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| Home Front: Politix |
| Land of Liberty -- or Equality? |
| 2012-07-04 |
| If you asked my true religion, I would not answer anything practiced in a church, synagogue or mosque. My real religion is America, and I feel privileged that, among the world’s 7 billion people, I am one of the roughly 300 million lucky enough to be an American. This transcends mere patriotism. I believe in what this country stands for, even though I acknowledge its limits and failures. As individuals, we are no better than most(selfishness and prejudice having survived). As a society, we have often violated our loftiest ideals (starting with the acceptance of slavery in 1787). Our loud insistence of “exceptionalism” offends millions of non-Americans, who find us exceptional only in our relentless boasting. But these caveats do not dim my love of country. I am still stirred by “The Star-Spangled Banner.” I think our messy mixture of democratic traditions, respect for the individual and economic dynamism commands a unique place in human history. In most societies, people are marked by where they were born, their ethnic heritage or religious conviction. In the United States, these are secondary. Americans’ self-identity springs from the beliefs on which this country was founded, including the belief that no one is automatically better than anyone else simply by virtue of birth. Isn't that one of the things that makes us "exceptional"? No nobles and serfs? Do read the whole thing! |
| Posted by:Bobby |
| #2 The deal is all men and women are created equal, not everyone is equal. They have the right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. That is about it. They are not guaranteed a bunch of free sh*t, contrary to what some people think. |
| Posted by: Alaska Paul 2012-07-04 17:37 |
| #1 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. Time to reaffirm the Declaration of Independence? |
| Posted by: JohnQC 2012-07-04 17:13 |