Now let us be moving on to other more controversial topics.
Let us look at the next paragraph in that oh so well known (and often down-played) document:
"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."
Keeping this in mind let us step forward about one hundred years to the 1860's. Our country was in the throws of a bloody civil war.
Ask the average American what this war was over and 9 out of 10 will tell you that it was to free african americans from slavery.
But ask a historian and you'll be told that this was only part of the reason.
Tensions between the north and the south arose over a difference in commerce (the north being more industrial and the south more agricultural) and a difference in political opinion (the north being, in general, republican and the south being, in general, democrat). Events such as Representative Preston Brooks of South Carolina caneing of Republican Senator Charles Sumner caused tensions to flare, and by winter of 1860 southern states had started to secede.
Savery did not truely become a rallying cause until well into the war and in 1864 there were still 5 union states and 3 union teritories that permitted slavery.
Before I go on I would like to point out that I personaly feel that slavery of any form is MORALY WRONG and should be PUT TO AN END.
And now that I have laid some ground work and the reader understands abit about what was going on at the time I will make my point.
No matter how much Lincoln denied that the southern states had the right to break from the union THEY DID (CF. part 1 #5).
Stepping forward to today do we have the right to free ourselves from the current institution that is the federal government if we feel it opressive?
Yes we do.
