HAPPY INDEPENDENCE DAY

Comments

[Jeannie]

Let me the FIRST to wish Dave a Happy 4th!

[James Carter]

We needed this Sarurday 'cause we got rain in Canada. Happy day south-type peoples!

[ZenkersDaughter]

Thanks Dave, Happy 4th!!!! I'll be waiting to hear the Darwin news after the holiday. There's usually some knucklehead that thinks shooting M-80's or bottle rockets off in their hands is a good idea.

[Mike Antonucci]

Happy 4th, everyone! Unfortunately, I'm in Orlando covering the National Education Association convention, which is the exact opposite of a fireworks display.

[Marie in Kourou]

Yes, happy 4th of July to those of you inclined to celebrate it.

I, however, will have to wait until Bastille Day, or perhaps the World Cup final, to see fireworks.

[pepe]

happy 4th to all the american-type people, n i'll wait for the world cup final for beer. (fireworks are outlawed...here)

[Cyn]

HAPPY 4TH!

[Punkin Poo]

Here in fabulously quaint Exeter, NH, we have no fireworks until the 16th - which is when a copy of the Declaration of Independence finally made it here by horseback.....stupid slow horses....

Happy 4th Everybody!!

[Meanie the Blue]

Happy Depends Co-Dependents Fourth of July, Dave, Judi, Walter, Mrs. Blog & Sophie!

[Layzeeboy]

Happy and safe 4th to everyone!

[Steve]

Happy Fourth of July Everyone!

[Theresa]

You like posting these fireworks every year. They are cute. Have a nice 4th.

[Kathybear]

Thanks for the fireworks, Dave! Have a safe and happy Fourth of July!

[FredG]

Happy fun and safe 4th to all - and check out the live webcam coverage of a July 4th neighborhood parade in a couple of hours let by the INCREDIBLE HULK! ;-)

[Kat]

Dave,
Happy 4th to you and all of your "bloggers!" You, Dave, and Uncle Sam are the real Icons of this wonderful country. (plus a few Marines, and oh, some Army guys and girls, maybe some Sailors, too. And of course, there are the "fly" guys and girls.

Sincerely,
Kat

[jt]

And remember, everyone--drinking a fifth on the fourth may stop you from going forth on the fifth...

Happy Fourth of July!

[Jazzzz]

Merry 4th everyone, don't forget why we celebrate this day!

[grandmaanne]

Happy 4th of July everyone. I am proud to be celebrating for the 93rd straight year. Now how do I get out of this window.

[Revenant]

╠╣4¶¶¥ ƒΘµΓ╦╠╣ φƒ ⌡µ£¥ !!!

To all those down south. ☺

[queensbee]

happy 4th y'all, from up here in the nawth.

[daisymae]

Happy 4th of July!

I wish I could find the movie Independence Day on cable. It's a fitting movie for July 4th.

[Annie Where-but-here]

Happy Birthday, Mr. Steinbrenner!!!

[Juggler of Geese]

We just got back from watching this
USS Constitution
Every three months this ship has a turn around cruise in Boston Harbor, But the one on the Fourth is the only one that her cannons are fired.
Cannon Fire

Watching the oldest comissioned ship in the navy afloat reminds me of our history.

[daisymae]

Yikee! I'd hate to be on that ship in a hurricane (though I'm sure there were those that were). It looks like it would turn into a pile of toothpicks if you fired the cannon...but I did see the puffs of smoke when they fired.

[WriterDude]

Here's a link for anyone who would like a visual reminder of why we celebrate today. If you click through on the image, you can snag a copy for your very own selves.

Happy 4th, everyone.

[kj]

daisymae, Indepencence Day will be on HBO on July 9th, if that helps. I think it was on yesterday, somewhere (my husband has remote palsy, the disease which prevents him from staying on any channel for more than 29 seconds).

[Jazzzz]

Thanks WriterDude. Gives you the willie-nillies just looking at it.

[daisymae]

Thanks, kj. The 9th is Sunday...(hope I'll be here)...Sunday's a good day to watch Independence Day.

[O. the U(manity)]

Happy Birthday, USA ... US ... U.S. ...

Tnx 4 the fireworks, Dave ... that's always fun ... and safer than bendin' over a minature cannon with fire in your hand, touchin' it to the fuse ... which may already be lit ...

(A kid in Fargo lost most of his hand in a mishap a few days ago ... merely mentionin' ... so, let's be careful out there ...)

[George W. Bush]

Fellow Americans,

As you know, I wished Dave Barry a Happy Birthday yesterday. Today, I wish our nation a Happy Birthday. Our nation is very old, 230 years old if you count from the Declaration of Independence. It took our founding fathers another 7 years to write a Constitution. So I'm not discouraged that Congress has not reformed Social Security or passed an immigration bill yet. Hahaha, get that? I crack myself up.

Speaking of getting old, I will be 60 on Thursday. I'm keeping it low key though, unlike Dave Barry and our country. Just a quiet celebration with close friends and family at the White House. I'm hoping Laura might get us an ice cream cake and a stripper. Haha. I had you going there...

