He thought he was
The King Of America...
Now I try hard
Not to be hysterical;
But I am not sure
If I am laughing or crying.
I wish that I could push a button
And talk of the past
(?) And not the present tense...
And watch this feeling disappear
Like it was Common Sense.
( Elvis Costello )
AMERICA, the United STATES, is a country that emanated from the singular mind of WE THE PEOPLE.
Thomas Paine preferred to call this mind, Common Sense ( 1776 ); which happens to be encoded in a historic document.
"WE have it in our power to begin the World all over again. A situation similar to the present hath not happened since the days of Noah until now. The BIRTHDAY of A NEW WORLD is at hand....", he affirms.
FOURTH of JULY is celebrated as Independence Day.
It marks the day when the American People secured their Liberty from the former imperial power, Great Britain. It is a celebration of A Revolution in American Thought, based on the Universal Rights of Man.
"INDEPENDENCE is my happiness, and I view things as they are, without regard to Place or Person; my country is THE WORLD, and my Religion is TO DO GOOD", re-affirms Thomas Paine, a founding father.
Fourth of July is a national holiday. Fire works!
Chicken wings. Pizza. Outdoors and Speeches. Remembrance!
A time to Un-wind...and...re-wind.
My Country, 'tis of thee:
Sweet Land of Liberty,
Of thee I Sing.
Land where my fathers died,
Land of the pilgrims' pride;
From ev'ry mountainside,
Let freedom ring!
Let MUSIC swell the breeze:
And ring from all the trees,
Sweet freedom's Song.
Let mortal tongues awake,
Let All that Breathe partake;
Let rocks their silence break,
And the sound prolong.
( Samuel F. Smith )
WE THE PEOPLE, reminisce...
America Is, Novus Ordo Seclorum, A New Order of The Ages!
"A sense of mission to redeem the Old World by HIGH EXAMPLE...generated by the potentialities of A NEW EARTH, for the building of A New Heaven", says historian Frederick Mark, about the MANIFEST DESTINY of America.
The Sovereignty of
The Stars and Stripes:
Can be nothing but,
A Blessing to Any People;
And nothing but,
A Blessing to Any Land.
( Albert J. Beveridge )
WE THE PEOPLE, reminisce...
America Is, E Pluribus Unum, From Many, ONE.
Fourth of July, 1776.
IV July, MDCCLXXVI is preferred by the French Sculptor, Frederic Bartholdi, who engraved his adulation of America in the tablet-hand of Lady Liberty.
WE THE PEOPLE, reminisce...
America Is, The Melting-Pot, The New Colossus.
On Liberty Island, is a gigantic monument standing proud. It evokes in the heart of every American, including that of the Poet Emma Lazarus, the name: Mother of Exiles.
Give me your tired, you poor:
Your huddled masses yearning
To Breathe Free..
I lift my Lamp,
Beside the Golden Door!
With her beacon-hand, the Statue of Liberty bids ALL Nations welcome, to America.
WE THE PEOPLE therefore, on the historic occasion of FOURTH of JULY, celebrate THE UNITED STATES of AMERICA as:
Liberty Enlightening The WORLD!
Always Grand:
And World-embracing schemes,
To establish on Earth;
The Moral Dignity,
And Salvation of Man.
( John L. O'Sullivan )
FOURTH of JULY, A Nation announces itself literally, 'Next to...of course GOD...is America - i'
Long before the world of the American, there was another world; Absolute Monarchy...or tyranny.
It was the reign of the Old English Kings.
In strict terms, the foremost American, was the Pilgrim; the Puritan.
Away from oppression of the Colonial Master, John Winthrop led A Company of Christian Men ( the Puritans )...toward a better country. A Dream.
On their honour, they looked...forward...by beginning from First Principles.
Believers of The Bible, the Book of God, these puritans took...a risk...on their Lives, in order to establish their Dream Country:
A City Upon A Hill.
We must consider
That WE shall be:
A City Upon A Hill.
The eyes of All People
Are upon us...
