In a few days, on the 4th of July, millions of Americans will light their Bar-B-Q, watch a parade, or set off fireworks. Polls show most Americans don't really know why we do these things. Nearly half don't know that the day is called "Independence Day." Of those who do, a large percentage don't know the answer to the question, "From whom?" A bare majority know that we fought a war, the "War for Independence," but again, a distressingly large number don't know who we fought. One respondent answered, "The Federacy," perhaps reflecting the views of a large number of Americans who think "Independence Day" has something to do with slavery in the South.
If the men who signed the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776 could visit America in 2006, they would be horrified, then angered. And they would be particularly upset to find that those who celebrated Independence Day on July 4th would show up to the polls in November to vote for dependence, taxation without representation, and politicians who are far more tyrannical than the Red Coats were.