The Declaration of Independence was approved today on the Fourth of July 1776 by the Continental Congress. Benjamin Franklin, John Adams, Thomas Jefferson, Roger Sherman and Robert R. Livingston comprised the Committee of Five that drafted the enduring manuscript. Jefferson, rightly regarded as the clearest, most eloquent writer, drafted most of what remains one of our core documents.
Then, 13 colonies embarked on a distinguished experiment in self-governance as an independent, autonomous nation. That was the foundation of something immense and thus far enduring. The colonies had but 2.5 million people at the time reporting English and other ancestry. Small numbers in today’s world, but they were people with far bigger aspirations, people – refugees or immigrants, lettered or illiterate who were fleeing or had escaped from religious and political persecution. Biggest of all was an idea that led to ideals that most of us still aspire to uphold in our conduct.
On our latest Fourth of July, we unfortunately, find some of our beliefs as outlined in the U.S. Constitution once again under attack by tyrants from the Royalty of Riches that makes its own laws in defiance of our binding pledge to “We the people.” This is hardly a perfect union.
Yet we are who we were – people who would stand and fight against oppression. People whose collective ideals are greater than any tawdry character inhabiting the environs of the Potomac.
In more complacent or somnolent times, we would just have parades honor of our founding fathers and principals. Now we need protest instead. Today we need to renew our faith in their courage, ability to endure hardships beyond Valley Forge and face vast unknowns with a fighting can-do spirit. They battled and died for freedom from an oppressive Crown.
The larger issue remains an amorphous U.S. government conducted and, alas, directed in Washington by big money interests that care not about the health and welfare of the United States or its citizens. Let alone our core principals.
Today – once again we the people need to march relentlessly and battle for our independence after the celebrations, parades, ballgames and fireworks are over. We are already doing so. We need once again to rid ourselves of what has evolved ironically – into a ruling class of our own home-grown tyrants, bigots, racists and traitors who collude with other oppressive governments. We have progressed from 2.5 million people to more than 325 million with a gross domestic product of more than $19 trillion – an unimaginable number of teabags for a big protest not to clutter Boston Harbor but the halls of Congress today.
Note well the resounding words of our Constitution’s preamble – WE THE PEOPLE. Therefore, WE now need to toss out of office or impeach the politicians who don’t understand, indeed mock, WE. These are ME con artists and sophists who are in it just for ME – even if they violate the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act or collude with the Russians for personal profit to name just a few of their outrageous actions. These are traitors who are building concentration camps for innocent children. Versions of them exist in both corrupt political parties. Moreover, we should be deporting them, or locking them up, not our latest wave of huddled masses yearning to breathe free.
Therefore, it is in this spirit that AutoInformed looks to celebrate future Independence Days after we finish another revolution. These too will be Independence Days that build on our past. But ones that constantly note a movement to an even more independent future, a stronger economy that embraces all, not just the rich and celebrates yet unknown non-summer soldiers and stormy weather patriots. There are avatars of our founders with their same honor and principals . Let us all note, let us all remember, let us all act in ways that show we too hold life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness as self-evident.
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For the first time, U.S. resettles fewer refugees than the rest of the world
The number of refugees resettled in the United States decreased more than in any other country in 2017, according to a Pew Research Center analysis of new data from the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR). This represents the first time since the adoption of the 1980 U.S. Refugee Act that the U.S. resettled fewer refugees than the rest of the world.
The U.S. has historically led the world in refugee resettlement. Since 1980, the U.S. has taken in 3 million of the more than 4 million refugees resettled worldwide.
Despite a sharp single-year decline in refugee resettlement, the U.S. still resettled more refugees (33,000) than any other one country. Following the U.S. were Canada (27,000), Australia (15,000) and the United Kingdom (6,000). Sweden, Germany, Norway and France each resettled about 3,000 refugees. Per capita, Canada led the world by resettling 725 refugees per 1 million residents, followed by Australia (618) and Norway (528). The U.S. resettled 102 refugees per 1 million U.S. residents.
Overall, the world resettled 103,000 refugees in 2017, down from 189,000 in 2016. The broad-based decline included decreases in other leading countries in refugee resettlement, such as Canada and Australia, though the drops in these countries were more modest than those in the U.S.