We are commanded this day to love
The Lord our God;
And Love One Another...
To walk in His Ways
And to Keep His Commandments...
That The Lord may bless us
In The Land whither we go to possess...
( John Winthrop )
It was meant to be a country after God's own heart. God's Own Country.
Like David in the Bible, it was dedicated in worship to the Almighty God - the True Creator of All Things.
Like the Psalms of David, it was appointed to lure the heart of All Mankind...toward God.
And like Jesus Christ, the descendant of David, and the father of All Christian Men, it was intended to be of duty...or service to humanity in general.
America was conceived as A Nation, a genealogy of Puritanical Minds, to bring the Spiritual closer to the mundane. To bring God closer to Man!
And again, like the David - to - Jesus Christ genealogy, these principles or precepts were to be handed down the generations following John Winthrop's.
Irrespective of Color!
In the heart of America, the Puritan lives as a melodious SONG-sheet, an everlasting MUSIC:
A Legacy...of The Good.
It is what the French statesman, historian and social philosopher, Alexis de Tocqueville observed and chronicled in his book, Democracy In America:
America is G-r-e-a-t because, America is G-o-o-d.
Elaborates de Tocqueville :
"In the United States, the influence of Religion is not confined to THE MANNERS; but it extends to the THE INTELLIGENCE of the people....
"CHRISTIANITY, therefore reigns without obstacle, by universal consent. The consequence is, as I have before observed, that EVERY PRINCIPLE of the MORAL WORLD is fixed and determined....
"I sought for the KEY TO THE GREATNESS and GENIUS of AMERICA in her harbours...; in her fertile fields and boundless forests; in her rich mines and vast commerce; in her public school system and institutions of learning.
"I sought for it in her democratic Congress and in her matchless Constitution.
"NOT UNTIL I WENT TO THE CHURCHES of AMERICA and HEARD HER PULPITS FLAME WITH RIGHTEOUSNESS did I understand the Secret of her GENIUS and POWER.
"America is GREAT because America is GOOD; and if America ever ceases to be good, America will cease to be great".
"The safeguard of morality is religion, and morality is the best security of LAW as well as the surest pledge of FREEDOM".
"...From the earliest settlement of the emigrants, Politics and Religion contracted an alliance which has never been dissolved."
Our fathers' GOD,
To THEE AUTHOR of LIBERTY
To Thee WE SING;
Long may our Land be bright
With Freedom's Holy Light.
Protect us by Thy Might,
GREAT GOD, OUR KING!
( Samuel F. Smith )
Disguised as money or fame or power, whatever; it is the divine obligation for the Soul of Mankind to engage in an unending search... for The Good.
The Exceptional.
It's like Man bringing to his Maker,
The Fruits of his Heart.
And though these fruits,
May differ from each other;
The grateful Tribute
Of everyone is accepted.
( Thomas Paine )
FOURTH of JULY.
A City Upon A Hill.
WE THE PEOPLE, reminisce...that the duty, the Sole Duty of Man on Earth, is to elevate himself and his kindred, to the level of God.
That in itself, is an Act of Worship; though not perceived by most.
To take the Road less travelled by, that usually makes all the difference!
AMERICA therefore, exemplified by the pilgrims, the founding fathers, is a respecter of Work or Enterprise - fraught with risk, however. Their template for the Spirit-King in Man, is exemplified by none other than the Sovereign King, God Himself.
Progress on Earth, through the Work Ethic, is nothing but an imitation of the Self-evident Handiwork of God; what we see and experience...everyday. The Greatness. The Plurality. The Beauty of All.
Like God, America's reference point is The Universe.
Little wonder then, that in the affairs of nations, America is Big Brother!
But where say some is
The King Of America?
I'll tell you my friend,
He Reigns Above;
And,
Doth not make havoc of Mankind.
( Thomas Paine )
Fourth of July, Americas tell the World their own Story.
And the American is a great storyteller.
WE THE PEOPLE...is A Great S-t-o-r-y!
With a pen and...A Prologue.
