OK! It's been awhile. But, let's continue where we were.

"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..."

"When in the course of human events..." this is a statement in and of itself that says, "We've had it up to here." It also says that there were a lot of things going on that people were fed up with. The government that they were being ruled by were imposing a laws and rules on people that they didn't agree with. Does this sound familiar? The founding fathers were standing up and making a statement. There have been some town hall meetings recently that people have stood up and made a stand of their own.

Let's stop a second and think about this. We need to learn from this example. They were not shouting and making a scene. They made a declaration that they did not like what the crown if Great Britain were imposing on them. The Constitutional Congress formed and decided that they were going to speak as one voice. They got together and discussed what they were thinking. They got their thoughts together. and they put their collective thoughts together and proclaimed them publicly.

"It becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands..." This is the first mention of the purpose of this document. They were making a break from England. Did you notice the word "necessary?" There wasn't any wavering or questioning about what they were doing. They also didn't leave any room for anyone to read between the lines.

The authors also called themselves "one people." This is another statement telling the reader that they all agreed on this. They were of one mind. Did this mean that they agreed on everything? No, of course not. But, once again, they has discussed, debated and considered what they wanted to write down in an open letter to the crown.

"Dissolve the political bands..." Our founding fathers were refering to the political bands with England.

I would suggest that we need to bring this thought to todays world. There are two major political parties in our country today. Do you agree with either one of them? Do you think that both of them are VERY flawed? What should we do? I think that there is a major shift away from the polital bands in todays world.

IN CONGRESS, JULY 4, 1776
The unanimous Declaration of the thirteen united States of America

Let's look at the introduction first. Isn't that a novel idea? It starts out "In Congress." Congress met on June 7, 1776. A man named Richard Henry Lee of Virginia stood and stated, "that the united colonies are, and of right ought to be, free and independent states." John Adams seconded the statement. That got things going to draft a Declaration of Independence. So this movement was started and adopted "In Congress"

The Declaration of Independence was adopted on July 4, 1776. Right here we need to pause and see what the founders did for four days before they adopted it. Between July 1-4 the congress met, read, debated, and and revised the document. They understood that they were going to be voting on something that was going to radically impact the lives of every person in the new country.

Today we have our elected officials stating they they are too busy to read everything that they are voting on. What are they busy with that is more important than the bills that they are voting on our behalf? I don't know about you, but I want them to concentrate on me and my concerns. Not where their next fundraiser is going to be. Not deciding about which jet they need to buy themselves. I want them to be seeking the will of their constituents.

"The unanimous Declaration"..."the unanimous," sounds a little like they ALL agreed on what they were declaring. How could they become unanimous in this? Because they spent 4 days debating and editing the document that they agreed on. That means that none of them were grand standing, trying to appease lobbyist, or making sure that they fulfilled some far-fetched promise that they made on the campaign trail.

Side bar...Do you think that they spent the kind of money on campaigns back then that is spent today? Even if you adjust for employment it wouldn't even come close. Let's look just 96 years ago...$10,000,000 today is the equivalent of $218,000 in 1913. I think that the founders would be disgusted by the numbers that are spent on campaigns today.

Let's wrap up the introduction. It says, "the thirteen united States of America." Look real close. Did you see it? Look at the "U." It's not capitalized! What does that mean? It means that it is an adjective, not a proper noun. That mean's it's not a title, it's a description. WOW! Let's say that word again... "united!"

Did that mean that all of those men in that room agreed on everything that they belived? NO! It means that the new union that was being formed was together in it's conviction of spliting from the rule of the British rule. We should be as resolute in standing up for what we believe. Don't stop to think, "How does my party (Rep. or Dem.) stand on this?" Just think, "What do I think is the right thing to do here?"

"United We Stand, Divided We Fall" isn't just a passing thought. It is something that our founders knew was the right thing to do.

OK, everyone! I want a suggestions. Who do you want to learn about? Do you want to get into the Declaration of Independence?

Yeah, he does look a little like Benjamin Franklin. He's not. He did sign the Declaration of Independence.

His name is Lewis Morris. He was born in present day Bronx County, NY in 1726. He inherited great wealth, most of which was lost during the war. He graduated at Yale College in 1746 after studying farming, and returned to the farm of his father, in Lower West Chester, near Harlem. When his father passed on he became engaged in politics.

He served in the Provincial legislature shortly before the troubles with Great Britain began and before it was dissolved by the royal governor. Morris joined with the patriots when conflict began, siding , in many cases, against his wealthy neighbors. He convinced local politicians to send representatives to the re-formed Legislature in April of 1775. That congress appointed delegates to the second Continental Congress, and Morris was one. He served on committees for the defense of New York, one for provisioning colonial forces, and another for Indian affairs. These tasks carried him throughout New England in the first few years of the war. He also served as a brigadier-general in the New York militia and so was often torn between his duties in congress and those to the defense of his own colony.

In 1777, he was succeeded in congress by his brother, Gouverneur Morris. He returned to his local duties, later served as a judge in Worcester, and served intermittently as a member of the upper house of the new legislature until 1790. All of the Morris property and nearly all of his wealth had been destroyed in the revolution. Lewis spend several years working to rebuild his farm. He also served on the first Board of Regents for the University of New York. He died in January 1798 at the age of 72.

A common man who knew most likely knew that if he financially supported the colonialist, that he would lose a lot of money. Did that matter to him? No, it didn't. He went into the revolution with a belief of what was right and wrong. He apparently stood behind those beliefs until the day he died.

Do we carry our beliefs as strongly today as Lewis Morris did. I don't think so. Our first thought is most likely, "How much does it cost?" Don't you think that we should ask, "How is this going to align with what I believe in?"

Belief...I think that this is where we stand or fall.