5 ms·

See quotes? See Declaration of Independence. For anyone who hasn't read the full document in a while, a close read probably the best way you could spend the nex

by Towle_ 16y ago

See quotes? See Declaration of Independence. For anyone who hasn't read the full document in a while, a close read probably the best way you could spend the next 10 minutes of your life. http://www.ushistory.org/declaration/document/index.htm http://www.ushistory.org/declaration/document/index.htm (maxharris2: just in case clarification is necessary, let the record show that my rhetorical "counterpoint" should be read as a literal "hell yeah!")

julius_geezer 16y ago
OK, provided that we are clear on the distinction between state rights and individual ones as understood today. Most of the colonies went into the revolution with established churches; all states but Massachusetts reached the first census with slavery legal.
eru 16y ago
> For anyone who hasn't read the full document in a while, a close read probably the best way you could spend the next 10 minutes of your life. Why? What makes the U.S. special?
- riffraff 16y ago
  I was going to jest "the pursuit of happiness!". Then, a little investigation proved that it is, ironically, also in the declaration of indipendence Ho Chi Min wrote for the democratic republic of vietnam. Well, I'm OT but I felt it was interesting to share this :)
  - hammerdr 16y ago
    It's not ironic. Ho Chi Min was literally inspired by the United States. It's a tragedy that we (the US) and Ho Chi Min became enemies. I'm not a proponent of communism, but Ho Chi Min's Vietnam could have had great potential due to his charisma, knowledge and 'founder' status among his own people.
    - arethuza 16y ago
      Didn't the United States more or less have to choose between France and Vietnam as allies?
- count 16y ago
  What other country went from 0-super power in such a short time? While it isn't necessarily the BEST or RIGHT or anything like that, I think it's pretty straight forward to claim the U.S. is 'special'.
  - eru 16y ago
    > What other country went from 0-super power in such a short time? Maybe that's a point. Though, here are some other examples of possible quick rises: Germany past 1971-unification? France after the Revolution shaked up the the country and dragged it kicking-and-screaming into the century of the fruitbat? Japan after its defeat in WWII. And of course, if only rise to super power counts, look at Britain and how they started the original industrial revolution there. (Though, what counts as "short time"?)
  - yread 16y ago
    I would say that the rise from 0 to super power was definitely fastest in Soviet Russia - look at the difference between 1921 and 1945. ...and why is that a reason to read the constitution, again?
    - eru 16y ago
      Though some of the damage born around 1921 was self-inflicted.
    - count 16y ago
      Soviet Russia was a change in government from Tzarist Russia, which was already a Big Deal in the world, not a 0 to Super Power transition. And I wasn't suggesting it was a reason to read the constitution, I was suggesting that the United States is, in fact, special. I believe the OP was referencing the Declaration of Independence, not the Constitution. Maybe it's my jaded, indoctrinated US education, but is the US Declaration of Independence not a unique document, and special on it's own? At least in our (admittedly biased) educational curriculum, it ranks up there with the Magna Carta as an important political document.
      - 16y ago

by Towle_ 16y ago

julius_geezer 16y ago

OK, provided that we are clear on the distinction between state rights and individual ones as understood today. Most of the colonies went into the revolution with established churches; all states but Massachusetts reached the first census with slavery legal.

eru 16y ago

> For anyone who hasn't read the full document in a while, a close read probably the best way you could spend the next 10 minutes of your life. Why? What makes the U.S. special?

riffraff 16y ago
I was going to jest "the pursuit of happiness!". Then, a little investigation proved that it is, ironically, also in the declaration of indipendence Ho Chi Min wrote for the democratic republic of vietnam. Well, I'm OT but I felt it was interesting to share this :)
- hammerdr 16y ago
  It's not ironic. Ho Chi Min was literally inspired by the United States. It's a tragedy that we (the US) and Ho Chi Min became enemies. I'm not a proponent of communism, but Ho Chi Min's Vietnam could have had great potential due to his charisma, knowledge and 'founder' status among his own people.
  - arethuza 16y ago
    Didn't the United States more or less have to choose between France and Vietnam as allies?
count 16y ago
What other country went from 0-super power in such a short time? While it isn't necessarily the BEST or RIGHT or anything like that, I think it's pretty straight forward to claim the U.S. is 'special'.
- eru 16y ago
  > What other country went from 0-super power in such a short time? Maybe that's a point. Though, here are some other examples of possible quick rises: Germany past 1971-unification? France after the Revolution shaked up the the country and dragged it kicking-and-screaming into the century of the fruitbat? Japan after its defeat in WWII. And of course, if only rise to super power counts, look at Britain and how they started the original industrial revolution there. (Though, what counts as "short time"?)
- yread 16y ago
  I would say that the rise from 0 to super power was definitely fastest in Soviet Russia - look at the difference between 1921 and 1945. ...and why is that a reason to read the constitution, again?
  - eru 16y ago
    Though some of the damage born around 1921 was self-inflicted.
  - count 16y ago
    Soviet Russia was a change in government from Tzarist Russia, which was already a Big Deal in the world, not a 0 to Super Power transition. And I wasn't suggesting it was a reason to read the constitution, I was suggesting that the United States is, in fact, special. I believe the OP was referencing the Declaration of Independence, not the Constitution. Maybe it's my jaded, indoctrinated US education, but is the US Declaration of Independence not a unique document, and special on it's own? At least in our (admittedly biased) educational curriculum, it ranks up there with the Magna Carta as an important political document.
    - 16y ago