In re-writing their H-i-s-t-o-r-y, they inevitably re-branded their story.
Guided by Divine Providence, Americans moved apart from Britain...the Prologue.
Now, they've chosen to speak a new tongue; write a new lexicon - on their Lives:
Instead of Monarchy...they say Democracy/Republicanism.
Instead of Unitary System...they speak Federalism.
Instead of the Caste-System...they prefer Egalitarianism.
Instead of Feudalism...they shout Capitalism/ Laissez-faire.
They have left Old England...and founded New England.
Instead of Tyranny...they sing Liberty!
"That GOD at the proper stage on the march of history, called forth certain hardy souls from the old and privilege-ridden nations....And bestowing us GRACE, HE also bestowed a peculiar responsibility...to spread abroad the fundamental principles in the Bill of Rights", affirms Clinton Ronsiter, a scholar.
WE THE PEOPLE have seen that the way forward, is not the closed-minded privilege of birth; but the open-minded Meritocracy of Enterprise.
Instead of the traditional education, why not A Liberal Education?
"I insist that of all, true education is not to make men carpenters, but to make carpenters men", attests W.E.B du Bois, a foremost African-American Scholar and Civil Rights Activist.
Collectivism is good, but Individualism is the bedrock.
What good is a bunch of no-goods or half-wits?
What good is a herd of men with no singular aim, other than to sit and divide the spoils ( especially of others' labour )? Compare such men with the individual who firsts builds himself...then endeavours to build others?
In the Land of Opportunity, that's the ONLY logical way for A Nation to advance. Forward and upward!
NOW I'M IN AMERICA:
And running from YOU,
Like my grandfather before me,
Walked the streets of New York ...
When I open my mouth,
And I can't seem to talk...
Now it seems we've been
Crying for years
And for years;
NOW
I don't speak any English;
Just American without tears,
JUST AMERICAN WITHOUT TEARS!
( Elvis Costello )
AMERICA'S DREAM...begins from First Principles; a judicious biblical reference to God's Prototype:
From Abram of Ur, to Abraham...of the Israelites.
From Moses of Egypt, to Moses...of the Promised Land.
From Jesus of Nazareth, to Jesus Christ...of the Jews and Gentiles...the Savior of All Mankind.
The dream begins...with The Individuals. Individualism.
But then, the individual must be...free and equal to all other individuals. Diversity.
Irrespective of Color!
For this end,
We must be knit together in this WORK;
As One MAN...
WE must uphold a familiar Commerce
Together...
Always having before our eyes
Our Commission and Community in the Work...
So shall we keep
The Unity of the Spirit;
In the Bond of Peace.
The Lord will be Our God
And delight to dwell among us...
And we will command
A Blessing upon us in all our ways.
( John Winthrop )
FOURTH of JULY, 1776:
"WE hold these truths to be self-evident, that ALL MEN are CREATED EQUAL; that they are ENDOWED BY THEIR CREATOR with CERTAIN INALIENABLE RIGHTS; that amongst these are LIFE, LIBERTY, and the PURSUIT OF HAPPINESS". ( Declaration of Independence )
Seventeenth of September, 1787:
"WE THE PEOPLE of the UNITED STATES, in order to form A MORE PERFECT UNION, establish JUSTICE, insure DOMESTIC TRANQUILITY...promote THE GENERAL WELFARE .... ( Constitution )
AMERICA was born out of many races, for the grander purpose of UNITY IN DIVERSITY; not for the demeaning purpose of racial discrimination ( or RACISM ).
All men are created equal...endowed by their Creator.
All the races in America arose from a singular purpose, to establish A NATION that honours Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness.
Every Life: Black or White or Latino, is essentially A SPIRIT; and to the Creator, GOD, all of them were created as MAN. Without any exception!
Every Life: Black or White or Latino, is accompanied by A BODY; and to GOD, this part is of less consequence. Nothing, but dust.
The Spirit of GOD in Heaven, by which all men were born; is the same Spirit in MAN on Earth, by which all things are born : Black or White or Latino. Without exception!
