Independence Day Maybe it is just me, but the recent unrest about the systemic racism still afflicting our country and the dearth of mass celebrations brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic, have inspired a more introspective view of Independence Day. We don’t think enough about it, but we aren’t celebrating the day our country was founded, our flag adopted, our Constitution written, or even our independence won. We are celebrating the day the Declaration of Independence was adopted . Most of the Declaration is devoted to giving reasons why the colonies felt justified in dissolving our “political bands” with Great Britain. However, the reasons are given in a philosophical context that is remarkable. At a time when most countries were ruled by people who claimed to do it by divine right, or simply did it by force, our Declaration set out a statement of purpose and justification: that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator wit...