THOUGHT FOR THE DAY! "Two things are infinate: The universe and human stupidity; And I'm not sure about the universe." -- Albert Einstein

YOUR RANDOM DHS MONITORED PHRASE OF THE DAY Brush fire

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The Declaration of Independence: Still relevant today?

"--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" -- The Declaration of Independence

Lately, the purveyors of more war and dictatorship have taken to diismissing protests that various government actions violate the Constitution and the Bill of Rights by simply declaring those documents as irrelevent, being that they are almost 250 years old.

But the fact is that the Constituion does change over time, through the approved process of Amendment, and today's Constitution bears little resemblance to the one signed in Congress all those years ago. Like the White House itself, little of the original actually remains. But the founding principle remains the same. For government to be legitimate and legal, it must constrain itself within the limits imposed by that Constitution.

As for the Declaration, it was never the law of the land, but a symbolic statement. Yet not only is it still relevant, it is even more relevant today that at any time I have been alive.

To understand what led to the Declaration of Independence, you need to understand life as it was when the document was drafted. The American colonists, who still thought of themselves as British, were constrained by various laws which forced them to be dependent on Great Britain for everything they needed, to Britain's gain. The American colonists were required to buy those products they could not make for themselves from the British East India company. The British East India Company, a "too big to fail" company of its day, was actually in serious financial difficulties and Parliament passed the Tea Act as a form of bailout, at the colonists' expense. Granted a monopoly, the British East India Company shipped poor quality teas at inflated prices to the colonies, a move that accelerated the American preference for coffee over tea in the following decades. So poor was the tea being sent to the colonies that the Dutch actually ran a successful tea smuggling operation to the colonies! This triggered the Boston Tea Party, the first and most famous of protests in which colonists raided British ships and dumped the tea overboard.

Most Americans, including George Washington, disapproved of the Boston Tea Party, but Britain's over-reaction of annulling all self government, increasing the quartering of soldiers, and closing Boston Harbor until damages were paid (a form of collective punishment), called the Intolerable Acts, turned public sympathy away from the crown and towards the movement for independence, leading to the formation of the first Continental Congress.

But by far the worst abuse was King George III's currency act which banned the colonies from coining their own money and required all transactions be carried out using bank notes borrowed at interest from the Bank of England, a practice that reduced the colonies to the same desperate poverty as the common people in Britain, as documented in the writings of the time by authors such as Charles Dickens.

We find modern echoes of that same mercantilism occurring again today, with government that we must buy certain products (such as vaccines) and only from government-approved sources. And the requiring of citizens to conduct all transactions using bank notes borrowed at interest from a privately-owned central bank has its modern descendant in the Federal Reserve System.

What follows is the list of some of the specific complaints lodged by the writers of the Declaration of INdependence, together with their modern counterparts.

"He has refused his Assent to Laws, the most wholesome and necessary for the public good."

The colonists petitioned King George III to pass laws that would improve their lives. But in an age where taxing citizens directly was impractical, the King relied on taxes collected from the nobility, paid for from the rents commoners paid to live on their lands. As a side note, this was the reason why the right to property was replaced with "the pursuit of happiness" in order to preserve the landowners as a source of revenue for the new government. Under pressure from the nobility, many of whom were invested in the various businesses trading with the colonies, King George III simply ignored petitions for any laws which might inconvenience his friends and financial supporters.

We see that same refusal to pass laws for the public good to please financial "nobility" in the current debates about laws regarding GMO labeling, vaccine safety, food additives, and fracking.

"He has forbidden his Governors to pass Laws of immediate and pressing importance, unless suspended in their operation till his Assent should be obtained; and when so suspended, he has utterly neglected to attend to them."

King George III was a believer in central control. Given his upbringing, it is easy to understand why. King George III insisted that no laws could be passed in the colonies without his direct approval. Between the time required to send messages back and forth across the Atlantic, and simple inattention by the king, many laws requiring immediate attention were delayed until long after their original purpose had faded.

Today we are seeing a continuance of the transition from self-governing states as created by the original Constitution, to a system of central control in Washington DC. Much of that transition occurred after the American Civil War, which was not really so much about slavery as a state's right to leave the union.