In a nutshell, the ONLY common thing between GOD and MAN...is THE SPIRIT.
God's Breath...into Man. Life. The CREATIVE FORCE.
Thought of The Infinite -the All!
Be Thou my God.
Lover Divine,
And Perfect Comrade!
Waiting, content, invisible yet;
But certain;
Be Thou My GOD!
( Walt Whitman )
It is there in The Bible...from the beginning. Life.
The very First Principle...God or Man...is Life.
Every Life is sacred; Black or White or Latino. Jew or Gentile.
After life, other Principles follow; including Liberty, Equality and the Pursuit of Happiness.
Thou:
Thou the Ideal Man!
Fair, able, beautiful, content,
And Loving;
Complete in Body
And dilated in Spirit
Be thou my god.
( Walt Whitman )
AMERICA was born...in the beginning...to model after the biblical City Upon A Hill.
Away from oppression...or Segregation.
AMERICA'S DREAM is equal LIFE, equal LIBERTY ; equal OPPORTUNITY in the PURSUIT of HAPPINESS.
Now here comes the origin of the American Dilemma; not to mention, the Universal Human Dilemma; the corruptibility of the human BODY!
In the human Pursuit of Happiness; Man, whether Black or White or Latino - the mundane desire for money, fame, sex - arises primarily from the body or the earth. Materialism.
Earth...is as much literal ( physical environment ) as much as it is figurative ( human body ). Abundant, yet scarce!
In the course of Evolution, the Earth and Man, have experienced changes arising from Material Scarcity. These Supply and Demand characteristics of the material world have conspired to alter the environment; not to mention alter the Human Psyche, over the long haul.
The Earthly journeys of All Men - Black or White or Latino - have been subjected to the limiting dictates of Economics. The bottom line therefore becomes, Survival.
The Father of Natural Evolution, Charles Darwin, coined this phenomenon: Survival of the fittest.
AMERICANS, like all humans, are Materialistic.
In multi-racial communities, like the U.S, the economics of Supply and Demand, have created a social paradigm called RACISM.
It is the ugly, twisted human psyche whereby a particular race assumes superiority over other races, with no basis other than Skin Colour.
In the physical world, Man could easily forget GOD. Especially in the so-called rat-race, or dog-eat-dog competition, for scarce material resources.
In other words, it is easy for Man to forget the SPIRITUAL, when dealing with The Material.
And to top it off, Racism surfaces when a certain skin-type of people decide against divine principles; and assume a superiority over others, in the mundane Pursuit of Happiness, or material wealth!
I think this is what has happened to the human race: Black or White or Latino.
I think this is the premise upon which RACISM has usurped the Happiness of the human population, overall.
I see RACISM as an evolutionary evil, predicated upon the Limitation of THE SPIRIT; by the wrong handling of the affairs of THE MATERIAL.
I see The RACIST as one who has undermined the GOD in him; and instead, overestimated the MAN in himself!
I see The RACIST, anywhere, as one who has undermined The First Principles of Heavenly CREATION...and of course, Earthly CREATION.
The AMERICAN RACIST has left the American Dream in chase of a Nightmare!
It's time to tell The Truth:
These things have to be faced,
My fuse is burning out,
And all that power's gone to waste.
Don't think for a moment, Dear
That we'll ever be through ;
I'll build a BONFIRE of my DREAMS,
And burn a broken effigy
Of YOU and ME.
( Elvis Costello)
AMERICA is God's Own Country!
God before any Man...Black, White, or Latino.
FOURTH of JULY is American Independence Day!
God before any Man...Black, White, or Latino.
WE THE PEOPLE, reminisce...
America Is, E Pluribus Unum, From Many, ONE.
Fourth of July is an American Story;
The AMERICAN - Black or White or Latino - is the Story-teller.
Irrespective of Colour!
In history, we cannot overlook the story of the American War of Independence ( 1775 - 1783 );
America ran away from oppression, away from Colonial Master, Britain.
In history, we cannot ignore too, the story of the American Civil War ( 1861 - 1865 );
WE THE PEOPLE ran away from segregation, away from the Supremacist, in AMERICA.
