Declarations and revolutions

Monday is July 4, our country's 246th birthday. When the Declaration of Independence was read aloud in 1776, it was the first time the public – and people worldwide – heard, "We, therefore, the representatives of the United States of America."

A new country – ours – was born, birthed in revolution and won through war.

Its leaders, assembled into a congress, were long upset with King George III.

They understood they needed "To prove this, let facts be submitted to a candid world." And they did, stating their case for separation and independence from a monarch's overreach...