I like the concept of the inflection point, the idea of a moment when direction changes and the path of events moves into new realms. American Independence Day honors the achievement of our founders in creating a government constitutionally bound to ideal concepts about the rights of free individuals, and the limits to which government can use power to control daily life.
Several millenniums of thought, from Egyptian and Persian dynasties through the arc of Greco-Roman Judeo-Christian civilization, shape our understanding of what the words life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness mean. Above all it means there are three fundamental desires that need to be balanced against each other.
From life we have concerns about the problems of injury, illness and death which underlie all political struggles over safety and health. From liberty the idea that all humans are equal as humans, especially in the possession of free will to decide how to behave within a framework of law. Pursuit of happiness recognizes the emotional component of our existence, so envy and fear, contentment and love are legitimate factors in determining the shape of the legal cage we construct for ourselves.
On July 4, 1776 the American Revolutionists announce their intention to form a new government to regulate thirteeen new world British colonies. Over time this wild experiment produces widespread justice and prosperity unprecedented in history. The inflection point turning the path of events the American Way deserves celebration, and also the understanding that the revolution is still ongoing.
