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CAMP TAJI, Iraq, July 6, 2008 – Although soldiers here didn't have a traditional Independence Day celebration, they made the most of the time they had celebrating with new friends -- soldiers of the Iraq Army -- during a series of athletic competitions to commemorate America's Independence Day. U.S. soldiers from 3rd Platoon Company B, 1st Battalion, 27th Infantry Regiment, 2nd Stryker Brigade Combat Team, Multi-National Division-Baghdad, help their teammates climb a wall during the one-mile steeple chase. The soldiers competed in the Borzoi Squad Competition at Joint Security Station Sheik Amir, northwest of Baghdad, to celebrate Independence Day...

KABUL, Afghanistan, July 6, 2008 – U.S. servicemembers assigned to the Combined Security Transition Command-Afghanistan celebrated America's 232nd Independence Day in the traditional way, but in a non-traditional setting. A soldier prepares to shoot a jump shot during the three-on-three basketball tournament held at Camp Eggers in Kabul, AfghanistanJuly 4, 2008. Servicemembers participated in a myriad of traditional Fourth of July events including a horseshoe tournament, dunk tank and a pie-eating contest. Defense Dept. photo by Petty Officer 1st Class Shawn Graham, USN  (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available. Serving thousands of miles away from home in a warzone,...

Not until a year after Lexington did the Continental Congress muster the resolve to declare the 13 colonies free and independent states, no longer subject to Parliament or Crown. Not for five years after July 4, 1776, did George Washington's army truly attain America's independence at Yorktown. Even then, Washington and his aide Alexander Hamilton knew that the 13 states, while politically independent, were dependent upon Europe for the necessities of their national life. Without French ships and guns, French muskets and troops, the Americans could not have forced Gen. Cornwallis' surrender at Yorktown. Cornwallis would have sailed away, as...

Even though the July 4th holiday has passed, it's still important to remember what it truly means. Today's "Geeks On Caffeine" cartoon delves into history just a bit, but also takes a brief look at...um...lingere? See for yourself! NOTE: The author requests that you please visit the web site and not copy the cartoon into this thread. Thanks!

Just a point that I believe worth making. In Congress on July 4th, 1776 the vote to declare independence was 12 - 0. While some might call that unanimous, actually the delegates from the state of new york abstained. So there were no "No" votes, but the State of New York did not stand up and make it 13 -0, they were cowardly.

When in the Course of human events it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature's God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation. 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,...

The Nugent family celebrates Independence Day every day of the year. If you spend as much time as we do sharing campfires, both literally and figuratively, with the hero warriors of the United States Military, you can’t help but deeply appreciate and absolutely cherish the freedoms and liberties so unique here in America that is guaranteed us by the sacrifices made by these amazing, courageous men and women. Working for years now with various charities dedicated to wounded military heroes, we get to see first hand their battle scarred bodies, mutilated and missing limbs, burned flesh and horrible injuries of...

The Americans Who Risked Everything My father, Rush H. Limbaugh, Jr., delivered this oft-requested address locally a number of times, but it had never before appeared in print until it appeared in The Limbaugh Letter. My dad was renowned for his oratory skills and for his original mind; this speech is, I think, a superb demonstration of both. I will always be grateful to him for instilling in me a passion for the ideas and lives of America's Founders, as well as a deep appreciation for the inspirational power of words which you will see evidenced here: "Our Lives, Our...

On this Fourth of July of our discontent — with spiraling fuel prices, a sluggish economy, a weak dollar, mounting foreign and domestic debt, continuing costs in Iraq, a falling stock market, and a mortgage crisis — we should remember two truths about America. First, the United States remains the most free and affluent country in the history of civilization. Second, almost all our problems are lapses of complacency, remain relatively easily correctable, and pale in comparison to past crises. By almost any barometer, the United States remains the most fortunate country in the world. We continue to be the...

It was just a mere 232 years ago that 56 men put their pen to parchment and signed the Declaration of Independence. With the possible exception of the American Constitution, drafted in 1787, the Declaration of Independence is our most important founding document. Its revolutionary words set the course for our revolutionary nation. "We hold these truths to be self-evident," the document declares, "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 – That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted...

“And for the support of this Declaration, with a firm Reliance on the Protection of divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes, and our sacred Honor.” Thus wrote our Founders 232 years ago in the most revolutionary and radical document ever written by man, consisting of a mere 1,337 words. But what does the flowery rhetoric I emphasized above really mean. Were they just words artfully crafted together, or were they words that bore tragic, predictable consequences for those who signed their names to the document they were contained in? What did they cost the...