Finally, I need to comment on a developing situation in North Korea. They have apparently launched two short range missiles and their Typo Dong interconnomomential ballistical missile. This was a grave mistake by North Korea. North Korea, I say, keep your Dong to yourself.

God bless America.

[daisymae]

Snork @ Geo. Bush

[Kim Jong Il]

Evil George W. Bush and Imperialist Americans,

We will launch missiles when we f&^%^$ feel like it. I would like to point out that our Type-O Dong missile is a universal donor Dong missile. We also have Type-A, Type-B, and Type-AB Dong missiles in our inventory.

Any attack on our country will start a nukular war against the forces of Fasicsm, Imperialism, Americanism, and anti-Dongism. The evil imperialistic Americans will feel the power of all our Dongs. Long live the Dongs.

Cordially,

Kim Jong Il
(via Radio Poon-Tang)

P.S. Evil George Bush, why did you have our long Dong shot down? This makes me very upset. I may have to have my soldiers abduct more hookers from the evil capitalist imperialists from the south to get even with you.

[puppytoes]

okay. that was fun.

[Kat]

Juggler of Geese,
I LOVED the pictures of the USS Constitution! I've painted it many times on wood. Last summer we sailed on the "Victory Chimes" out of Rockland, MA. (Another Registered Historical American Monument.
Wish I had been there, but with my ear plugs!

[Kat]

At the Boston Harbor, not on the "Victory Chimes."
(sorry, too much celebration, today. It was quite as a mouse on the "Victory," because there was no wind.)

[Kat]

Uh, oh! Quiet, not quite. It would have been nice if we had had George W. Bush on the "Victory Chimes", last summer. Then we would have had plenty of wind.

[O. the U(manity)]

Type-O, Type-A, Type-B, Type-AB ... I'm Positive that there is a Negative side to this news ...

[Rhesus Monkey]

As an authority on Rh blood typing, I can say with authority the Korean missiles are all Rh-Negative Dongs. Due to its isolation, periodic famines, and dissident killings, the gene pool of the country is quite small and all Rh-Negative. So we would expect its Dong missiles to be the same.

But bear in mind that besides the familiar A/B/O and Rh typing, there are over 35 common genetic markers in blood that can be identified. Most are useful in criminology or tracing ancestors, but some, like A/B/O and Rh factor are important in matching blood donators with recipients.

Signed,

Anonymous Rhesus Monkey

[insomniac]

We're the faithful readers of Dave Barry
A very patriotic sort of guy
A real live author and guitar playing man
Born on the fourththird of July!

He's got a Mrs. who writes sports and
A walrus oosik just for laughs
David Barry writes a column
Makes us *snork* like crazy
We are those David Barry fans!

[Cheryl]

Cool!! My flashy-macro-video-plugin dealeo decided to work on a holiday.

Happy 4th, Everybody!!

[Lisa Bisa Fo Fisa]

Happy Independence Day to all!

Happy successful shuttle launch to NASA!

Happy under-the-wire win to Italy!

[Susy Cruz]

Happy 4th of July to Dave and all!!

[Chaz (from Philly)]

Happy 5th....I was with my other fanily on the 4th but didnt want to forget the blog

[nannie]

Yeah, what Chaz said.

[zenseeker]

Happy July 4th to all of you. I just made a flash game where uncle Sam is seen throwing knives at Joe Lieberman called Back Stabbing Lieberman. Check it out at my site here: http://zenwire.com/flashmedia-lieberman.php. There are also other games there: bush rampage, bush-rice-terror, bush shootout, dancing bush and Blair and other political games as well. Feel free to comment for I plan to make more.

Anyways, back to the meaning of July 4th for my kids.

I was watching all the fireworks outside with my kids, and my 8 year old daughter asked me to explain what was Independence day all about. I gave her the story about colonial settlers under British rule and how we united with help to fight off the Brits and finally won our independence for the right to self rule. And when I told her that this is when our founding fathers wrote the Declaration of Independence, and she asked me what was that? I did not remember most of the words, but incredibly my wife did and we utter some of those magic words together. I told her that when I was a kid and read those words, I thought that they were the most beautifully written words I had ever read. And I told her that the meaning and values of that document was why I love America so much; this was the country that taught me what it meant to be equal and fair, good and just. But I also told her that half of it is no longer true, and my son, a typical Nintendo kid, interjected: “You mean, like Bush.” I did not even have to reply or convince him, somehow he already knew. In a way I should be glad that even my kids can see what is going on, but somehow I actually felt sad. Sad because they don’t know the full weight and tremendous implications of those words written so long ago. Sad because they don’t realize the power of words and the actions they can generate; and those specific words were so powerful that countless men have willingly died through the eons in their fleeting attempt to manifest and live out those words and its ideals. And sad because I grew up in a world full of idealistic ideas and enthusiasm, teaching us to not only help and improve ourselves, but all of humanity and mankind as well. Reaching the moon and back was just a small sampling of things to come. I am what I am is because of these words and it makes me sad to realize that my kids will not have these words and the absolute belief and trust in those very words (inscribed by our founding fathers) to guide and instill in them a sense of justice and equality. They know the world is not fair and they will never expect it to be fair. I have always hoped the world will be so, but I can no longer say this with a straight face to my kids that the world will be this way when they grow up or if it will ever even get any closer to those ideals; just like the moon is no longer feasible to travel to anymore, there is easy money to be made elsewhere subjugating the people of this planet.