Today we see the government engaged in a massive land grab under various excuses to seize public (and in some cases private) lands for economic exploitation and collateral on the US debt. All of these land grabs are a violation of the Enclave Clause of the Constitution, which states that the federal Government can only own the land underneath Federal Buildings, and various Federal government infrastructure such as airports, harbors, and military bases.

"He has refused to pass other Laws for the accommodation of large districts of people, unless those people would relinquish the right of Representation in the Legislature, a right inestimable to them and formidable to tyrants only. "

King George III sought to limit the colonists' influence in Parliament by refusing to allow colonies to grow larger unless the citizens of that colony relinquished their right to representation.

Today the same thing is going on, albeit much more subtly, with Gerrymandering shaping distracts to suit political agendas, and the massive problem with election fraud in this nation.

"He has obstructed the Administration of Justice, by refusing his Assent to Laws for establishing Judiciary powers."

The Judiciary of the United States is established by the Constitution and may not be tampered with. But obstruction has become possible by the use of Presidential Executive Orders, which have been used without legal justification to bypass or even change the will of the Congress and the Supreme Court.

"He has made Judges dependent on his Will alone, for the tenure of their offices, and the amount and payment of their salaries."

One glaring example that this system of political patronage still exists was seen in the recent RICO lawsuit brought by Judicial Watch founder Larry Klayman against the Clinton Foundation. The judge, appointed by President Bill Clinton, refused to recuse himself over the obvious conflict of interest, then threw the case out of court without examination of the evidence.

"He has erected a multitude of New Offices, and sent hither swarms of Officers to harrass our people, and eat out their substance."

King George III took William Shakespeare's advice from Henry the Fourth, Part 2. "Be it thy course to busy giddy minds." In other words, keep the people constantly running in circles with paperwork and they will have no time left to ponder the desirability of the government as a whole. And all these officers, paid for by the people, were ways to keep those working in those offices loyal to the King!

Today, there are 542 US Government agencies, and hundreds more at the state and local levels!

