Independence Day

How sad is it that so many school children and adults don’t associate Independence Day with July 4th. I remember a CBS poll a few years back, prior to Independence Day, where they asked in a telephone poll why do we celebrate July 4th. Only 58% said correctly that July 4th is officially (there is debate it really should be celebrated July 2nd) Independence Day for the U.S.A. I remember thinking, how can that be? How can so many people be totally ignorant of what we celebrate today? I don’t know if it is indifference, poor schooling or just confusion.

I pay homage today to the farmers, merchants and, yes, the wealthy plantation owners who decided to be free from the yoke of a tyrant in the form of King George III of England. They took on the most powerful army and navy of that era with little reason to expect victory. Many were hung for treason. Many lost everything they owned because of the war.

The seeds for revolution lay in the 1765 enactment of “The Stamp Act”, whereby taxes from colonists were paid directly to England. Riots broke out, and the rest, as they say, is history. A war that basically lasted seven years led to independence from England. Taxation without representation is what started the first American Revolution. It appears the next American Revolution will be fought for the same reason. Now, a small sampling of Thomas Jefferson’s masterpiece, The Declaration of Independence…



-- John Hancock