IN CONGRESS, July 4, 1776. The unanimous Declaration of the thirteen united States of America, When in the Course of human events, it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another, and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature's God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation. We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that...

President Calvin Coolidge speaking on the occasion of the 150th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence, Philadelphia, Pa.: Governments do not make ideals, but ideals make governments. This is both historically and logically true. Of course the government can help to sustain ideals and can create institutions through which they can be the better observed, but their source by their very nature is in the people. The people have to bear their own responsibilities. There is no method by which that burden can be shifted to the government. It is not the enactment, but the observance of laws, that creates...

America’s cities and towns will soon fill with parades, fireworks, and barbecues in celebration of the Fourth of July, the 232nd birthday of America. But one hopes that the speeches will contain fewer bromides and more attention to exactly what is being celebrated. The Fourth of July is Independence Day, but America’s leaders and intellectuals have been trying to move us further and further away from the meaning of Independence Day, away from the philosophy that created this country. What we hear is that independence is outdated, that we’ve reached a new age of “interdependence.” Our presidential candidates call for...

“ A Constitution of Government once changed from Freedom, can never be restored. Liberty, once lost, is lost forever,” John Adams. As we move into another election year, the term Revolutionary Republicanism comes to mind. This political mindset separated America from the rest of the world before, during, and after the Revolutionary War. There was boldness unmatched throughout history to create the most powerful Republic on earth through this new political philosophy.

This is a powerful piece on what politicians have been saying about energy for 30 years! This is a fantastic video of a montage of politicians and their promises about energy and energy independence. Wow... nothing has change except the price of oil. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tWZ_4EXeyaA

What does it mean to be an American? What does our nation really stand for? Why, even though some people around the world claim to hate us, are we still the place where so many from so many other places dream of living? There’s no doubt that God has blessed the United States of America in an awesome way, and that he continues to do so. But with so much anti-Christian spin dominating our secular media and educational institutions, many Americans today might not realize that the U.S.A. was founded by men who unashamedly relied on God for his wisdom...

As Robert Zubrin, author of the best-selling Energy Victory: Winning the War on Terror by Breaking Free of Oil, puts it: “OPEC will clear $1.5 trillion in net export profits this year. The entire worth of the US Fortune 500 is $18 trillion. So at their current rate of looting, OPEC will accumulate enough cash to buy majority control of the entire Fortune 500 within 6 years.” As outrageous as the present pass may seem with the price of oil at over $140 per barrel, U.S. and foreign capital markets are being rocked by the prospect that there is –...

What does the 4th of July mean to you? Over the time I have been aware of who we are as a nation I have been asked from time to time just what it means to celebrate the 4th of July. It’s not just the mantra of the birth of a new nation. It’s not the just another weekend to get drunk, party, BBQ, and take advantage of the time off. It has to have a deeper meaning, one that resonates from the past and looks to the future.For me, there was an awareness at the age of 8 about...

So…On this week in which we celebrate the birth of our nation and the liberties and freedoms which our predecessors have fought so hard to uphold, I bring you a simple message; a reminder and a warning from our First President and the man who was charged with uniting and building this great nation...

What follows is Thomas Jefferson's original draft of the Declaration of Independence from his Autobiography. A good portion of the text was deleted or changed by the Congressional delegates; these deletions are indicated by brackets (the last two paragraphs, Jefferson's original and Congress's version are presented side by side in Jefferson's text and here); changes made by Congress are also in brackets but are clearly marked. It was very important to Jefferson that he preserve his original document alongside the version eventually signed. Why? What are the significant differences? What do you make of these deletions? In the second paragraph,...

This is Carolina Day, the 232nd anniversary of the Battle of Fort Sullivan. If you are not a native of South Carolinian (and possibly even if you are), you likely have never heard of Fort Sullivan and the significance of this day. Most American school children have heard stirring stories of the battles of Concord Bridge and Lexington Green, relatively minor skirmishes fought by the Minutemen of Revolutionary lore. These were fought in April 1775, and at Concord Bridge was fired the "shot heard 'round the world." But it was at an unfinished, palmetto-log fort on Sullivan's Island where the...

LONDON (Reuters) - The owner of a tiny island in off Scotland declared its independence from the United Kingdom on Saturday, saying he wanted the territory, population one, to be a crown dependency like the Channel Islands. In a declaration on his Web site, Stuart Hill, who owns the 2.5 acre island of Forvik in the Shetland Islands in the North Sea, said he no longer recognised the authority of the government or the European Union, and cited a centuries-old royal marriage dowry deal as the basis for his claim. "Forvik owes no allegiance to any United Kingdom government, central...

