(Thoughts of a Day in July)
By Altin Zaloshnja
These are three of the 56 total signatures found on the United States Declaration of Independence. They belong to very exquisite characters of the time.
First, John Hancock of Massachusetts, was the President of the Second Continental Congress. Legend has it, he signed with the biggest possible script in order to be easily spotted by the opposing authority. That opposing authority happened to be the largest empire in history.
Second, Lewis Morris of New York, when warned of the decision’s consequences by his brother, a general of the British Army, emphatically stated: “Damn the consequences, give me the pen”!
They both were highly respected men in society and well to do, meanwhile their lives and finances finances greatly suffered as the result of that signing act.
Which brings us to the third individual, Thomas Jefferson of Virginia, that genius of declarative wording, the author of the text himself. Often, and obviously so, the second sentence of the Declaration “endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, among these life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness” is the most mentioned and talked about. It is a monumental statement, reminding the government that human rights are a gift of God to men and they can neither be taken nor suppressed from any statal mechanism without a just and lawful reason.
Nevertheless, the argument can be made, the last sentence of the document also needs the very same consideration. It states: “And for the support of this Declaration, with affirm reliance on the protection of the divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes and our sacred Honor”. These individuals knew the aftermath, yet convinced what they were doing was right, stood together and faced the music of the upcoming battles.
Morale of the story: that’s the character the leaders should be made of and this is the way a nation should follow in order to have a responsible governance and the prosperity that comes thereof.
In the land of our fathers where the main leading characters of the last 80 or so years have shown and proven be either perverted bloodthirsty dictators Or tribal power hungry ex-communist secretaries And/Or unhinghed mental exhibitionists presiding upon a suffocating system of corruption, the question still remains, will Albania at some point in her history hear the sound of that honest pledge?
Will it Ever?
Happy 4th of July!