 wildcat says: "Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness." "Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness."It is my understanding that the original line was life, liberty, and property. However, at this time slaves were considered "property" and that would have made slavery a constitutional right. The founders, spurred by Benjamin Franklin, realized this fact and changed the wording to allow for the eventual abolition of slavery. Also, incidentally ( because it is often misunderstood) the designation of blacks being considered 3/5 of a person was also established to limit the power of wealthy slave-owners - not to diminish the value of the individual. The founders are often criticized for a lack of action against slavery, though mo... but only to point out the clear vision, compromise, and strong eye on the future the founders had when building the foundation of this Nation.I have to agree that they did a really good job. It took ages for the rest of the world to even realize the value of "Life, Liberty and the pursuit of happiness"...even now, in so many countries, people are living as slaves only...slaves due to the lack of the financial freedom, slaves due to the oppressive political climate and slaves due to their own religious beliefs! Thanks, guys, it cannot be said better. Do not let political puppets shake this amazing lighthouse. We hold these truths to be self-evident... If any have recently watched the HBO series John Adams, or if not, read McCollough's book "John Adams," they (book & series) really bring home what visionaries were the Founding Fathers. Yes, Ben Franklin, John Adams & Thomas Jefferson, with Jefferson doing the bulk of the writing of the Declaration, but Ben & John did proof & edit, and then the Continental Congress edited again. It's been a marvelous document for the U.S. & the world! And now, do we believe that "all men are endowed by their Creator with certain inalienable rights" and that among them is liberty, if they are imprisoned without charge at Guantanamo Bay? Or do we only believe it for people we like? The Declaration is as demanding as it is brilliant. very well put masbury. It is my understanding that the original line was life, liberty, and property. However, at this time slaves were considered "property" and that would have made slavery a constitutional right. The founders, spurred by Benjamin Franklin, realized this fact and changed the wording to allow for the eventual abolition of slavery.I do not see how that can be right. The Declaration of Independence is not the constitution. Moreover, the Fifth Amendment explicitly says that nobody shall be deprived of life, liberty, or property without due process. That makes sense. But the Constitution was built with some intentional ambiguity about a lot of things under the force of compromise. There is a distinction, however, in that the declaration is describing god-given rights to all mankind and the Constitution is outlining how government is restricted. I'll have to dig back into that. You raise a good point. Gracias, wildcat! |
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