I’ve been increasingly absorbed into solving the world’s energy problems for the past six months. Almost every week I am surprised at the depth of this problem. The more I look at it; the problem just doesn’t get easier. But I believe that within this problem lies a magnificent opportunity for our nation, and the world. The title my my talk “Nanotechnology, Energy and People” has the word “people” in it; and the more I’ve gotten into this, the more I think it is mostly a people problem. Let me just jump to the chase here and tell you what...

NEW YORK (AP) -- Crude oil futures hit a record close to $140 a barrel Monday as the dollar weakened against the euro. Retail gas prices rose to a record $4.08 a gallon. Light, sweet crude for July delivery rose to $139.89 before retreating to trade up $3.62 at $138.48 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Many investors buy commodities such as oil as a hedge against inflation when the dollar falls. Also, a weaker dollar makes oil less expensive to investors dealing in other currencies. Many analysts believe the dollar's protracted decline is a major factor behind...

The UN secretary-general, Ban Ki-moon, today brushed aside furious Russian protests and downgraded the UN mission in Kosovo to allow the European Union to launch its most ambitious foreign project. Ban announced the "reconfiguration" of the nine-year-old UN mission on the eve of the Kosovo authorities enacting a constitution for an independent state which is fiercely opposed by Russia and Serbia. Russia responded by demanding the sacking of the UN chief in Kosovo, Joachim Ruecker of Germany, accusing him of working to sabotage his own mission. The Russian foreign ministry said Ruecker's conduct was "scandalous obstinacy which should be decisively...

Wednesday, June 4, 2008 Iran commits to 7 refineries in bid to end exports NICOSIA — Iran plans to construct seven oil refineries in an effort to achieve energy self-sufficiency. A senior Iranian official said the refineries would increase capacity by more than 1.5 million barrels per day and end gasoline exports. The official said all seven refineries would begin operations by 2012, Middle East Newsline reported. "The construction of seven refineries has started with the investment of 15 billion euro," National Iranian Oil Refining and Distribution Co. director Aminollah Eskandari said. "About 1.56 million barrels will be added...

More than 100,000 Palestinian refugees living in Lebanon are expected to march toward the border with Israel on May 14 in the context of the Palestinian Authority's plan to mark the 60th anniversary of the establishment of Israel, PA officials told The Jerusalem Post Thursday. The PA leadership has, meanwhile, announced that it would boycott any world leader who arrived in Israel to participate in the anniversary celebrations. The officials said the boycott would be a temporary action, adding that the Palestinians would not receive the guests in the Palestinian territories during their visits to Israel. The PA ambassador to...

AUSTIN, Texas — A newly created microbe produces cellulose that can be turned into ethanol and other biofuels, report scientists from The University of Texas at Austin who say the microbe could provide a significant portion of the nation's transportation fuel if production can be scaled up.Along with cellulose, the cyanobacteria developed by Professor R. Malcolm Brown Jr. and Dr. David Nobles Jr. secrete glucose and sucrose. These simple sugars are the major sources used to produce ethanol. "The cyanobacterium is potentially a very inexpensive source for sugars to use for ethanol and designer fuels," says Nobles, a research associate...

I and many others, have been growing more and angry at the main stream media’s total lack of interest in what could be the important development in energy production the last 100 years. I am referring to Researcher J.C. Bell and his company, Bell Bio-Energy. To quote the source article below: “After three years of clandestine development, a Georgia company is now going public with a simple, natural way to convert anything that grows out of the Earth into oil." Yes, you read it right, anything.....anything that grows in the earth: All matter of plant refuge from plants and cities:...

Scots, who helped inspire such an ideal in the first place, are debating whether to reach for it again. There are few more-cherished American ideals than independence. With the recent celebration of Tartan Day, established as April 6 by a U.S. Senate resolution in 1998 to commemorate one of the inspirations for the Declaration of Independence -- Scotland's Declaration of Arbroath -- it is as good a time as any to tell the uniquely Scottish story of independence. In 1320, Scots penned the Declaration of Arbroath. In lines that would echo through the ages, they wrote, "It is in truth...

Russia and the West could be headed for a showdown over independence claims of two breakaway regions in Georgia. It was a symbolic gesture that observers hope to carry the potential for a detente between Russia and Georgia: On Tuesday, the first Georgian passenger plane in 18 months touched down at Moscow's Domodedovo Airport, with the plane's pilot smiling and waving into photographers' cameras. The trip ended a travel embargo by Moscow that was put in place in October 2006 to protest Tbilisi's arrest of four suspected Russian spies. While Georgia's foreign minister praised the move as a "positive step,"...

