Put down your barbecued burger and your beer for just a minute this weekend and think about what the 4th of July is all about. It’s the day the US declared it’s independence from Britian two hundred twenty nine years ago and the concept of Democracy was born. The principles of this new radical form of government are laid out in the Declaration of Independence. When I read it online I was amazed at how much of it applies today and realized that the time has come to enforce it. If we don’t live by it, we aren’t living it.

When you read it, it’s plain and simple what the founding fathers were talking about. “Life, liberty and the pusuit of happiness”. A life free of government intrusion. The liberty to pursue whatever lifestyle or belief system we prefer. Happiness will generally follow if you have the first two. Several other passages caught my eye- “That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness”. Since 1776, this has never applied more. Consider the gangsters that are in power now. The level of ethics and honesty is beyond reprehensible. Never before has corporate America had more influence than the voters over our “elected” representatives. “Deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed”. Votes don’t matter anymore. Don’t bother to write or call or email. No one is listening. When you can rig the vote, people don’t count anymore. “But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future security”. It’s time to do our duty.

Further on in the Declaration, the writers list specific charges against King George III of Great Britain [the name is just too coincidental]. See if the following rings any bells-

• “He is at this time transporting large Armies of foreign Mercenaries to complete the works of death, desolation and tyranny, already begun with circumstances of cruelty and perfidy scarcely paralleled in the most barbarous ages, and totally unworthy the Head of a civilized nation”.
• “He has affected to render the Military independent of and superior to the Civil power”.
• “For imposing Taxes on us without our Consent”.
• “He has plundered our seas, ravaged our Coasts, burnt our towns, and destroyed the lives of our people”.

Many other charges are leveled, most being specific to the circumstances at the time, but it’s plain to see that the authors were fed up and refused to live any longer under the King’s rule. “In every stage of these Oppressions We have Petitioned for Redress in the most humble terms. Our repeated Petitions have been answered only by repeated injury”. Then, as now, the government had stopped listening to the will of the people.

OK- you can go back to the burgers and beer. But keep in mind what it costs to have the freedom to observe the Fourth and every other day as you see fit. Will you do what it takes to keep that freedom for yourself and your kids and their kids? The Founding Fathers did.

NEW YORK, May 23, 2013 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ – Calls by Britain, France and Germany for the European Union (EU) to formally designate the “military wing” of Hezbollah a terrorist organization are an important first step to impose EU sanctions on the Lebanon-based, Iranian-supported group.

SAN DIEGO and WARRENDALE, Pa., May 23, 2013 /PRNewswire/ – Shareholder rights attorneys at Robbins Arroyo LLP are investigating the acquisition of rue21, inc. (NASDAQ: RUE) by funds advised by the private equity firm Apax Partners.  On May 23, 2013, the companies announced the signing of a definitive merger agreement under which Apax Partners will acquire all outstanding shares of rue21 for $42 per share in cash.  Robbins Arroyo LLP’s investigation concerns, among other things, whether the merger was motivated by any improper conflicts of interest since Apax Partners is already rue21′s largest shareholder and two principals of Apax Partners sit on rue21′s board of directors, including John F. Megrue, Jr. and Alex Pellegrini .  

SUGAR LAND, Texas, May 23, 2013 /PRNewswire/ — Coffeyville Resources Refining & Marketing, LLC (CRRM) does not agree with the characterization of either the company or the settlement it reached with EPA, which was announced in a recent U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Region 7 press release. CRRM entered into a settlement with the EPA to resolve claims under the EPA’s risk management program (RMP).

• More than half of homeowners report having less debt than they did 12 months ago.
• Most want to be debt-free by retirement, but many aren’t confident they’ll succeed
• Those who get debt management advice from their financial advisor are more confident they’ll be debt-free in retirement
• Few homeowners plan to tap into home equity for retirement income

C$ unless otherwise stated
TSX/NYSE/PSE: MFC
SEHK:945

ALEXANDRIA, Va., May 22, 2013 /PRNewswire/ – Viral hepatitis is an asymptomatic disease affecting more than 5.3 million Americans. More than 75 percent of those with hepatitis C are unaware they have the virus.

BAKU, Aserbaidschan, May 21, 2013 /PRNewswire/ –

Commitment to ongoing work with other forestry companies remains strong

OTTAWA, May 21, 2013 /CNW/ – On the third anniversary of the signing of the historic Canadian Boreal Forest Agreement (CBFA), environmental signatories are suspending further work with Resolute Forest Products. They remain committed to continuing their work with other signatory companies to plan for protection of critical Boreal woodland caribou habitat and sustainable forest management practices.

CINCINNATI, May 20, 2013 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ – Today, Citizens for Self-Governance (CSG), an organization founded by the co-founder and former National Coordinator for Tea Party Patriots, Mark Meckler , announced that CSG is assisting local groups, led by the NorCal Tea Party, in filing class action litigation which includes requests for damages against the IRS for illegal and harassing behavior in the handling and processing of their applications for non-profit status.

WASHINGTON, May 20, 2013 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ — Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service (LIRS) opposes attempts to amend the Senate immigration reform bill, S. 744, in ways that would undermine America’s global leadership in protecting refugees.