The Fourth of July is my favorite holiday. There is no better birthday than to celebrate the continued life of what was conceived as a great experiment 234 years ago. We’ve come a long way in 234 years….

A quick refresher of the opening preamble of the Constitution of the United States:

We the people of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.

Some Amendments we hear about daily – at least in Texas – right the bear arms, freedom of speech, but what about some lesser known amendments to spice up your conversation today . . .

10th Amendment:

The powers not delegated to the United Statesby the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people.

16th Amendment:

The Congress shall have power to lay and collect taxes on income, from whatever source derived, without apportionment among the several States, and without regard to any census or enumeration.

Nothing beats our Declaration of Independence for stirring sentiments.

WHEN in the Course of human Events, it becomes necessary for one People to dissolve the Political Bands which have connected them with another, and to assume among the Powers of the Earth, the separate and equal Station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature’s God entitle them, a decent Respect to the Opinions of Mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to Separation.

WE hold these Truths to be self-evident, that all Men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness – That to secure these Rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just Powers from the Consent of the Governed, that whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of the Ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or 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 thier Safety and Happiness.

That is one long, meaty sentence. For my GMAT students, imagine seeing that one underlined…. Notice the parallel structure.

Enjoy!

Remember, we created this country and it is up to us to keep it alive and well. It is a choice we make each day.

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Yesterday I had the opportunity to be reamed for my opinions about the current state of affairs. It was a sorry little conversation that got out of hand before it even started. Actually, now that I think about it, I never did get to share my opinions . . . my opinions were inserted for me.

“You’re part of the vast right wing conspiracy!”

Whoa. What?

“Uh, hi, I’m actually somewhere in the middle, but if you are way on the left, I suppose I do look like I’m on the right . . . you know from a physical perspective and all.”

My attempt at cheeky humor fell flat. It was like walking into a field with landmines.

It is unfortunate that our political discourse has devolved to the point that folks scream at each other. But perhaps the most offensive bit I get from those who believe me to be right yet wrong . . . they vindicate themselves with the “fact” that the rest of the world disagrees with America.

Really?

In my travels I get to speak with ordinary people in developing countries and I get to speak with folks in well developed countries. Here’s what I have seen.

Ordinary folks have a perception about our president (whomever that is at the time) and then they have a perception about our country. And, by and large, the perception when W was in office was . . . wait for it,

Positive.

Say what you will, I’m just reporting here.

Now, on the flip side, those who were well heeled, well traveled and well educated felt that . . .

America is a-okay.

In other words, in my travels: China, Japan, Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, Hong Kong (it’ll always be HK to me), Greece, Cyprus, Turkey, Italy, Germany, UK and Argentina, the folks I met in big cities and in small cities by and large thought W was okay (but not great) and that America was still kicking butt and taking names.

Nice. So why don’t we hear that?

Here are some comics that have been published in papers in Australia. I am not aware of the distribution in the US. Glenn McCoy publishes stateside and can be found on mycomicspages.com (not that I have an account or anything). If you wonder how others may perceive the US, check these out.

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This is Democracy in Action! Adorable grandmother, Moni McCaslin, took to the streets to protest health care reform.

Agree or disagree, at least we finally have Americans engaged in some sort of dialog.

Feisty Grandmother takes to the streets

This particular grandmother is mine.

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