Hillary Clinton calls President Bush's talks with the Saudis about increasing oil output "pathetic." But it's not as pathetic as her co-president husband locking up billions of tons of clean coal in exchange for political contributions. As Bush wrapped up his Middle East trip, Sen. Clinton commented: "President Bush is over in the Gulf now begging the Saudis and others to drop the price of oil. How pathetic." A large part of America's energy dependence on foreign sources can be traced to Sept. 18, 1996, when President Bill Clinton stood on the edge of the Grand Canyon on the Arizona...

While watching the CBC national news last Monday evening, I heard about Kosovo's unilateral declaration of independence from Serbia, and the next day I read the same news in the Whig-Standard. In addition, the CBC's Politics show broadcasted comments by a Parti Quebecois member of Quebec's National Assembly who was delighted about Kosovo's declaration of independence, and Montenegro's earlier declaration of independence, from Serbia. This Quebec politician suggested that these two events set precedents for the future separation of Quebec from Canada. It appears that people have a very short memory about the history of the former Yugoslavia. The independence...

WASHINGTON -- The Turkish government briefed the Bush administration about its plans to strike northern Iraq well in advance of launching the controversial operation and the U.S. raised no objections, according to American and Turkish officials. Turkish representatives told U.S. diplomatic and military officials that Ankara was planning to send ground troops into Iraq to strike targets belonging to the Kurdish Workers Party, or PKK, an anti-Turkish guerilla group, according to officials from both countries. Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan personally told President Bush about the plans, the officials said. The White House confirmed the conversation occurred. "In terms of...

A new country limped onto the world's stage on Feb. 17. It is Kosovo. And, true to its Balkan heritage, Kosovo is a problem for most of Europe and Russia. It is also a problem for the United States, which is expected to recognize Kosovo, though mutedly. Kosovo's declaration of independence from Serbia has infuriated Russia, which immediately called for an emergency session of the United Nations Security Council. Some European countries, including Cyprus, Romania and Slovakia, have told the European Union that they will not recognize Kosovo – in essence a successful separatist movement in Europe.

PRISTINA (Reuters) - Kosovo Albanians will proclaim independence from Serbia on Sunday, ending a long chapter in the bloody breakup of Yugoslavia but cementing a bitter ethnic frontline in the Balkans. Kosovo will be the 6th state carved from the Serb-dominated federation since 1991, after Slovenia, Croatia, Macedonia, Bosnia and Montenegro, and the last to escape Serbia's embrace. The Serbs vow never to give up the land where their history goes back 1,000 years. They will reject independence in defiance of the Albanians and their Western backers and will keep their grip on strongholds in northern Kosovo, making the ethnic...

Thank you all for that remarkable welcome.  I’m deeply, deeply grateful, and Callista and I are delighted to be back here once again at the most important single meeting of the conservative movement in a historic time.  <Applause>  Many of you know that my background includes being a teacher, and I am going to try in the next few minutes to offer a little bit of a lesson.  My Dad was a career soldier, served 27 years in the infantry, and when I was very young, he convinced me that leadership and courage and a willingness to think deeply...

Thank you all for that remarkable welcome.  I’m deeply, deeply grateful, and Callista and I are delighted to be back here once again at the most important single meeting of the conservative movement in a historic time.  <Applause>  Many of you know that my background includes being a teacher, and I am going to try in the next few minutes to offer a little bit of a lesson.  My Dad was a career soldier, served 27 years in the infantry, and when I was very young, he convinced me that leadership and courage and a willingness to think deeply...

BELGRADE -- The government has information suggesting that Hashim Thaci will declare Kosovo independence on February 17. In talks with EU High Representative Javier Solana’s adviser Stefan Lene, Kosovo Minister Slobodan Samardžić said that the EU could not expect Serbia to sign off Kosovo’s independence, right before a unilateral declaration of Kosovo independence, said the Kosovo Ministry. At this moment in time, by signing any sort of agreement with the EU, Serbia would be giving its consent and justification to creating a fake state on its territory, Samardžić reiterated, adding that Prime Minister Vojislav Koštunica “will not sign such an...

American politicians are elected periodically to make sure that America remains a free and independent nation. But, based on recent national television reports and recent magazine articles, apparently some of America’s elected officials are attempting to destroy the greatest nation in the world from inside its own borders. If they succeed, the citizens of the United States will lose some of their rights, freedoms, and, of course, their national sovereignty. What is the rationale for doing away with the national sovereignty of the United States? Basically, it is to form a North American Union similar to the European Union. According...

