a creed for the modern american;
By: J. Churchill Morris
When in the Course of human events, it becomes necessary for one people to write a new Declaration of Independence as an English assignment, one must take upon himself a great responsibility of considering the ever changing society and its needs, both ubiquitous and rigid.
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. I have the right to write my own Declaration of Independence, and to use it as a platform to discuss the social injustice which bereaves me.
I have the right to start this assignment forty-five minuets before it’s due and get a lesser grade than I know I am capable of. I have the right to pay thousands and thousands of dollars for a piece of paper which may or may not prove that I am actually capable of performing the task of which that paper denotes as my profession.
I have the right to drive a large sport utility vehicle when fuel is at record high and complain about how much it cost to fill my tank. I have a right to eat fast food every day and never work out while blaming my obesity on the media and my parents. I have the right to not take responsibility for any of my actions and blame them all on extenuating circumstances.
I have the right to work really hard at becoming successful and the privilege of blessing my Government with an exorbitant amount of taxes on that success. I also have the right to make a great corporation out of a small business and then be called a monster growing and expanding to large.
I have the right to talk on my cell phone wherever and whenever I want. I have the right to be completely self absorbed and write this entire declaration about my self completely disregarding the welfare of others.
I have the right to ignore the tragedy and devastation in other parts of the world because it does not directly involve me. I have a right to blame the military for the death of its volunteers. I have the right watch my wife die a slow painful death while being consoled by another woman. I have the right to hire excellent lawyers to defend me in a court of law and prove my innocence.
I have the right to put an early stop to pregnancy so as to ensure the continuity of my own happiness. I have the right to mentally stereotype people without every meeting them base purely on their appearance, and get upset when the same is done to me. I have a right to sit back and watch while the country I live in destroys itself through the sins of excess. I have rights.
--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 these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to 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 their Safety and Happiness
