On July 4, fireworks will light the sky from the twilight’s last gleaming until the dawn’s early light.
What’s all the fuss? The rebel intelligentsia in the colonies concocted a disingenuous slogan: “No taxation without representation,” but even after Independence political representation was limited to aristocrats.
The incendiary language wrought rude behavior like chucking nice British tea into Boston Harbor and tarring and feathering British tax collectors. Sure, revolution worked, but peaceful evolution would also bring lower taxes and more representation.
Taxes diminish: With France humbled at Waterloo and Napoleon stewing on St. Helena, Great Britain reduced a series of taxes and temporarily abolished the income tax in 1816.
Political representation increases: As Parliament usurped power from mad King George III, Britain was evolving into a great democracy. In 1832, for example, the mother of parliaments passed reforms which essentially made voting a middle-class right.
Overall, Britain turned out quite nicely, as did most of her former colonies: free and affluent with an emphasis on human rights and rule of law.
Why, then, such exuberance on July 4? Why do our overzealous neighbors keep us up all night? It must be more than a day off work. Maybe it’s joy that England bequeathed such a strong tradition of classical liberalism.
Nah, it’s sheer pride in living in the world’s greatest democracy. Light up those firecrackers!
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