To keep with tradition, it’s time to expand my collection of 4th-of-July columns.
- In 2010, I contemplated the issue of libertarians and patriotism. My view, for what it’s worth, is captured by this t-shirt.
In 2011, I pondered research about the partisan implications of patriotism and also created a satirical Declaration of Dependency for my left-wing friends.
- In 2012, I shared an inspirational video about freedom and individualism from Ronald Reagan.
- In 2013, I discussed the proper meaning of patriotism in the aftermath of revelations about NSA snooping.
- In 2014, I decided on a humorous approach with one a Remy video about government being “up in your grill.”
- In 2015, I waded into the controversial topic of what happens when flag burning meets the modern regulatory state.
- In 2016, I looked at how government has increased the cost of celebrating Independence Day.
- In 2017, I explained the difference between the statist vision of “positive liberty” and the libertarian vision of “negative liberty.”
Today, we’re going to commemorate a great speech by one of America’s best Presidents.
In 1926, Calvin Coolidge spoke on the 150th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence. Here’s some of what he said.
When we come to examine the action of the Continental Congress in adopting the Declaration of Independence in the light of what was set out in that great document and in the light of succeeding events, we can not escape the conclusion that it had a much broader and deeper significance than a mere secession of territory and the establishment of a new nation. …It was not because it was proposed to establish a new nation, but because it was proposed to establish a nation on new principles, that July 4, 1776, has come to be regarded as one of the greatest days in history. …In its main features the Declaration of Independence is a great spiritual document. It is a declaration not of material but of spiritual conceptions. Equality, liberty, popular sovereignty, the rights of man — these are not elements which we can see and touch. They are ideals. …It was in the contemplation of these truths that the fathers made their declaration and adopted their Constitution. It was to establish a free government, which must not be permitted to degenerate into the unrestrained authority of a mere majority or the unbridled weight of a mere influential few. …These are our guaranties of liberty. As a result of these methods enterprise has been duly protected from confiscation, the people have been free from oppression.
If you have the time, click on the link and read the entire speech. But if you don’t have time, I hope the passages I excerpted reveal Coolidge’s appreciation for the philosophy of American independence.
I also like how he links those principles to economics, which is nicely captured in the last sentence.
Sadly, the Supreme Court no longer protects our economic liberties (John Roberts providing the most recent example), but it was nice while it lasted.
Speaking of which, here’s a great conversation between James Buchanan and Walter Williams on the meaning and importance of the Constitution. But that’s just the tip of the iceberg. They cover lots of additional material, including spending limits, tax reform, and free trade.
For what it’s worth, my favorite part of the conversation is about how markets are mutually beneficial, whereas government is a zero-sum, or negative-sum game.
Let’s close with a celebration of the great American tradition of civil disobedience against the state.
Sadly, with the likely exception of gun owners, we no longer seem to have the same ornery attitude as our ancestors. Though Charles Murray has a plan to recreate a culture of civil disobedience.
P.S. Here’s a first-hand account of what patriotism means.
[…] of America’s best presidents, Calvin Coolidge, had a great explanation of Independence Day. But this video from Kite and Key also is worth […]
[…] of America’s best presidents, Calvin Coolidge, had a great explanation of Independence Day. But this video from Kite and Key also is worth […]
[…] that government was a force for good (unlike America’s Founders, who gave us a Constitution based on the notion that government was a threat to liberty and needed to be […]
[…] that government was a force for good (unlike America’s Founders, who gave us a Constitution based on the notion that government was a threat to liberty and needed to be […]
[…] I also can’t resist suggesting that you watch Walter’s conversation with his Nobel Prize-winning colleague, Jim […]
[…] Day, I’m going to continue my tradition (see 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, and 2020) of authoring a July 4-themed […]
[…] Day, I’m going to continue my tradition (see 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, and 2020) of authoring a July 4-themed […]
[…] you should also see what he said in 1926, when celebrating the 150th anniversary of America’s […]
[…] you should also see what he said in 1926, when celebrating the 150th anniversary of America’s […]
[…] I’ve never considered Dwight Eisenhower to be a great president like Reagan or Coolidge, but he made a similar point about prison being an ideal leftist […]
[…] the way, I’ve never considered Dwight Eisenhower to be a great president like Reagan or Coolidge, but he made a similar point about prison being an ideal leftist […]
[…] I also can’t resist suggesting that you watch Walter’s conversation with his Nobel Prize-winning colleague, Jim […]
[…] I also can’t resist suggesting that you watch Walter’s conversation with his Nobel Prize-winning colleague, Jim […]
[…] I also can’t resist suggesting that you watch Walter’s conversation with his Nobel Prize-winning colleague, Jim […]
[…] On the 150th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence, Calvin Coolidge correctly summarized the meaning of the American […]
[…] My two cents is that we should be celebrating today the words of Calvin Coolidge and Ronald […]
[…] my annual Independence Day columns, I sometimes try to make serious points, such as last year when I shared the very wise words of Calvin Coolidge, who is probably America’s most-underappreciated […]
[…] my annual Independence Day columns, I sometimes try to make serious points, such as last year when I shared the very wise words of Calvin Coolidge, who is probably America’s most-underappreciated […]
Happy 4th.
Thank you for the wonderful Coolidge speech. While written less than 100 years ago, its vocabulary seems to be that of different language. That is how far our English has degraded.
I wish I could force Diane Feinstein to read every word of the speech. It would pain her immensely and please me infinitely.
She might learn that the moral foundation of the Constitution is, in her words,
‘dogma’. That is her label for religion. Dogma. That is the word she tried to tar Amy Barrett with during the latter’s confirmation hearings.
Dogma.
There was another Senator who tried and failed to trip Amy Barrett.
Frinkin? Frunken? Franken?
Where is he now?
On second thought, Feinstein is beyond help.
[…] https://danieljmitchell.wordpress.com/2018/07/04/calvin-coolidge-the-declaration-of-independence-and… […]