Declaration falls through the cracksThe Supreme Court's rare copy is safely tucked away, then forgotten for seven years, a spokeswoman says. By Steve Chawkins, Los Angeles Times Staff Writer January 19, 2008 When in the course of human events it becomes necessary to locate a rare, vintage copy of the nation's founding document, try looking behind the filing cabinet. That was a lesson learned the hard way at the Supreme Court, where a 185-year-old facsimile of the Declaration of Independence gathered dust for seven years, tucked behind the office furniture, a court spokeswoman acknowledged this week. Commissioned by John Quincy...

At some point early in this new year, President Bush and major European Union leaders are likely to recognize the independence of Kosovo over the furious objections of Serbia and its traditional protector, Russia. Such a decision may have unintended consequences. If Kosovo successfully achieves statehood, Republika Srpska, the Serb entity in Bosnia, will be tempted to follow suit in reprisal, slicing Bosnia almost in half. Meanwhile, Belgium has been gripped by talk about repeating Czechoslovakia’s 1993 “velvet divorce,” with Flemings and Walloons possibly splitting and forming their own little states. What about the claims for the independence of Kurdistan...

Taiwanese are now weighing up the impact of the weekend's landslide electoral victory to the Opposition Party, the Guomindang, which promises to build stronger relations with mainland China. It is a blow to those who want formal independence from Beijing and a more independent Taiwan. Taiwan President Chen Shui-bian has taken full responsibility for the weekend's loss and has also resigned as chairman of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP). President Chen Shui-bian's Democratic Progressive Party won only 27 seats in Taiwan's new 113 seat assembly. The party, which had been pushing for a seat at the United Nations and formal...

WASHINGTON -- U.S. Kosovo envoy Frank Wisner believes the time is right to implement Martti Ahtisaari's blueprint. The plan, rejected by Belgrade and blocked by Moscow at the UN last spring, in Wisner's words, is about a perspective of the province's independence. "We can't go on like this forever. During the past two years, first with President Ahtisaari and then with the Troika negotiations, we tried to find a solution based on compromise. But it transpired this was impossible," the U.S. diplomat told Belgrade daily Ve�ernje Novosti in Washington. "The sides remained firmly in their positions. In my opinion, there...

Today, Oct. 22, marks the 273rd anniversary of the birth of an American icon: Daniel Boone. This death-defying adventurer axed his way through the Appalachian Mountains to settle Kentucky and open the Western frontier. Stamped across his rock-hard life is the trademark of America: the pioneer spirit to cross new frontiers and control one's destiny. Back then, people ran their own lives. Today, our vastly expanded Nanny State looks after us. Is this a good thing? Imagine you're a pioneer of yesteryear. How would you fare with today's nanny on your back? As you prepare your covered wagon for journeying...

"When in the Course of human events, it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another, and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature's God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation." Declaration of Independence 1776 I have proposed the State of California be divided to form two states.  The new state would encompass all the unshaded areas seen on the map...

Only independent Kosovo can stabilize Balkans: Rice By Paul Taylor NEW YORK (Reuters) - Only independence for Kosovo can bring stability in the Balkans, and Europe should join the United States in backing statehood for the breakaway Serbian province, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said on Monday. In an interview with Reuters, she said talks brokered by the European Union, Russia and the United States had some chance of achieving an "amicable outcome" even if Kosovo and Serbia did not agree on the final status of the territory. "But there's going to be an independent Kosovo. We're dedicated to that....

A generation of children are being "contaminated" by a cocktail of addictive computer games, test-driven schooling, increased traffic and an irrational fear of strangers which leaves them unable to play outside, according to a lobby of more than 270 experts. In a letter to the The Daily Telegraph, the group of academics, authors and charity leaders say modern life has eroded children's ability to leave their homes unsupervised, seriously undermining their long-term development. They call for a rethink on the nature and value of play to ensure a generation of children do not grow up lacking creativity, independence and basic...

Malaysia at 50 Tall buildings, narrow minds Aug 30th 2007 From The Economist print edition After 50 years, Malaysia should stop treating a third of its people as not-quite-citizens THE government of Malaysia has laid on all sorts of grand pageantry this weekend, to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Malay peninsula's independence from Britain. There is much to celebrate. Living standards and access to education, health services, sanitation and electricity have soared during those five decades of sovereignty. The country's remarkable modernisation drive was symbolised, nine years ago, by the completion of the Petronas twin towers, in Kuala Lumpur,...