonsense/summary/

Please remember that there is more to today than beer and BBQ…..it was the beginning of this great country and should be remembered as such.

I you are out celebrating please be careful and do not drive and drink…..if you are participating in the fireworks tradition be extra careful.

I hope everyone has a wonderful day and as always….Be Well and Be Safe….

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

The Second Declaration

HAPPY BIRTHDAY AMERICA!

Today we celebrate the signing of the Declaration of Independence and as this country continues it’s downward swing it is time for another declaration and time for the people to take back their nation from the tech bros and the MAGA lunatics….

WHEN in the Course of human events, it becomes necessary to decide that a government that purports to represent the union of states has failed to do so; that the unalienable rights of Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness have been trampled upon by that government; and that the rule of law and the Constitution have been systematically violated, then whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it.

Thus, we the people have determined that the present government under President Donald J. Trump is bent on the destruction of democratic authority and its replacement by an authoritarian regime that does not respect the Constitution, the rule of law, or the fundamental human rights of American citizens and other lawful residents of these United States.

We, therefore, declare that the present government is illegitimate: Its President has violated his oath of office to “protect and defend the Constitution,” instead claiming absolute power; he has unlawfully and dishonorably ordered the prosecution of critics, abusing the independent role of the department of justice; he has appointed people to high government positions based entirely on loyalty to him and with limited or no competence for the office to which they have been appointed; he has undermined the independence of various government agencies and institutes established by Congress, dismantling some and seeking to turn others into arms of the executive branch; he has denied critical funds to state and local governments that resist his administration’s unlawful policies and regulations; he has shown contempt for Congress, ignoring its constitutional role in budgeting, war powers, and appointment of officials; he and members of his cabinet have engaged in numerous corrupt dealings with foreign governments that enrich the President and his friends; he and his administration have systematically undermined civil society, including freedom of the press and freedom of speech in universities and law firms; his administration, turning the department of homeland security into a domestic security tool, has illegally carried out military operations in the states and cities of these United States–operations that provoke violence and deprive Americans and lawful residents of their basic rights; his administration has undermined the purposes and creed of the professional military, removing senior officers without cause and committing US military forces to illegal acts on the high seas; his administration has undermined the reputation of the United States, carrying out policies that are lawless and imperialist in the eyes of many governments and peoples around the world; he and his administration have ignored and denigrated the nation’s science community, dismantling environmental regulations and research programs in defiance of the scientific consensus on global warming; and he and his administration have undermined traditional alliances with democracies, weaponizing tariffs to overcome their resistance to his policies and interfering in their internal politics by promoting the agenda of far-right political parties.

Prudence, indeed, will dictate that Governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes. 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 vow to use peaceful means and democratic processes to do so, answering force with force only as a last resort, confident that history has shown that mass nonviolent force has proven successful at overcoming oppression.

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.

Time for you to stand up regardless of your personal standings and help take back the country that gave you your position.

I am ready and I am going to do all I can.

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

Spirit Of The Declaration–Part 1

AS we begin the countdown to the 250th anniversary of the DoI and the founding of this nation I feel that too many people have little knowledge of the document other than the vague stuff they are taught in school.

There was more that went into this document other than Jefferson spending a couple of days in solitude writing the document….

So please let me help those that want to know as much as possible about the founding of this country and the thoughts behind them….

The members of the Continental Congress knew that their Declaration left much unsaid and unfinished. They had heavily edited Jefferson’s draft, though they refrained from adding new sections. In what Jefferson bemoaned as “mutilations” but were really judicious edits, Congress cut about a quarter of the text before adopting the document on the morning of July 4, 1776. In truth, the Declaration was not seen as the epochal event later generations attributed to it. To the delegates in Philadelphia, that step had been taken two days earlier, on July 2, when Congress voted to separate from Great Britain, King George III, and Parliament. Moreover, the Declaration was important insofar as it paved the way for two more important moves: forming foreign alliances, primarily France and Spain, and forming some kind of confederated government to guide relations among the now sovereign States. No public readings, fireworks, or celebrations occurred on July 4, though they would break out in coming days as America’s new citizens listened to the Declaration read on hastily printed broadsheets sent around the country.

By design, the Declaration avoided any discussion, or even suggestion, of the type of government the colonies should establish. Formally, that was the responsibility of Connecticut delegate Roger Sherman’s committee to draft articles of confederation, which ultimately created a uniquely weak central government. The more fundamental questions of governance were to be left to the new States, eight of which would draft and adopt constitutions in 1776 alone. Indeed, for many delegates, the business of writing state constitutions was far more important than Congress’s declaration. Even Thomas Jefferson would rather have been back in Williamsburg working on a constitution for Virginia, a draft of which he had already composed earlier in the year, and parts of which he now re-purposed for the declaration.

https://reason.com/volokh/2026/05/05/the-spirit-of-the-declaration-part-1/

The more history you learn the more care you will take in the votes you put in….there is so much more to our country than the mindless dribble of the MAGA twats…

Be Smart!