AbilityOne Commission, Access Board, Administration for Children and Families (ACF), Administration for Community Living, Administration for Native Americans, Administration on Aging (AoA), Administration on Developmental Disabilities, Administrative Conference of the United States, Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts, Advisory Council on Historic Preservation, African Development Foundation, Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ), Agency for International Development (USAID), Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry, Agricultural Marketing Service, Agricultural Research Service, Agriculture Department (USDA), Air Force, Air Force Reserve, Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau, Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives Bureau, AmeriCorps, American Battle Monuments Commission, Amtrak (AMTRAK), Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, Antitrust Division, Architect of the Capitol, Archives (National Archives and Records Administration) (NARA), Arctic Research Commission, Armed Forces Retirement Home, Arms Control and International Security, Army, Army Corps of Engineers, Arthritis and Musculoskeletal Interagency Coordinating Committee, Bankruptcy Courts, Barry M. Goldwater Scholarship and Excellence in Education Program, Bonneville Power Administration, Botanic Garden, Broadcasting Board of Governors, Bureau of Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, Bureau of Consular Affairs, Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection, Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA), Bureau of Engraving and Printing (BEP), Bureau of Indian Affairs, Bureau of Industry and Security, Bureau of International Labor Affairs, Bureau of Justice Statistics, Bureau of Labor Statistics, Bureau of Land Management (BLM), Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM), Bureau of Prisons, Bureau of Reclamation, Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE), Bureau of Transportation Statistics, Bureau of the Census, Bureau of the Fiscal Service, Bureau of the Public Debt, Capitol Police, Capitol Visitor Center, Census Bureau, Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board, Chief Acquisition Officers Council, Chief Financial Officers Council, Chief Human Capital Officers Council, Chief Information Officers Council, Citizens' Stamp Advisory Committee, Citizenship and Immigration Services, Coast Guard, Commerce Department (DOC), Commission of Fine Arts, Commission on Civil Rights, Commission on International Religious Freedom, Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe (Helsinki Commission), Committee for the Implementation of Textile Agreements, Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States, Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS), Community Planning and Development, Compliance, Office of, Computer Emergency Readiness Team (US CERT), Congress-U.S. House of Representatives, Congress-U.S. Senate, Congressional Budget Office (CBO), Congressional Research Service, Consular Affairs, Bureau of, Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), Coordinating Council on Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, Copyright Office, Corps of Engineers, Council of Economic Advisers, Council of the Inspectors General on Integrity and Efficiency, Council on Environmental Quality, Court Services and Offender Supervision Agency for the District of Columbia, Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims, Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces, Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, Court of Federal Claims, Court of International Trade, Customs and Border Protection, Defense Acquisition University, Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), Defense Commissary Agency, Defense Contract Audit Agency (DCAA), Defense Contract Management Agency, Defense Field Activities, Defense Finance and Accounting Service (DFAS), Defense Finance and Accounting Service Out-of-Service Debt Mgmt. Center, Defense Information Systems Agency (DISA), Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA), Defense Legal Services Agency, Defense Security Cooperation Agency (DSCA), Defense Security Service (DSS), Defense Technical Information Center, Defense Threat Reduction Agency (DTRA), Delaware River Basin Commission, Denali Commission, Department of Agriculture (USDA), Department of Commerce (DOC), Department of Defense, Department of Education (ED), Department of Energy (DOE), Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), Department of Homeland Security (DHS), Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), Department of Justice (DOJ), Department of Labor (DOL), Department of State (DOS), Department of Transportation (DOT), Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), Department of the Interior (DOI), Department of the Treasury, Director of National Intelligence, Office of, District of Columbia, Domestic Policy Council, Drug Enforcement Administration, Dwight D. Eisenhower School for National Security and Resource Strategy, Economic Adjustment Office, Economic Analysis, Bureau of (BEA), Economic Development Administration (EDA), Economic Research Service, Economic, Business and Agricultural Affairs, Economics and Statistics Administration, Education Department (ED), Education Resources Information Center (ERIC), Election Assistance Commission (EAC), Elementary and Secondary Education, Office of (OESE), Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA), Employment and Training Administration, Endangered Species Program, Energy Department (DOE), Energy Information Administration, English Language Acquisition Office, Engraving and Printing, Bureau of (BEP), Environmental Management (Energy Department), Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), European Command, Executive Office for Immigration Review, Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity (FHEO), Fannie Mae, Farm Credit Administration, Farm Credit System Insurance Corporation, Farm Service Agency, Federal Accounting Standards Advisory Board, Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Federal Bureau of Prisons, Federal Citizen Information Center, Federal Communications Commission (FCC), Federal Consulting Group, Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), Federal Election Commission, Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, Federal Executive Boards, Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council, Federal