Happy Fourth.
ON my way out to celebrate this afternoon.
Pool,barbie,what else do we have.LOL
So,I leave you with this note.

Some things are traditional on the Fourth of July, the anniversary of that day in 1776 when the Declaration of Independence was made public by the Continental Congress. Among them are gratitude for the service of those defending this nation and prayers for their safekeeping, parades, fireworks and patriotic speeches, and thanks for those who created what Abraham Lincoln called "the last, best hope of Earth."

It's a time for barbecues, corn on the cob and, in some quarters, the reading of the Declaration that includes the immortal words, "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain Inalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness."

We would like to see a new tradition begin on July 4. We would like it become a day of celebration and for taking an accounting of the state of democracy in America. To win credence, the assessments should be as objective and impartial as humanity permits. It would be a time for the nation's historians and constitutional scholars to weigh in, not its political parties and their partisans.

There findings would no doubt vary, but it would be of great value nonetheless, if only to discover how disparate the views of freedom are at this juncture in our history.

How do we, as students, not scholars, see the state of American democracy on July 4, 2008? It clearly remains the best hope of Earth. But inherent in that hope is the knowledge that we can do more, be better, fairer, happier and enjoy more liberty. In 2008, we see the glass as more than half-full, but the level of liberty and happiness is lower than it once was, should be and could be.

Democracy has suffered setbacks in recent years. We've seen a president assume powers he doesn't have, one who cites "national security" at the drop of the hat to incarcerate people indefinitely without a trial, invade the privacy of the citizenry and render all but void laws of the land to which he and his administration object. Worse, perhaps, the Congress that was designed to serve as a check on unbridled executive power often failed in that regard.

We believe democracy has been increasingly subverted by money that allows the interest of a wealthy few to prevail over the interests of the many. But we've also seen money raised in the most democratic fashion in memory in the form of contributions via the internet by millions of ordinary Americans. That is heartening.

We believe democracy is more endangered than it once was by the diminishment of newspapers and other forms of gathering and disseminating information that citizens can consider reliable, responsible and, generally, quite accurate. Democracy depends on an active citizenry informed by facts not propaganda.

Despite this middling assessment, we are optimistic. Participation in the political process and voter turnout was exceptionally high throughout the presidential primaries, and it should increase in the fall. That is very good for democracy indeed.