In my hands I hold two of the greatest statements of human liberty ever written: The Declaration of Independence and the United States Constitution.
As a practical matter, the Declaration of Independence, adopted by Congress on July 4, 1776, publicly announced to the world the unanimous decision of the American colonies to declare themselves free and independent states, absolved from any allegiance to Great Britain. Yet it is also the definitive American statement of the conditions of legitimate political authority, the ends of government, and the sovereignty of the people. James Madison, the Father of the Constitution, called it "the fundamental Act of Union of these States."
To this day, some 200+ years after the American revolution, the Declaration of Independence and the United States Constitution serve not only as powerful beacons to all those who strive for liberty and seek to vindicate the principles of self-government, but also as a warning to tyrants and despots everywhere. They are the highest achievements of our political tradition; they still define us as a people and a nation. Taken together, these great documents represent the heritage of our Country.
taken from the forward of the "Pocket Constitution" from the Heritage Foundation. Get your free copy here.
Freedom isn't free.
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2 comments:
One of the interesting things in the US Constitution is that "The United States" is considered plural. It uses the language, "The United States ARE..." The paradigm of the constitution is that our country is not homogeneous nation, but that we are a union of largely independent states.
I Think that's the point. We pool our resources, but we are to a large extent meant to be a group of fairly autonomous states. That's why the southern states felt they had a right to secede. So the battle dies down for many years and is starting to rear it's ugly head. Are we a united nation or a bunch of united but autonomous states? Interesting discussion...
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