Learn Stuff!

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

As We Approach Our 250th

Each day we draw closer to the day when we Americans declared our independence from Mother England….

What is happening around this anniversary?

At 250 many Americans are losing confidence in democracy…..

https://apnews.com/article/ap-poll-america-250-democracy-exceptional-474874cbb88c08908c8b6c01e386ba91

Speaking of Democracy….

As the United States marks its 250th anniversary, one question at the heart of the American experiment feels more urgent than ever: What does democracy mean to the people it is meant to serve?

https://thefulcrum.us/democracy/us-democracy-250-closing-gap-reality-ideal

America is a disappointing experiment and it needs to grow up…..

https://www.npr.org/2026/06/15/nx-s1-5856348/america-250-eddie-glaude

It all comes down to the Constitution and what better way to understand the document than the Federalist…..

https://theconversation.com/as-america-approaches-its-250th-anniversary-the-federalist-remains-an-indispensable-guide-to-understanding-the-constitutional-system-and-the-nations-enduring-independence-282201

There is so much happening around our 250th anniversary….time to use your internet access for something other than let some dweeb influence you into buying a yellow lipstick.

Be Smart!

Be a good American!

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I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego go scribo”

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”

Happy Independence Day

Today this country celebrates the Declaration Of Independence a document that set this country on a path to gain their independence from the yoke of Great Britain……

And you guys know me….I cannot let this go by without a short history lesson of the day…..

1712–12 slaves are executed in New York for killing 9 whites in an uprising.

1817–construction stared on the Erie Canal to link Lake Erie and the Hudson River.

1826–two Founding Fathers Die—-Jefferson and Adams.

1831–5th president James Monroe dies.

1863–Vicksburg surrenders to the forces of the Union.

1881–Billy the Kid is killed in New Mexico territory.

1894–After ceasing power Judge Standford Dole declares Hawaii a republic.

1910–Race riots break out all over the United States after African American Jack Johnson knocks out Jim Jeffries in a heavyweight boxing match.

Fourth of July: Meaning, History, and Traditions | Reader's Digest

Today this country is facing a threat from the Far Right…..maybe now would be a good time to think about the day and the dreams of those men that founded this nation and ask if we are living up to their hopes and wishes for the nation.

Happy independence day july 4th fourth Royalty Free Vector

Today we celebrate the events of 1776…..and we today will be celebrating with family and friends….please celebrate responsibly.

Keep in mind while you contemplate the day that Commonsense brought about the DoI which in turn brought about the revolution which lead to our independence…..so if you want to thank anyone for the day then begin with a forgotten founder, Thomas Paine, he made this day possible.

To all my readers, followers and commenters….thank you.

Be Well…..Be Safe….

Peace Out!

“lego ergo scribo”

Truth And Equality

This country was founded on the two principles of truth and equality…..the base was the Declaration of Independence when it stated “We hold these truths to be self-evident that all men are created equal……”

A little known Sociologists Harriet Martineau made an excellent observation…..

The US was established on the principle of equal rights

                                                ↓

This right was granted to men only

                                                ↓

Women were second class citizens

                                                ↓

The Declarations of Independence bears no relation to half the human race

Then there are the slaves….they were not equal as well…..

About here there should be those that will say that when the DoI was signed it was a different time and should not be compared to today.

Yet truth is now, and has always been, an elusive commodity to corral. Indeed, the search for truth requires a firm commitment and tireless effort simply to catch a meager, fleeting glimpse, a glimpse that often blurs maddeningly under more rigorous inquiry. Nevertheless, with effort, the glimpses can pile-up like nuggets of gold, blessing the mind with sudden visions of clarity. Unfortunately, today in the United States the search for truth has been stifled exponentially by means of the abrupt insertion of vast fraudulent claims, launched like malicious missiles into the American narrative, all capable of momentarily bewildering even the clearest of minds.

…

Truth is the foundational element for mental, intellectual, and spiritual well-being. Unfortunately, truth is under assault as never before, but fortunately there is a remedy. The cure for lies is – and has always been – the truth, and those gallant people willing to stand-up and embrace it. Even Goebbels understood its overwhelming influence when he admitted, “The truth is the mortal enemy of the lie,” thus, as Orwell explained: “In a time of deceit telling the truth is a revolutionary act.”

https://www.jimstempel.com/articles_online/2020/07/delusion-confusionthe-tortured-history-of-truth-in-america.html

We Americans overwhelmingly believe that the US was founded on ‘freedom and equality’…..

An overwhelming majority of American voters believe that the United States was founded on the ideals expressed in the Declaration of Independence, even if the country has at times failed to live up to those ideals, according to a new Just the News Daily Poll with Scott Rasmussen.

