HAPPY BIRTHDAY, U.S.A.!

...Well, it's sort of a birthday, anyway. Two hundred and thirty years ago today, the second Continental Congress ratified the Declaration of Independence, marking at least an intention to be a political entity separate from Great Britain. We Americans celebrate our nation's birth, of course, on a somewhat arbitrary date. The U.S.A. was born over the span of some fifteen years. It would probably make more sense to celebrate March 4, the date in 1789 when our constitution went into effect. Eloquent as it is, the Declaration of Independence is little more than a laundry list of grievances against King George III, and every third rate revolution in history has had one like it. It's easy to understand what you're sick and tired of, coming up with a new system is a different story. The real hard work came with the hammering together of that constitution, and this country benefited immensely by being born out of a revolution led by a group of radical thinkers who had the wisdom and foresight to sit down and plan a system that undercut the old European problems itemized on the Declaration list. The system has worked very well, and been a model for all others that followed. So today, as we spit out watermelon seeds and wipe firework cinders from our eyes, let's drink a toast of thanks to those founding fathers, and the brilliant system they established. Never again would this nation imprison people without charge or redress. Never again would a persecutory State Church exert undo sway on the political affairs of the state, and never again would we be governed by a pompous fool whose only qualification for office was being born into the ruling class.

Well, it worked pretty well for a really long time...sheesh, what do you expect?
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illustration: ENTRADA--PEREGRINE FALCON (2005) acrylic 6" x 12"