Free Republic

When a government has ceased to protect the lives, liberty and property of the people from whom its legitimate powers are derived, and for the advancement of whose happiness it was instituted; and so far from being a guarantee for the enjoyment of those inestimable and inalienable rights, becomes an instrument in the hands of evil rulers for their oppression; when the Federal Republican Constitution of their country, which they have sworn to support, no longer has a substantial existence, and the whole nature of their government has been forcibly changed without their consent, from a restricted federative republic, composed...

1. Last night I went to Mana to watch the drag races and they played the national anthem and I was one of a very few spectators who stood, hand over heart, in silence. That’s Hawaii for you. The demographic at the dragstrip was probably equivalent to that of a Nascar event, but I can’t imagine mainland Nascar-ians being so disrespectful. Having said that, I bet a lot of people in the stands are veterans- local people join the military in huge numbers- and (other things being equal) any veteran who chooses to drink his beer and fart during the...

The Declaration of Secession and Independence, July, 1776 An early act of American independence occurred in Rhode Island on May 4, 1776. The legislature and the governor met as an extra ordinary assembly, and adopted a statute which stated that Rhode Island was seceded from the British Empire. A few weeks later, Virginia declared itself in secession from the British Empire on June 12 then later on the 29th, 1776, again apart from the Declaration of Independence. These declarations were the first examples of a convention of the people of a State assuming the attributes of a sovereign power, passing...

In Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, the Continental Congress adopts the Declaration of Independence, which proclaims the independence of the United States of America from Great Britain and its king. The declaration came 442 days after the first volleys of the American Revolution were fired at Lexington and Concord in Massachusetts and marked an ideological expansion of the conflict that would eventually encourage France's intervention on behalf of the Patriots. The first major American opposition to British policy came in 1765 after Parliament passed the Stamp Act, a taxation measure to raise revenues for a standing British army in America. Under the banner...

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.

What does the Fourth of July mean to contemporary Americans? For many it means a day off from work and little more. To others it means an opportunity to "party," roast hot dogs, drink beer and watch fireworks. But to the Founders of our nation, it meant far more. Upon the completion of the signing of the Declaration of Independence, Samuel Adams, known as the "Father of the American Revolution" said, "We have this day restored the Sovereign to Whom all men ought to be obedient. He reigns in Heaven and from the rising to the setting of the sun,...

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,...

The Dominion of Providence Over the Passions of Men by John Witherspoon May, 1776 In the first place, I would take the opportunity on this occasion, and from this subject, to press every hearer to a sincere concern for his own soul's salvation. There are times when the mind may be expected to be more awake to divine truth, and the conscience more open to the arrows ofconviction than at others. A season of public judgment is of this kind. Can you have a clearer view of the sinfulness of your nature, than when the rod of the oppressor is...

This week the U.S. Supreme Court ruled on government displays of the Ten Commandments. Apparently some of the justices have enrolled in the John Kerry School of Advanced Nuance and Nonsense. Displaying the Ten Commandments outside the Texas state capitol is OK, but displaying them inside Kentucky courthouses isn’t. Bringing some common sense to the matter was, as usual, Justice Antonin Scalia. In his dissent he wrote: "What distinguishes the rule of law from the dictatorship of a shifting Supreme Court majority is the absolutely indispensable requirement that judicial opinions be grounded in consistently applied principle." Consistency? Principle? In present...

G-8 to push N. Korea to abandon nuke plans The Yomiuri Shimbun A nuclear nonproliferation declaration that pressures North Korea to abandon its nuclear development program is to be adopted at the upcoming Group of Eight major nations summit meeting in Gleneagles, Scotland, government sources said Monday. The declaration, which has been tentatively called the "declaration concerning nonproliferation," will express "grave concern" over North Korea, which declared in February that it possessed nuclear weapons. According to the sources, if the schedule for resumption of the six-way talks is not decided at the July 6-8 summit meeting, the G-8 will demand...

Ruth Bader Ginsburg vs. the Declaration of Independence. By Edward Whelan Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg recently gave a speech defending the Supreme Court's increasing use of foreign law in support of its rulings on the meaning of the Constitution. The title of her speech — "'A decent Respect to the Opinions of [Human]kind': the Value of a Comparative Perspective in Constitutional Adjudication" — nicely encapsulates the core flaws in her position.

