Happy Independence Day America!

During the month of June, 1776, the Continental Congress, meeting in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, formed a committee consisting of two New England men, John Adams of Massachusetts and Roger Sherman of Connecticut; two men from the Middle Colonies, Benjamin Franklin of Pennsylvania and Robert R. Livingston of New York; and one southerner, Thomas Jefferson of Virginia to draft a statement presenting to the world the colonies' case for independence. The committee members, in turn, asked Thomas Jefferson to do the actual writing.


Drafted by Thomas Jefferson between June 11 and June 28, 1776, the Declaration of Independence is at once the nation's most cherished symbol of liberty and Jefferson's most enduring monument. In unforgettable phrases, Jefferson expressed the convictions in the minds and hearts of the American people.

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.

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.

It goes on, 1,322 words... and ends with:

And for the support of this Declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of Divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes, and our sacred Honor.

I write this entry from the city that rightfully shares with Boston Massachusetts, the name "The Cradle of Liberty."

Enjoy your liberty today! And remember those who lost or risked their lives, fortunes, and even their honor, so that you can do so.