After reading the Declaration of Independence at this site: http://www.law.indiana.edu/uslawdocs/declaration.html, it struck me that I was wrong in telling my daughter that half of it was no longer true. I actually thought that most of it is no longer true. For brevity, skipping the preamble and just going through the grievances, I saw many justifiable grievances then that equally apply to now, the year 2006. Just read them for yourselves and see how many of them our government is guilty of or in the process of taking those very same rights away. I will mark the ones I feel they are guilty of.

Guilty: He has refused his Assent to Laws, the most wholesome and necessary for the public good.
Guilty: He has forbidden his Governors to pass Laws of immediate and pressing importance, unless suspended in their operation till his Assent should be obtained; and when so suspended, he has utterly neglected to attend to them.
Guilty: He has refused to pass other Laws for the accommodation of large districts of people, unless those people would relinquish the right of Representation in the Legislature, a right inestimable to them and formidable to tyrants only.
Guilty: He has called together legislative bodies at places unusual, uncomfortable, and distant from the depository of their public Records, for the sole purpose of fatiguing them into compliance with his measures.
Guilty: He has dissolved Representative Houses repeatedly, for opposing with manly firmness his invasions on the rights of the people.
Guilty: He has refused for a long time, after such dissolutions, to cause others to be elected; whereby the Legislative powers, incapable of Annihilation, have returned to the People at large for their exercise; the State remaining in the mean time exposed to all the dangers of invasion from without, and convulsions within.
Guilty: He has endeavored to prevent the population of these States; for that purpose obstructing the Laws for Naturalization of Foreigners; refusing to pass others to encourage their migrations hither, and raising the conditions of new Appropriations of Lands.
Guilty: He has obstructed the Administration of Justice, by refusing his Assent to Laws for establishing Judiciary powers.
Guilty: He has made Judges dependent on his Will alone, for the tenure of their offices, and the amount and payment of their salaries.
He has erected a multitude of New Offices, and sent hither swarms of Officers to harass our people, and eat out their substance.
He has kept among us, in times of peace, Standing Armies without the consent of our legislatures.
Guilty: He has affected to render the Military independent of and superior to the Civil power.
Guilty: He has combined with others to subject us to a jurisdiction foreign to our constitution and unacknowledged by our laws; giving his Assent to their Acts of pretended Legislation:
Guilty: For Quartering large bodies of armed troops among us:
Guilty: For protecting them, by a mock Trial, from punishment for any Murders which they should commit on the Inhabitants of these States:
For cutting off our Trade with all parts of the world:
For imposing Taxes on us without our Consent:
Guilty: For depriving us, in many cases, of the benefits of Trial by Jury:
Guilty: For transporting us beyond Seas to be tried for pretended offences:
For abolishing the free System of English Laws in a neighboring Province, establishing therein an Arbitrary government, and enlarging its Boundaries so as to render it at once an example and fit instrument for introducing the same absolute rule into these Colonies:
Guilty: For taking away our Charters, abolishing our most valuable Laws, and altering fundamentally the Forms of our Governments:
Guilty: For suspending our own Legislatures, and declaring themselves invested with power to legislate for us in all cases whatsoever.
He has abdicated Government here, by declaring us out of his Protection and waging War against us.
Guilty: He has plundered our seas, ravaged our Coasts, burnt our towns, and destroyed the lives of our people.
Guilty: He is at this time transporting large Armies of foreign Mercenaries to compleat 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.
Guilty: He has constrained our fellow Citizens taken Captive on the high Seas to bear Arms against their Country, to become the executioners of their friends and Brethren, or to fall themselves by their Hands.
Guilty: He has excited domestic insurrections amongst us, and has endeavoured to bring on the inhabitants of our frontiers, the merciless Indian Savages, whose known rule of warfare, is an undistinguished destruction of all ages, sexes and conditions.
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. A Prince whose character is thus marked by every act which may define a Tyrant, is unfit to be the ruler of a free people.
Nor have We been wanting in attentions to our British brethren. We have warned them from time to time of attempts by their legislature to extend an unwarrantable jurisdiction over us. We have reminded them of the circumstances of our emigration and settlement here. We have appealed to their native justice and magnanimity, and we have conjured them by the ties of our common kindred to disavow these usurpations, which, would inevitably interrupt our connections and correspondence. They too have been deaf to the voice of justice and of consanguinity. We must, therefore, acquiesce in the necessity, which denounces our Separation, and hold them, as we hold the rest of mankind, Enemies in War, in Peace Friends.

Ok that is enough for Independence day, and be sure to chech out all the political games at http://zenwire.com
Take Care,
Zenseeker