Friday, May 1, 2009

All Men Are (Not) Created Equal

Our Declaration of Independence states that we hold truths to be self-evident. One of them, the first one, is that all men are created equal. This is the main building block of this country. This is the very core of who we are as a country. All men are equal. The law applies to us all the same way. For the same situation a rich man and a poor man will get the same rule of law. We are all the same in the eyes of justice. But is this all about to change?

Obama has stated that he wants to bring "empathy" to the bench. That he wants a Justice (and he may have the opportunity to appoint 3) who can understand what it means to be black or poor or gay in America. What this really means is that he wants somebody to decide cases based on the belief that all men are NOT created equal. Different decisions will be made based on the person's individual circumstances. This is the polar opposite of our self-evident truth. I guess that truth isn't so self-evident to President Obama.

If our first truth, our most important truth, is no longer held to be self-evident, we might want to start saying our farewells to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness as well.

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