07/04/2024
"May freedom be seen, not as the right to do as we please, but as the opportunity to do what is right." - Peter Marshall
It’s easy to say “Happy 4th of July!” and continue w BBQ preparations and celebrations.
It’s arguably more important to remember and remind one another of what lead up to the 4th of July and the Declaration of Independence. What happened that made this day important enough to celebrate 248 years later?
Taxation without Representation: The colonies were subjected to various taxes imposed by the British Parliament, such as the Stamp Act (1765) and the Townshend Acts (1767), without having any representation in Parliament. The people were being taxed, but there were no elected Representatives representing the will of the People in exchange for those tax dollars. A tyrannical government did what it wanted instead of what was best for the People the government was meant to serve.
Boston Massacre (1770): British soldiers killed five colonists during a confrontation, escalating tensions between the colonists and the British authorities. Oppression by the government using violence.
Boston Tea Party (1773): In response to the Tea Act, which granted the British East India Company a monopoly on tea sales in the colonies, American colonists, disguised as Native Americans, boarded British ships and dumped 342 chests of tea into Boston Harbor. Big business was building monopolies and taxing everything. It was becoming impossible to afford much of anything - even tea.
Intolerable Acts (1774): A series of punitive measures, including the Boston Port Act, which closed the port of Boston until damages from the Boston Tea Party were paid, and the Massachusetts Government Act, which altered the Massachusetts charter and restricted town meetings. Further oppression through economic restrictions.
Quartering Act: Required colonies to provide housing and supplies for British troops, seen as an imposition on the colonists' autonomy and resources. Violating property and privacy rights of the People. The government did what they wanted with the People’s personal property.
Lack of Judicial Independence: The colonists complained about the king appointing judges without the consent of the people, and the dependence of judges on the crown for their salaries and tenure. Justice that was not blind, but loyal to the crown and doing it’s bidding.
Military Presence: The maintenance of a standing army in peacetime without the consent of colonial legislatures was viewed as a threat to their liberties. Showing military presence in American colonies during peacetime was threatening. This act said “We have the guns and the swords. Do what we say or we will end you.”
Restrictive Trade Policies: The Navigation Acts and other trade restrictions limited the colonies' ability to trade freely with other nations, benefiting British economic interests at the expense of colonial prosperity. Taking and taxing resources produced by the People without fairly compensating them or allowing them to profit from their efforts. Profit all went to the government instead.
Rights and Liberties: Colonists felt their natural rights and liberties were being systematically violated by British policies and governance.
By natural rights and liberties, they referred to fundamental rights and freedoms believed to be inherent to all human beings, not contingent upon laws, customs, or beliefs of any particular society or government. These rights are considered universal and inalienable, meaning they were given by God to all and cannot be taken away or given up. Key aspects include:
Life: The right to life is the fundamental right to exist and to be free from arbitrary killing by others, including the state (government).
Liberty: The right to liberty encompasses the freedom to act, speak, and think without undue restraint or coercion. This includes freedoms such as speech, assembly, and religion.
Property: The right to property entails the right to acquire, own, use, and dispose of possessions and resources. This also includes the fruits of one's labor.
Pursuit of Happiness: The right to pursue happiness involves the freedom to seek fulfillment and well-being in one's own way, as long as it does not infringe on the rights of others.
Equality: The principle that all individuals are inherently equal in dignity and rights, and deserve equal protection under the law.
These rights are central to many democratic societies and are often enshrined in foundational documents, such as the Declaration of Independence in the United States, which declares that all men (meaning men and women) are endowed with certain unalienable rights, including life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.
This holiday was meant to remind us what is worth fighting for, dying for, and celebrating for 248 years. And for reminding us of a promise a healthy Constitutional Republic bakes into it’s decision making and strives to satisfy.
Our Country was born out of a deep desire for Freedom for all. There are and always have been those who don’t like regular People having freedom and property of their own. They’d prefer to go back to a system that concentrates power in the hands of a few, taxes, monitors, and controls everyone else to prevent something like what gave birth to this country from happening again.
It took time and even a civil war to get us to where we are today. No country will ever be perfect, but Americans have done better than any other country on this point of Freedoms.
Today we celebrate the spirit of 1776. The spirit that gave the world these United States of America and it gave people hope all over the world that there is an alternative to concentration of power and tyranny.
Happy Independence Day!
