July 4, 2003
“The means of defense against foreign danger historically have become the instruments of tyranny at home.”[12:01 PM]
(James Madison)“They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety.”
(Benjamin Franklin)“Necessity is the plea for every infringement of human freedom. It is the argument of tyrants; it is the creed of slaves.”
(William Pitt)“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, 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.”
(Congress, July 4, 1776)“As word of the ruling spread in San Francisco, a group gathered at the corner of Castro and Market Streets, where a rainbow flag97a symbol of the gay movement for the last 25 years97had regularly flown. A small chorus of gay military veterans sang the national anthem as the rainbow flag was gently lowered, replaced with an American one.”
(New York Times, June 27, 2003)
It's my flag too. It's all of us our flag. Happy Independence Day.
I need a Solemn Civic Observance, with bunting and speeches, before I settle down to watching the fireworks. Anybody got any ideas? All reasonable suggestions will be considered.
All the best to my American neighbours on this July 4. Let me remind you that folks in these electronic parts give me hope and remind me that there are good people everywhere, no matter what certain idiots in the Canadian government may say. Keep fighting the good fight.
"She's -bunting?-"
"Let the suckers smirk for two more innings. Then, right over the train tracks and gone."
It's been my tradition, since I moved out West, to go see the San Francisco Mime Troupe's first show of the year at Mission Dolores Park on the 4th. Poltical theater's always appropriate for the holiday.
And to paraphrase Tom Becker, their politics, like KPFA's make me feel like a moderate again.
Happy 4th of July to you all. The US has always been a beacon of freedom and inspiration to opressed people throughout the world. Administrations may come and go but the essential values of America as enshrined in the Declaration of Independence shine through in the end. Long may it continue.
We had the shutters redone a while back, and the upshot is that our flagpole mount was taken off, and I have been uncertain how to replace it. Last night, though, I went out and located four screws in plastic mounts that I think I might be able to undo, then drill new holes and put the flagpole back up. If that doesn't work, maybe one of my handy neighbors can help out. It's for a good cause.
Here's hoping.
That last one made me sniffy.
Hope you get a good seat on the promenade.
Thank you for those. The Founding Fathers would be, I suppose, "disappointed" with the "direction the country is headed in". Let me just add this one, my Founding Fathers quote for 2003:
If this be treason, make the most of it.
--Patrick Henry
Hearing the full text of the D of I on NPR this morning, I was struck by the thought that if George III had been a better King (instead of a slavering syphilitic nutball) most of the Declaration's reasoning would have had to be different -- also, maybe support wouldn't have been sufficient. Also the necessity to break away might not really have been there, though I suppose it would have happened eventually.
Allohistorians take note.
Actually, though it wasn't the central theme of the book, Michael Moorcock did that in Gloriana, a book I'd have enjoyed more if I hadn't read a dozen other Moorcock books with essentially the same plot (the "Eternal Champion"), but trashy, unlike Gloriana.
One of the title character's suitors is the Duke of Ohio, IIRC.
Elric and I wish you the best for the 4th. We will be taking part by offering our traditional burnt sacrifices on the barbeque in front of our getting-larger-every-day hole in the ground. Patrick -- I applaud you. Well done.
David Stewart wrote: The US has always been a beacon of freedom and inspiration to opressed people throughout the world. Administrations may come and go but the essential values of America as enshrined in the Declaration of Independence shine through in the end.
I sincerely hope you're right. But it doesn't look much like it at the moment.
Ironic, isn't it, that the news should break today of all days?
WaPo: "Six Could Be Facing Military Trial"
America: The Country Where The President Hands Out Habeas Corpus On A Case-by-Case Basis
...and the packets' red glare, wi-fi bursting on air...
We gotta change it. And we will.
Well, I made myself a mellon ball and am watching the Pops on the esplanade with my wife and daughter. And the Red Sox just set a record for the most home runs ever hit off the Yankees (7) as they beat the crap out of them today in the Bronx. They may lose the next three, of course, but right now this 4th is pretty sweet. Cheers to all here. Happy 4th.
Xopher, with no desire to cause topic drift, there is no evidence that George III was syphilitic. He pretty certainly had hereditary porphyria, which caused well-documented bouts of insanity -- though these did not become severe until -after- the Revolution. (Regency, while proposed, didn't actually arrive for a couple of decades.) It's assuredly the wrong day to be defending the Hanoverians (not sure if there -is- a good day for that), but the decisions that led to the Declaration and armed revolt were by no means solely the King's, nor was that particular King a caricature ogre (which I might grant you for George I). I could start in on Pitt's attitudes toward insanity, or about North, or Fox, but that would cut the moorings on the topic. Was the American situation mismanaged? Yup. Was that because the King was an imbecile incapable of reason? No.
Okay, Sidney Hook I ain't. Hell, Alan Bennett I ain't. We now, with pleasure, return you to your regularly scheduled, and wholly deserved, celebration of Liberty among Men.
Hard-Hitting Moderator: Teresa Nielsen Hayden.
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