Constitutional Law, Society

HAPPY FOURTH OF JULY!!!

Happy Independence Day!

The Fourth is one of my favorite holidays as an opportunity for all of us to celebrate our common article of faith in the independence of a nation committed to freedom and individual rights.  Despite protests opposing the Fourth, the defacing of churches, and calls for boycotts, this country remains the greatest hope for freedom in the world and these protests reaffirm those rights.  We celebrate the ideals of the people we strive to be — and the millions who came before us. With the adoption of the Declaration of Independence, the Framers placed themselves and their families at the greatest peril for the principles of self determination and democratic rule. The American Republic was always meant to be a work in progress.  Yet, our Constitution created the most successful and stable constitutional system in the history of the world.

Today, I am making smoked slow-cooked ribs which I start in the oven and finish on the grill. I prefer beef ribs but I am including some St. Louis ribs given the preference of others in the family.  Leslie is making some of her lethal potato salad. I also use the holiday to have copious amounts of my favorite cherry pie. Then there is Leslie’s Old Fashions, which are hands down the best in the world (with extra cherries of course).

This is a great day for family and food and fun. It is also a day to remember and to celebrate what we have accomplished in the protection of liberty. We have the ability to change our society but our constitutional system remains the greatest vehicle of justice and equality in the world.  There is more that unites us than divides us and this holiday is a reminder of that transcendent fact. Many of us will join today to celebrate these United States and its history and values.  

I truly love this holiday because it ideally celebrates what we have in common as opposed to what divides us.  For all of our faults and failures, we have triumphed over great evils from without and within. The Framers gave us a system that has withstood it all through the test of time and turmoil.  It will withstand these days and we will find a course forward as a nation.

Once again, as a Madisonian scholar, you will have to forgive my quoting James Madison from Essays for the National Gazette, 1792:

madison“In Europe, charters of liberty have been granted by power. America has set the example … of charters of power granted by liberty. This revolution in the practice of the world, may, with an honest praise, be pronounced the most triumphant epoch of its history, and the most consoling presage of its happiness.”

Happy Fourth, everyone.

32 thoughts on “HAPPY FOURTH OF JULY!!!”

  1. I’m kinda proud of that Ragged Old Flag, too.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A4wYNpoBrqQ

    “We hold these Truths to be self-evident”…to hold Truths requires love and courage. Kindle those flames and breathe them brighter.

    May Independence Day resonate more deeply and true in all our hearts.

  2. Happy Freedom Day to most all our fellow Americans. Home of the free because of the brave! Oh and for all you anti-gun nuts out there triggered by triggers: Take a break today because we all know you wouldn’t have fought with the colonists; you would have run for the hills.

  3. [Q]I truly love this holiday because it ideally celebrates what we have in common as opposed to what divides us.[/Q]

    “Ideally.” Yeah. Ain’t that the truth.

    Unfortunately, what we have in common is that we ARE divided . . . T’aint like when I was growing.

  4. July 4, 1776: The day the Thirteen Colonies officially endorsed an Insurrection against an oppressive government.

    A seminal moment in our nation’s history, conceived in liberty, that gave birth to the great nation we know today as the United States of America!

    Happy Insurrection Day!!!

  7. Happy July 4th to you and your family! 🇺🇸 We’re celebrating with grilled chicken thighs, corn on the cob, asparagus, and my husband’s best in the world gin & tonics. Enjoy your ribs!

  10. Multiple shot fired at Highland Park Il. 4th of July parade. At least 1 dead.
    Not safe ANYWHERE.!
    My wife and I were a half block away.

    1. To bad Illinois is another Gun Free Zone State!

      Had a few had weapons they may have been able to aid peoples safety on the spot?

      What will people do in 6mo-1yr or so, when Biden’s/Dim’s/Rino’s their partners, the WEF/ Commie Chinese troops show up?

      I don’t think Chicago’s gang banger will be hiding under their beds.

  12. Thank you, Professor Turley, on this Fourth of July, for your inspiring thoughts!

  13. We deeply appreciate your undying patriotism, Professor! Sounds like you have a festive day planned with your family.
    Happy 4th, Happy Family, & Happy Fireworks!

  14. Happy 4th of July

    Watch Ukraine bomb a Russian ammo warehouse.

    The video isn’t to impressive until the 1:30 mark. A secondary explosion sends a mushroom cloud high into the sky.

  15. Happy 4th of July!

    At a neighborhood picnic last evening an elderly man read the Declaration of Independence (minus the specific grievances), we sang God Bless America, and counted off – 115 of all ages attending including 16 of my extended family. It is wonderful to celebrate this great nation with friends and family. Let freedom ring!

  16. Social media is flooded w/ hatred for this country. Then there’s Ilhan Omar getting booed off the stage at a Somali concert in Minneapolis. Go figure!

  17. Happy Fourth, Professor. I write this wistfully because too many losers will just take the occasion to scapegoat others for their problems.

  18. Are American principles only for Americans in America, or could American principles also work for people in other countries that are not America?

    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”

      I’d say that this is for all people. All are created equal and we are all endowed by our Creator with certain unalienable Rights.

  19. … It ought to be commemorated, as the Day of Deliverance, by solemn acts of devotion to God Almighty. It ought to be solemnized with pomp and parade, with shows, games, sports, guns, bells, bonfires and illuminations, from one end of this continent to the other, from this time forward forever.

    You will think me transported with enthusiasm, but I am not. I am well aware of the toil and blood and treasure that it will cost to maintain this Declaration, and support and defend these States. Yet through all the gloom I can see the rays of ravishing light and glory. I can see that the end is worth more than all the means; that posterity will triumph in that day’s transaction, even though we [may regret] it, which I trust in God we shall not.” – Letter to Abigail Adams, July 3, 1776

    1. That’s a wonderful perspective, Whig! Thank you for sharing!

Comments are closed.