Difference between revisions of "Declaration of Independence commented"
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Comments are presented in normal font. | Comments are presented in normal font. | ||
| − | ''IN CONGRESS, JULY 4, 1776'' | + | <big>''IN CONGRESS, JULY 4, 1776'' |
'''''The Unanimous Declaration of the Thirteen United States of America''''' | '''''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.'' | + | ''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.''</big> |
:There are a few things to note in the first sentence. | :There are a few things to note in the first sentence. | ||
:*People are connected to a government by political bands - not chains. I.e., people consent to be governed. The Declaration states this explicitly in the next paragraph. | :*People are connected to a government by political bands - not chains. I.e., people consent to be governed. The Declaration states this explicitly in the next paragraph. | ||
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:*The more famous phrase occurs in the next line of the Declaration, but this first line foreshadows the idea of inalienable rights. According to Jefferson and the other signers, people are entitled to a separate and equal status among everyone else in the world. This, of course, is derived from the fact of 'unalienable rights' . . . | :*The more famous phrase occurs in the next line of the Declaration, but this first line foreshadows the idea of inalienable rights. According to Jefferson and the other signers, people are entitled to a separate and equal status among everyone else in the world. This, of course, is derived from the fact of 'unalienable rights' . . . | ||
| − | ''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.'' | + | <big>''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.'' |
| − | + | </big> | |
:This is the fundamental principle on which the differences between the colonies and England were based. | :This is the fundamental principle on which the differences between the colonies and England were based. | ||
:*This idea, this fact of fundamental rights with which everyone is endowed, and which are immutable (unalienable, can not be discarded or renounced) was invoked time and again in the 13 years leading up to the Declaration. [[pagename|insert link]] | :*This idea, this fact of fundamental rights with which everyone is endowed, and which are immutable (unalienable, can not be discarded or renounced) was invoked time and again in the 13 years leading up to the Declaration. [[pagename|insert link]] | ||
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:*This does not claim a right to happiness. It does claim a right to pursue happiness. | :*This does not claim a right to happiness. It does claim a right to pursue happiness. | ||
| − | '' — That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed,'' | + | <big>'' — That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed,''</big> |
:*A group of people institutes a government for a single reason - to secure their fundamental rights. | :*A group of people institutes a government for a single reason - to secure their fundamental rights. | ||
::And therefore, governments can only obtain just powers from the consent of the governed. | ::And therefore, governments can only obtain just powers from the consent of the governed. | ||
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| − | ''— 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.'' | + | <big>''— 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.''</big> |
:The tenure of a government is dependent on its good behavior. | :The tenure of a government is dependent on its good behavior. | ||
:*When a government goes beyond its 'just powers', the governed have the right to change it or abolish it. | :*When a government goes beyond its 'just powers', the governed have the right to change it or abolish it. | ||
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| − | ''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.'' | + | <big>''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.''</big> |
:This is an important two lines. | :This is an important two lines. | ||
:*The acts of declaring independence and replacing an existing government is serious business. it is often easier to endure the transgressions of a misbehaving government than it is to endure the trouble of fixing it. And besides, we become accustomed to the burdens of abridged rights - so rights erode - sometimes slowly and sometimes quickly. | :*The acts of declaring independence and replacing an existing government is serious business. it is often easier to endure the transgressions of a misbehaving government than it is to endure the trouble of fixing it. And besides, we become accustomed to the burdens of abridged rights - so rights erode - sometimes slowly and sometimes quickly. | ||
Revision as of 09:58, 5 May 2014
2014/04/20 User:Jeff