From where do your rights come? Not the right to bear arms, or freedom of the press. I’m talking about those unalienable rights our founding fathers spoke of: Life, liberty, the pursuit of happiness. At face value, it’s quite a simple question; who, or what, gives you these rights? It seems to me there are two possible answers, God or government. Though it seems like a simple question, the implications of either answer are quite severe. Either your rights come from an objective, unchangeable higher authority, or a manmade power with the potential for corruption. The danger in assuming that...

What were the original principles of the American Constitution? Are those principles true? Many historians and political scientists write about the first question. Scholars are never shy about telling us what happened in the dead-and-gone eighteenth century. But few of them think it is even worth discussing whether the Founders' principles are true. For example, in a review of my book Vindicating the Founders, historian Joseph Ellis accuses me of having committed "sins of presentism." My error, as he cleverly puts it, is believing "that ideas are like migratory birds that can take off in the eighteenth century and land...

HOUSES OF WORSHIP Faith and the Fifth Grade Did a California school ban the Declaration of Independence? Not quite. BY NAOMI SCHAEFER REILY Friday, March 25, 2005 12:01 a.m. EST Many of us remember the headline, "Declaration of Independence banned from classroom." Just before Thanksgiving, the Alliance Defense Fund filed suit against the Cupertino, Calif., school district and issued a press release with that claim at the top--and all hell broke loose. Talk radio and TV rushed to the aid of Steven Williams, a public-school teacher and professed Christian who had apparently suffered religious discrimination at the hands of a...

Under intense global pressure, the United States on Friday dropped its demand to amend a declaration reaffirming the U.N. blueprint to achieve equality for women, saying it was satisfied the document did not guarantee the right to abortion. U.S. Ambassador Ellen Sauerbrey said the United States would join other nations in approving the declaration endorsing the 150-page platform for action adopted at the 1995 U.N. women's conference in Beijing. The proposed U.S. amendment would have reaffirmed the Beijing platform and a declaration adopted with it - but only "while reaffirming that they do not create any new international human rights,...

To the citizens of the United States of America, in the light of your failure to elect a competent President of the USA and thus to govern yourselves, we hereby give notice of the revocation of your independence, effective today. Her Sovereign Majesty Queen Elizabeth II will resume monarchical duties over all states, commonwealths and other territories. Except Utah, which she does not fancy. Your new Prime Minister (The Right Honourable Tony Blair, MP for the 97.85% of you who have until now been unaware that there is a world outside your borders) will appoint a Minister for America without...

February 10, 2005 North Korea Says It Has Nuclear Weapons and Rejects Talks By JAMES BROOKE TOKYO, Feb. 10 - In a surprising admission, North Korea's hard-line Communist government declared publicly today for the first time that it has nuclear weapons. It also said that it will boycott United States-sponsored regional talks designed to end its nuclear program, according to a North Korean Foreign Ministry statement transmitted today by the reclusive nation's wire service. Pyongyang said it has "manufactured nukes for self-defense to cope with the Bush administration's undisguised policy to isolate and stifle" North Korea, and that it will...

Here, you can download FREE mp3s of important U.S. historical documents read aloud to burn onto CD and listen to while you're on-the-go. They were generated using the free text aloud software, Speakonia, which sounds like Stephen Hawking. If you can tolerate the sound of the computer voice, then this should be a useful web page for you.

I watch in amazement, as Liberals in America once again call upon our government to “pull-out” of Iraq, leaving the Iraqi people to fend off terrorists on their own and I can’t help but notice the hypocrisy and ignorance of history in their chant… I thought liberals were the kinder, gentler Americans, always concerned with standing up for the down-trodden, looking after those in the world who are unable to care for or defend themselves? It appears their humanitarian zeal includes whales and seals, but not the people of Iraq… Though seemingly appalled at the abusive acts of a few...

2005 SESSION 05-0002 05/01 HOUSE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION 1 A RESOLUTION urging Congress to withdraw the United States from the United Nations. SPONSORS: Rep. Albert, Straf 1; Rep. Matthew Quandt, Rock 13; Rep. Hawkins, Hills 18; Rep. Buhlman, Hills 27; Rep. Headd, Rock 3; Sen. Boyce, Dist 4; Sen. Roberge, Dist 9 COMMITTEE: State-Federal Relations and Veterans Affairs ANALYSIS This resolution urges Congress to withdraw the United States from the United Nations. 05-0002 05/01 STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE In the Year of Our Lord Two Thousand Five A RESOLUTION urging Congress to withdraw the United States from the United Nations. Whereas, the...