Financing Bank, Federal Geographic Data Committee, Federal Highway Administration, Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation (Freddie Mac), Federal Housing Administration (FHA), Federal Housing Finance Agency, Federal Interagency Committee for the Management of Noxious and Exotic Weeds, Federal Interagency Committee on Education, Federal Interagency Council on Statistical Policy, Federal Judicial Center, Federal Labor Relations Authority, Federal Laboratory Consortium for Technology Transfer, Federal Law Enforcement Training Center, Federal Library and Information Center Committee, Federal Maritime Commission, Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service, Federal Mine Safety and Health Review Commission, Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA), Federal National Mortgage Association (Fannie Mae), Federal Protective Service, Federal Railroad Administration (FRA), Federal Register, Federal Reserve System, Federal Retirement Thrift Investment Board, Federal Student Aid Information Center, Federal Trade Commission (FTC), Federal Transit Administration (FTA), Federal Voting Assistance Program, Federated States of Micronesia, Financial Management Service, Fiscal Responsibility and Reform Commission, Fiscal Service, Bureau of, Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS), Food Safety and Inspection Service, Food and Drug Administration (FDA), Foreign Agricultural Service, Foreign Claims Settlement Commission, Forest Service, Fossil Energy, Fulbright Foreign Scholarship Board, General Services Administration (GSA), Geological Survey (USGS), Global Affairs (State Department), Government Accountability Office (GAO), Government Ethics, Office of, Government National Mortgage Association (Ginnie Mae), Government Publishing Office, Grain Inspection, Packers and Stockyards Administration, Harry S. Truman Scholarship Foundation, Health Resources and Services Administration, Health and Human Services Department (HHS), Healthy Homes and Lead Hazard Control Office, Helsinki Commission, Holocaust Memorial Museum, Homeland Security Department (DHS), House Office of Inspector General, House Office of the Clerk, House of Representatives, Housing Office, Immigration and Citizenship Services, Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Indian Affairs, Indian Arts and Crafts Board, Indian Health Service, Industrial College of the Armed Forces, Industry and Security, Bureau of, Information Resource Management College, Information Resources Center (ERIC), Innovation and Improvement Office, Inspectors General, Institute of Education Sciences, Institute of Museum and Library Services, Institute of Peace, Inter-American Foundation, Interagency Alternative Dispute Resolution Working Group, Interagency Council on Homelessness, Interior Department (DOI), Internal Revenue Service (IRS), International Labor Affairs, Bureau of, International Trade Administration (ITA), International Trade Commission, Interpol, James Madison Memorial Fellowship Foundation, Japan-United States Friendship Commission, Job Corps, John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, Joint Board for the Enrollment of Actuaries, Joint Chiefs of Staff, Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies, Joint Fire Science Program, Joint Forces Command, Joint Forces Staff College, Joint Military Intelligence College, Joint Program Executive Office for Chemical and Biological Defense, Judicial Circuit Courts of Appeal, Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation, Justice Department (DOJ), Justice Programs, Office of, Justice Statistics, Bureau of, Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, Office of, Labor Department (DOL), Labor Statistics, Bureau of, Land Management, Bureau of (BLM), Legal Services Corporation, Library of Congress (LOC), Marine Mammal Commission, Maritime Administration (MARAD), Marketing and Regulatory Programs (Agriculture Department), Marshals Service, Mediation and Conciliation Service, Medicaid (CMS), Medicaid and CHIP Payment and Access Commission, Medicare (CMS), Medicare Payment Advisory Commission, Merit Systems Protection Board, Migratory Bird Conservation Commission, Military Postal Service Agency, Millennium Challenge Corporation, Mine Safety and Health Administration, Minority Business Development Agency, Mint, Missile Defense Agency (MDA), Mississippi River Commission, Morris K. Udall and Stewart L. Udall Foundation, Multifamily Housing Office, NOAA Fisheries, National AIDS Policy Office, National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), National Agricultural Statistics Service, National Archives and Records Administration (NARA), National Bipartisan Commission on the Future of Medicare, National Cancer Institute (NCI), National Capital Planning Commission, National Cemetery Administration, National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform, National Constitution Center, National Council on Disability (NCD), National Counterintelligence Executive, Office of, National Credit Union Administration, National Defense University, National Defense University iCollege, National Drug Intelligence Center, National Economic Council, National Endowment for the Arts, National Endowment for the Humanities, National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP), National Gallery of Art, National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency, National Guard, National Health Information Center (NHIC), National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, National Indian Gaming Commission, National Institute of Corrections, National Institute of Food and Agriculture, National Institute of Justice, National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH), National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health, National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), National Institutes of Health (NIH), National Intelligence University, National Interagency Fire Center, National Labor Relations Board (NLRB), National Laboratories (Energy Department), National Marine Fisheries Service, National Mediation Board, National Nuclear Security Administration, National Ocean Service, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), National Park Foundation, National Park Service, National Passport Information Center (NPIC), National Railroad Passenger Corporation (AMTRAK), National Reconnaissance Office, National Science Foundation (NSF), National Security Agency (NSA), National Security Council, National Technical Information Service, National Telecommunications and Information Administration, National Transportation Safety Board, National War College, National Weather Service (NOAA), Natural Resources Conservation Service, Natural Resources Revenue, Office of, Northern Command, Northern Mariana Islands, Northwest Power Planning Council, Northwest Power and Conservation Council, Nuclear Energy, Science and Technology, Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC), Nuclear Waste Technical Review Board, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission, Ocean Energy Management, Bureau of (BOEM), Office for Civil Rights - Department of Education, Office of Community Planning and Development, Office of Compliance, Office of Disability Employment Policy, Office of Elementary and Secondary Education (OESE), Office of Fossil Energy, Office of Government Ethics, Office of Housing, Office of Justice Programs, Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, Office of Management and Budget (OMB), Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP), Office of Natural Resources Revenue, Office of Nuclear Energy (Department of Energy), Office of Personnel Management (OPM), Office of Refugee Resettlement, Office of Science and Technology Policy, Office of Scientific and Technical Information, Office of Servicemember Affairs, Office of Special Counsel, Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services (OSERS), Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC), Office of the Director of National Intelligence, Office of the Federal Register, Office of the Pardon Attorney, Open World Leadership Center, Out-of-Service Debt Management Center, Overseas Private Investment Corporation, Pacific Command, Pacific Northwest Electric Power and Conservation Planning Council, Pardon Attorney, Office of, Parole Commission (Justice Department), Peace Corps, Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC), Pentagon Force Protection Agency, Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration, Policy Development and Research (HUD), Political Affairs (State Department), Postal Regulatory Commission, Postal Service (USPS), Power Administrations, President's Council on Fitness, Sports and Nutrition, Presidio Trust, Prisoner of War/Missing in Action Accounting Agency, Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board (PCLOB), Public Diplomacy and Public Affairs (State Department), Public and Indian Housing, Radio Free Asia (RFA), Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL), Radio and TV Marti, Railroad Retirement Board (RRB), Reclamation, Bureau of, Refugee Resettlement, Office of, Regulatory Information Service Center, Rehabilitation Services Administration (Education Department), Republic of The Marshall Islands, Research and Innovative Technology Administration, Risk Management Agency (Agriculture Department), Rural Business and Cooperative Programs, Rural Development, Rural Housing Service, Rural Utilities Service, Safety and Environmental Enforcement, Bureau of (BSEE), Saint Lawrence Seaway Development Corporation, Science Office (Energy Department), Science and Technology Policy, Office of, Scientific and Technical Information, Office of, Secret Service, Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Selective Service System (SSS), Senate, Small Business Administration (SBA), Smithsonian Institution, Social Security Administration (SSA), Social Security Advisory Board, Southeastern Power Administration, Southern Command, Southwestern Power Administration, Special Forces Operations Command, State Department (DOS), State Justice Institute, Stennis Center for Public Service, Strategic Command, Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), Supreme Court of the United States, Surface Mining, Reclamation and Enforcement, Surface Transportation Board, Susquehanna River Basin Commission, TRICARE Management, Tax Court, Taxpayer Advocacy Panel, Tennessee Valley Authority, Trade and Development Agency, Transportation Command, Transportation Department (DOT), Transportation Security Administration (TSA), Transportation Statistics, Bureau of, Treasury Department, Trustee Program, U.S. AbilityOne Commission, U.S. Access Board, U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), U.S. Air Force, U.S. Air Force Reserve Command, U.S. Arctic Research Commission, U.S. Army, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, U.S. Botanic Garden, U.S. Capitol Police, U.S. Capitol Visitor Center, U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM), U.S. Circuit Courts of Appeal, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, U.S. Coast Guard, U.S. Commission of Fine Arts, U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom, U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), U.S. Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims, U.S. Customs and Border Protection, U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), U.S. Department of Commerce (DOC), U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), U.S. Department of the Treasury, U.S. Election Assistance Commission (EAC), U.S. Fleet Forces Command, U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), U.S. House of Representatives, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, U.S. International Trade Commission, U.S. Marine Corps, U.S. Military Academy, West Point, U.S. Mission to the United Nations, U.S. National Central Bureau - Interpol, U.S. Navy, U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, U.S. Postal Service (USPS), U.S. Senate, U.S. Sentencing Commission, U.S. Trade Representative, U.S. Trade and Development Agency, U.S. Trustee Program, U.S. Virgin Islands, US-CERT (US CERT), USAGov, Unified Combatant Commands (Defense Department), Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences, United States Mint, United States Postal Inspection Service, Veterans Affairs Department (VA), Veterans Benefits Administration, Veterans Day National Committee, Veterans Health Administration (VHA), Veterans' Employment and Training Service (VETS), Vietnam Education Foundation, Voice of America, Washington Headquarters Services, Weather Service (NOAA), Weights and Measures Division, West Point (Army), Western Area Power Administration, White House, White House Commission on Presidential Scholars, White House Office of Administration, Women's Bureau (Labor Department), Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars,