Of thee old cause,
When're advancing;
All great ideas
The Races' Aspirations!
All that exalts,
Releases me, my soul!
All horizons:
Deeds of rapt enthusiasm
Be ye my gods.
( Walt Whitman )
Charleston, South Carolina.
On Twelfth of April, 1861: the American Civil War began at Fort Sumpter.
A battery was exploded on Americans of the Union by the command of a dissident, the Confederate General, Pierre de Beauregard.
The war was fanned by Racism!
The American southern slave-owners, foresaw a threat to their Supremacy based on Skin Colour - and the economic advantages therefrom.
In other words, the Civil War had Racial dimensions that were fuelled by inordinate material ambitions.
Thank God, Abraham Lincoln, the U.S President at the time, rose to the occasion. He rescued the American Union by passing the Emancipation Proclamation ( 1863 ). This doused to a large extent, the embers of the war.
The Proclamation which de-segregated the South, weakened the strength of the seceding Confederate Army, which consisted of a great number of slaves.
Otherwise, the dream of "A More Perfect Union", or for that matter the American Nation itself, would have evaporated!
Charleston, South Carolina.
On Seventeenth of June, 2015: a White man, Dylan Storm Roof, waged a war against his fellow Americans. He fired a .45 caliber hand-gun this time...and killed 9 African-Americans and injured 1.
Inside A CHURCH: the Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal.
Again, another war sponsored by Racism!
In America, God's Own Country and Charleston, nicknamed The Holy City, that act of violence or homicide was a sacrilege against God and Man.
It was a day of infamy, when Racism reared his ugly head again and defiled "the most polite and hospitable city in America".
On that fateful day: RACISM as an ensemble, more than just an isolated face, posed a Challenge to AMERICA. With the voice of Dylan Storm Roof, the RACIST made a proverbial statement to UNCLE SAM:
"I'll Give You Something To PRAY About"!
This incident, inside the precinct of the Church in America, prompts the inevitable question:
"Who's the King Of America? Is he a Black man or a White man? Or a Latino Man?
Or is it God?
It is a question that threatens the very foundation of the American Spirit.
"This is the time when democracy should prove its PURITY and its Spiritual Power to prevail. It is purely The Manifest Destiny of the U.S to lead in the attempt to make this SPIRIT PREVAIL", advocates Woodrow Wilson.
The Racist in America and indeed anywhere in the world, should re-consider this solemn PRAYER of Walt Whitman, the American Poet Laureate:
Oh while I live to the RULER of LIFE
Not a slave;
To meet Life as a powerful conqueror,
And NOTHING EXTERIOR to me
Shall ever take command of me!
FOURTH of JULY, 2015.
Born on the penultimate DAY of the American Independence, it never ceases to cross my mind, the Principles on which God's Own Country was built.
WE THE PEOPLE, more than anything else, calls to the inquiring mind, not only how a nation was built; but how any person could Dream and Build...beginning from first principles.
AMERICA Today, faces a challenge that has escalated to alarming proportions in recent times: Racism.
It threatens the march, Toward A More Perfect Union.
It affects the Pursuit of Happiness, for the Black or White or Latino American.
Irrespective of Colour!
This Fourth of July, Uncle Sam must GO TO THE CHURCH, like in the beginning; and PRAY for her citizenry to embrace, Unity in Diversity.
Once again, let ALL AMERICANS, Black or White or Latino say together in BROTHERHOOD:
In GOD We Trust!
And mean e-v-e-r-y w-o-r-d of that ALL-AMERICAN motto, today and forever.
It is then the strife
Of All Honourable Men...
To see
That in the future competition
Of the races;
The Survival of the Fittest,
Shall mean the TRIUMPH
Of THE GOOD;
The beautiful and true.
That we may be able to
Preserve for future civilization;
All that is really fine, and noble,
And strong.
And NOT
Continue to put a premium on
Greed and impudence and cruelty.
( W. E. B Du Bois )
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