Sunday, July 4, 2010

Happy Fourth of July!

Let's start off with something patriotic:

The Declaration of Independence in American
by H. L. Mencken

From The American Language, 3rd ed., 1923, pp. 398-402.
First printed as "Essay in American" in the Baltimore Evening Sun, Nov. 7, 1921.

WHEN things get so balled up that the people of a country got to cut loose from some other country, and go it on their own hook, without asking no permission from nobody, excepting maybe God Almighty, then they ought to let everybody know why they done it, so that everybody can see they are not trying to put nothing over on nobody.

All we got to say on this proposition is this: first, me and you is as good as anybody else, and maybe a damn sight better; second, nobody ain't got no right to take away none of our rights; third, every man has got a right to live, to come and go as he pleases, and to have a good time whichever way he likes, so long as he don't interfere with nobody else. That any government that don't give a man them rights ain't worth a damn; also, people ought to choose the kind of government they want themselves, and nobody else ought to have no say in the matter. That whenever any government don't do this, then the people have got a right to give it the bum's rush and put in one that will take care of their interests. Of course, that don't mean having a revolution every day like them South American yellowbellies, or every time some jobholder goes to work and does something he ain't got no business to do. It is better to stand a little graft, etc., than to have revolutions all the time, like them {deleted ethnic slur}, and any man that wasn't a anarchist or one of them I.W.W.'s would say the same. But when things get so bad that a man ain't hardly got no rights at all no more, but you might almost call him a slave, then everybody ought to get together and throw the grafters out, and put in new ones who won't carry on so high and steal so much, and then watch them. This is the proposition the people of these Colonies is up against, and they have got tired of it, and won't stand it no more.

The rest.

I spotted this on MetaFilter this afternoon and just had to share.

Anyway, I've done nothing of note today: slept late, fed the cat, scratched the cat, brushed the cat, read, fooled around online, cleaned out a closet and took a HUGE load of clothes I don't wear* to Goodwill...

I lead such an exciting life.

I'll probably wander down to Byrd Park/Dogwood Dell in a few minutes to watch the fireworks; in the meantime, here I am, three years younger and fifty pounds heavier, doing my best Chris Farley impression with Alex P. and Andrew L. on July 4, 2007:

Crom help me, I still have that shirt. And the watch.

*My parents, bless their hearts, not knowing what else to do for me on gift-giving occasions, used to bless me with all sorts of fancy, pricey, name-brand clothes better suited for a wealthy, gay, middle-aged man. I would wear them once or twice when I visited them and then file 'em away in the back of my closet. I appreciated the thought and effort, really, but not the styles and colors (pastel-colored Izod and Lacoste polo shirts on me? We think not). See Pattern Recognition by William Gibson for a partial explanation as to why.

1 comment:

Gary D. said...

Mencken is great! I can only imagine his rantings today at our current political craziness.