"He has kept among us, in times of peace, Standing Armies without the Consent of our legislatures."

We see a modern counterpart in the militarization of our domestic police departments, who murder more innocent Americans every year than the mass shooters and terrorists put together, and how, under the civil forfeiture laws, steal more from law-abiding Americans than the robbers, burglars, and muggers put together!

"He has affected to render the Military independent of and superior to the Civil power."

Under the Constitution, only Congress can declare war, yet we have seen over the last several administrations how Presidents order invasions with only an occasional rubber-stamp from Congress as an afterthought.

"He has combined with others to subject us to a jurisdiction foreign to our constitution, and unacknowledged by our laws; giving his Assent to their Acts of pretended Legislation:"

As most recently demonstrated by Mario Cuomo, the US Government is abandoning the principle of Freedom of Speech and imposing censorship to silence critics of Israel, for the benefit of Israel.

"For Quartering large bodies of armed troops among us:"

King George III ordered that colonial homes provide accommodations for British Officers. While it is true that living in a proper house was more comfortable than living in tents, the real purpose was for the British Officers to be able to spy on the colonials to keep them in line. Such quartering was primarily aimed at the homes of those known to be sympathetic to the cause of freedom.

Today the US Government no longer needs to quarter officers in our homes to spy on us. The NSA, in complete violation of the Fourth Amendment right to privacy has compromised all public telecommunications; our computers, our smart phones, tablets, email, and so forth, in order to spy on us far more completely than was possible in the time of King George III.

"For protecting them, by a mock Trial, from punishment for any Murders which they should commit on the Inhabitants of these States:"

Referring back to the militarization of the police, it is very rare to see any police officer punished for killing a law-abiding US citizen.

"For cutting off our Trade with all parts of the world:"

Sanctions against Iran. Sanctions against Russia. TPP, TTIP. Need I say more?

"For imposing Taxes on us without our Consent: "

#1 Air Transportation Taxes (just look at how much you were charged the last time you flew), #2 Biodiesel Fuel Taxes, #3 Building Permit Taxes, #4 Business Registration Fees, #5 Capital Gains Taxes, #6 Cigarette Taxes, #7 Court Fines (indirect taxes), #8 Disposal Fees, #9 Dog License Taxes, #10 Drivers License Fees (another form of taxation), #11 Employer Health Insurance Mandate Tax, #12 Employer Medicare Taxes, #13 Employer Social Security Taxes, #14 Environmental Fees, #15 Estate Taxes, #16 Excise Taxes On Comprehensive Health Insurance Plans, #17 Federal Corporate Taxes, #18 Federal Income Taxes, #19 Federal Unemployment Taxes, #20 Fishing License Taxes, #21 Flush Taxes (yes, this actually exists in some areas), #22 Food And Beverage License Fees, #23 Franchise Business Taxes, #24 Garbage Taxes, #25 Gasoline Taxes, #26 Gift Taxes, #27 Gun Ownership Permits, #28 Hazardous Material Disposal Fees, #29 Highway Access Fees, #30 Hotel Taxes (these are becoming quite large in some areas), #31 Hunting License Taxes, #32 Import Taxes, #33 Individual Health Insurance Mandate Taxes, #34 Inheritance Taxes, #35 Insect Control Hazardous Materials Licenses, #36 Inspection Fees, #37 Insurance Premium Taxes, #38 Interstate User Diesel Fuel Taxes, #39 Inventory Taxes, #40 IRA Early Withdrawal Taxes, #41 IRS Interest Charges (tax on top of tax), #42 IRS Penalties (tax on top of tax), #43 Library Taxes, #44 License Plate Fees, #45 Liquor Taxes, #46 Local Corporate Taxes, #47 Local Income Taxes, #48 Local School Taxes, #49 Local Unemployment Taxes, #50 Luxury Taxes, #51 Marriage License Taxes, #52 Medicare Taxes, #53 Medicare Tax Surcharge On High Earning Americans Under Obamacare, #54 Obamacare Individual Mandate Excise Tax (if you don't buy "qualifying" health insurance under Obamacare you will have to pay an additional tax), #55 Obamacare Surtax On Investment Income (a new 3.8% surtax on investment income), #56 Parking Meters, #57 Passport Fees, #58 Professional Licenses And Fees (another form of taxation), #59 Property Taxes, #60 Real Estate Taxes, #61 Recreational Vehicle Taxes, #62 Registration Fees For New Businesses, #63 Toll Booth Taxes, #64 Sales Taxes, #65 Self-Employment Taxes, #66 Sewer & Water Taxes, #67 School Taxes, #68 Septic Permit Taxes, #69 Service Charge Taxes, #70 Social Security Taxes, #71 Special Assessments For Road Repairs Or Construction, #72 Sports Stadium Taxes, #73 State Corporate Taxes, #74 State Income Taxes, #75 State Park Entrance Fees, #76 State Unemployment Taxes (SUTA), #77 Tanning Taxes (a new Obamacare tax on tanning services), #78 Telephone 911 Service Taxes, #79 Telephone Federal Excise Taxes, #80 Telephone Federal Universal Service Fee Taxes, #81 Telephone Minimum Usage Surcharge Taxes, #82 Telephone State And Local Taxes, #83 Telephone Universal Access Taxes, #84 The Alternative Minimum Tax, #85 Tire Recycling Fees, #86 Tire Taxes, #87 Tolls (another form of taxation), #88 Traffic Fines (indirect taxation), #89 Use Taxes (Out of state purchases, etc.), #90 Utility Taxes, #91 Vehicle Registration Taxes, #92 Waste Management Taxes, #93 Water Rights Fees, #94 Watercraft Registration & Licensing Fees, #95 Well Permit Fees, #96 Workers Compensation Taxes, #97 Zoning Permit Fees

