Declare YOUR Independence

Subject: Does the government have your consent on this July 4th?

Every Election Day tens of millions of Americans consent to be governed, at least in theory. The politicians constantly point back to the election as justification for the things they do. But is this really valid? What about all the people who now feel betrayed by the office-holder? What about all the people who...

* voted for the lesser evil or
* voted for candidates that lost or
* would have voted for "none of the above" if the option had been available or
* didn't vote at all because they didn't want to endorse or encourage any of the candidates?

Do elections really confer consent? I don't think so.

What does confer consent? Silence.

If we don't inform our elected representatives that we object to their policies, then we shouldn't be surprised if they assume their election to high office implies consent to their actions.

Those who mostly favor what our government is doing can celebrate July 4th content in the knowledge that they're getting what they want. But what about the rest of us?

A case can be made that the transgressions of our government today are vastly greater than those against which the Founders rebelled on July 4, 1776. If we applaud what they did then, we should be willing to emulate at least to a certain, peaceful extent.

Thomas Jefferson wrote in the Declaration of Independence...

"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."

Jefferson and the other Founders withdrew their consent and listed their reasons for doing so. Shouldn't we do the same on this July 4th, and on every July 4th for as long as our government violates our inalienable rights?
John Adams said that July 4th, 1776 "...will be the most memorable epoch in the history of America. I am apt to believe that it will be celebrated by succeeding generations as the great anniversary festival. It ought to be commemorated as the Day of Deliverance by solemn acts of devotion to God Almighty. It 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 forevermore."


I heartily agree with Adams, and wish you an enjoyable holiday. But the battle for liberty and smaller, Constitutional government remains un-won.

Sabina Guzzanti

"In a Democracy there is no right not to be offended. Anyone ought to be free to say whatever they like. If someone says things that are offensive, gratuitous and stupid, one has to assume there will be others able to demonstrate that what someone said was offensive, gratuitous and stupid."