Seventy-nine percent of the respondents believe that the statement that the U.S. was “founded on the ideals of freedom and equality, though we have never fully lived up to those ideals” is more accurate than the belief that those founding ideals were a “lie.” founding.

https://justthenews.com/politics-policy/polling/eight-out-10-american-voters-believe-us-was-founded-ideals-freedom-and

A great divide…but is that because Americans have learned about the nation’s birth or just constant conditioning?

Let’s look at the Constitution…..

The American Constitution gives, and it takes away: it radically slows down the process of lawmaking, and it places major obstacles in the way of interfering with liberty. “Congress shall make no law”—so says the First Amendment—respecting the establishment of religion or the free exercise thereof; nor may Congress interfere with the freedom of the press, speech, assembly, or petition. As the late Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia once reminded us, “‘No law’ means ‘no law’.”

https://www.realclearpublicaffairs.com/articles/2020/02/14/why_is_the_constitution_not_democratic_484132.html

Have you heard the argument that the document was written in a time when things were different and have since changed?

Then it that is the case then why is the 2nd sacrosanct?

It was written in a different time and should not be interpreted as ‘set in stone’…..you know like slavery, etc…..

Just a few thoughts.

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

Independence Declared–Now What?

The DoI was signed and presented to the people of the Colonies….and now the die was set and war was the only recourse.

With few allies the colonists had to do what they could…..that is until France showed interest in their struggle against England…..but why the interest?

After years of spiraling tensions in Britain’s American colonies, the American Revolutionary War began in 1775. The revolutionary colonists faced a war against one of the world’s major powers, one with an empire that spanned the globe. To help counter Britain’s formidable position, the Continental Congress created the “Secret Committee of Correspondence” to publicize the aims and actions of the rebels in Europe. They then drafted the “Model Treaty” to guide negotiations of alliance with foreign nations. Once the Congress had declared independence in 1776, it sent a party that included Benjamin Franklin to negotiate with Britain’s rival: France.

France initially sent agents to observe the war, organized secret supplies, and began preparations for war against Britain in support of the rebels. France might seem an odd choice for the revolutionaries to work with. The nation was ruled by an absolutist monarch who was not sympathetic to the principle of “no taxation without representation,” even if the plight of the colonists and their perceived fight against a domineering empire excited idealistic Frenchmen like the Marquis de Lafayette. In addition, France was Catholic and the colonies were Protestant, a difference that was a major and contentious issue at the time and one that had colored several centuries of foreign relations.

https://www.thoughtco.com/france-american-revolutionary-war-1222026

Americans like to think that they took on the most powerful empire in the world of 1776 and won….but that win became more possible with the assistance of France….

I know too many do not read these days so I will give them videos to watch and learn…..

Do you think you know all there is to know about the revolution?

Think again.

There is so much more to the war for independence than the sanitized versions taught in schools….

Be Smart!

Learn Stuff!

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

Patriots Left Out

We have just celebrated the call to arms with the Declaration of Independence….the document that set in motion the birth of the United States of America.

Sadly there is much about the beginning of our great nation that is seldom taught to our young……and I try to rectify that oversight.

In the beginning there was the word……

Once the document was written by Jefferson (a point that I dispute) it was signed by the reps at the Congress that ordered the document….but there are a couple of names that are missing from this historic document…Thomas Paine whose ideas were the very basis of the DoI…… https://lobotero.com/2010/07/04/thomas-paine-the-father-of-the-u-s-of-a/ ……and John Dickinson from Pennsylvania who refused to sign the document…and yes I said REFUSED.

In the decade before the American colonies declared independence, no patriot enjoyed greater renown than John Dickinson. In 1765 he helped lead opposition to the Stamp Act, Britain’s first effort to get colonists to cover part of the mounting cost of empire through taxes on paper and printed materials. Then, after Parliament rescinded the Stamp Act but levied a new set of taxes on paint, paper, lead and tea with the Townshend Duties of 1767, Dickinson galvanized colonial resistance by penning Letters From a Pennsylvania Farmer, a series of impassioned broadsides widely read on both sides of the Atlantic. He even set his political sentiments to music, borrowing the melody from a popular Royal Navy chantey for his stirring “Liberty Song,” which included the refrain: “Not as slaves, but as freemen our money we’ll give.”

Yet on July 1, 1776, as his colleagues in the Continental Congress prepared to declare independence from Britain, Dickinson offered a resounding dissent. Deathly pale and thin as a rail, the celebrated Pennsylvania Farmer chided his fellow delegates for daring to “brave the storm in a skiff made of paper.” He argued that France and Spain might be tempted to attack rather than support an independent American nation. He also noted that many differences among the colonies had yet to be resolved and could lead to civil war. When Congress adopted a nearly unanimous resolution the next day to sever ties with Britain, Dickinson abstained from the vote, knowing full well that he had delivered “the finishing Blow to my once too great, and my Integrity considered, now too diminish’d Popularity.”

https://www.historynet.com/the-patriot-who-refused-to-sign-the-declaration-of-independence.htm

Those days there was nothing that was certain and our history instruction should give all aspects of those historic battles.

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