Needless to say, those taxes do not actually go for what they claim to be for. The US Government, desperately broke and in debt, spends its money propping up Wall Street, paying for war, and of course, support for Israel. Not on the above list is the coming carbon tax, purportedly to fight human-caused global warming but in reality another cash-grab on behalf of that private central bank.

"For depriving us in many cases, of the benefits of Trial by Jury:"

The British right to Trial by Jury dates back to the Magna Carta itself. But in the days of King George III, certain classes of offence were declared ineligible, putting the defendant at the mercy of corrupt judges and prosecutors.

Ever hear of the "Law of the hammer?" If you give a small child a hammer, everything they encounter afterwards needs pounding. The same thing applies to legislatures. Once given the power to make laws, they will pass laws for everything, in order to justify their expense and provide fodder for election year speeches. But that enormous body of laws controlling our every behavior (such as collecting rainwater on your own property) comes at a huge cost, as enforcement and judicial proceedings absorb more and more of the Gross Domestic Product. But government never admits error and so rather than reducing the number of laws, government is now eroding our right to a trial by jury, even though the Sixth Amendment, which guarantees our right to trial by jury, lists no exceptions. But in the current US, you can be refused a trial by jury for certain lesser offenses such as drunk driving, any crime for which the prison sentence is six months or less, and tax cases below a certain amount.

"For transporting us beyond Seas to be tried for pretended offences"

One word: Guantanamo!

"For taking away our Charters, abolishing our most valuable Laws, and altering fundamentally the Forms of our Governments:"

The Unites States uses the plural because it was started as a loose confederation, with the states independent and sovereign. The central government was supposed to act as an arbiter between the states, with little or no authority within them. The Civil War was triggered by the secession of the south, to get away from what was perceived as Washington DC's increasing unconstitutional intrusion into the states' business. Abraham Lincoln needed to invade and conquer the Confederacy because in that time, the lion's share of tax revenues came from the south. So Lincoln seized on the issue of slavery to motivate the north into war, much as the US Government uses 9-11 every time they wish to invade someplace for purely monetary reasons.

Following the war the US Government moved quickly to centralize power. The 17th Amendment stripped the states of their right to select senators, and turned the office of Senator into a publicly elected office. This made Senators less beholding to their state legislators and governors, which were weakened as a result of this change.

Today we see more moves by DC to acquire rights and authorities originally delegated to the states, such as the Federalization of the National Guard, and blockages of various states' attempts to enforce their borders.

"For suspending our own Legislatures, and declaring themselves invested with power to legislate for us in all cases whatsoever."

Again, we refer to the abuse of the Presidential Executive Order.

"He has abdicated Government here, by declaring us out of his Protection and waging War against us."

Again, we refer to NSA spying on law-abiding citizens and the continued abuse by the domestic police force.

"He has plundered our seas, ravaged our Coasts, burnt our towns, and destroyed the lives of our people."

One need only read the many stories of the Bureau of Land Management's seizing of private lands to see that this evil has also returned.

"He is at this time transporting large Armies of foreign Mercenaries to compleat the works of death, desolation and tyranny, already begun with circumstances of Cruelty & perfidy scarcely paralleled in the most barbarous ages, and totally unworthy the Head of a civilized nation."

Open borders to illegal immigrants and refugees.

If one looks, one can easily find more examples that illustrate the fact that the modern 21st Century American Citizen is in fact returned to the same state of oppression and control as was the case in 1776. Although the forms may differ, the intent is clearly unchanged!

" But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future security. -- The Declaration of Independence