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On July 4, 1776, the Second Continental Congress unanimously adopted the Declaration of Independence to announce the colonies' separation from the Kingdom of Great Britain, bringing a new nation into the world,
Although the Constitution provides the legal and governmental framework for the United States, the Declaration, with its eloquent assertion “all Men are created equal,” is the founding document of the United States.

It is now up to us, as the American experiment continues and our laws evolve in fact and interpretation, that we remain vigilant and make sure our leaders are faithful to the aspirational intent and vision of our Nation's Founders. Let's evolve by improving not by regression ant let's keep in mind the still very pertinent words from Thomas Paine's Common Sense  "......some Masaniello (opportunistic agitator) may hereafter arise who, laying hold of popular disquietudes (grievances), may collect together the desperate and the discontented, and by assuming to themselves the powers of government, finally sweep away the liberties of the continent like a deluge".  More

To serve my country day by day
At any humble post I may;
To honor and respect her Flag,
To live the traits of which I brag;
To be American in deed
As well as in my printed creed.

To stand for truth and honest toil,
To till my little patch of soil
And keep in mind the debt I owe
To them who died that I might know
My country, prosperous and free,
And passed this heritage to me.

I must always in trouble’s hour
Be guided by the men in power;
For God and country I must live,
My best for God and country give;
No act of mine that men may scan
Must shame the name American.

To do my best and play my part,
American in mind and heart;
To serve the flag and bravely stand
To guard the glory of my land;
To be American in deed,
God grant me strength to keep this creed.

Edgar Albert Guest (1881 – 1959) was a British-born American poet who became known as the People's Poet. His family moved from England to Detroit, Michigan when he was ten years old and he lived there the rest of his life. He worked for the Detroit Free Press for 64 years. He published more than twenty volumes of poetry and was thought to have written over 12,000 poems. His poems often had an inspirational and optimistic view of everyday life. Of his poems he said, "I take simple everyday things that happen to me and I figure it happens to a lot of other people and I make simple rhymes out of them. "His popularity led NBC to produce a weekly 15-minute radio program, “Guest in Your Home,” which ran from 1931 to 1942.
The Globe editorialized his passing by quoting Philip Coldren, the late editorial page editor who wrote that the key to Guest’s greatness was “that among the thousands of Guest poems, ‘there has not been a single one that has promoted wickedness or meanness or anything else but kindness and gentleness and peace and hope" 

I know of love,
I know it well.
This last stage has been
a living Hell

Run not to thee,
my favorite one.
Run to your Idol,
worship the Sun.

Religion,
a faith under the Sun.
Religion,
my soul to expunge.

When dreams are wrought
from stone and steel,
questions are raised about,
"Is this for real?"

If not the Moon,
that shines through hazy skies,
if life ends too soon,
it shouldn't be a surprise.

NASA Astronomy Picture of the Day:

Why is Venus so different from Earth? To help find out, Japan launched the robotic Akatsuki spacecraft which entered orbit around Venus late in 2015 after an unplanned five-year adventure around the inner Solar System. Even though Akatsuki was past its original planned lifetime, the spacecraft and instruments were operating so well that much of its original mission was reinstated. Also known as the Venus Climate Orbiter, Akatsuki's instruments investigated unknowns about Earth's sister planet, including whether volcanoes are still active, whether lightning occurs in the dense atmosphere, and why wind speeds greatly exceed the planet's rotation speed. In the featured image taken by Akatsuki's UVI camera, the day-side of Venus is seen shown with planet-scale V-shaped cloud pattern. The image displays three ultraviolet colors and indicates a dip in the relative abundance of sulfur dioxide shown in faint blue. Analyses of Akatsuki images and data has shown, among other discoveries, that Venus has equatorial jet similar to Earth's jet stream.

Photo by JAXA

Voltaire - (1694-1778)  François-Marie Arouet, known by his nom de plume Voltaire. was a French Enlightenment writer, historian, and philosopher famous for his wit, his attacks on the established Catholic Church, and his advocacy of freedom of religion, freedom of speech, and separation of church and state. He was one of the greatest of all French writers.

I choose not to live
my life vicariously,
due to the actions
of others.

It's my life, my choice
to do what I wish
within reason,
with or without,
criticism or approval,
of others.

What has happened
to the one I love.
Why is she this way,
forsaken by God above?

Who would treat their
children in this way?
No one I know, but
still, they will say,

Trust in God,
in every way,
things will get better,
believe, hope and pray.

I am sorry, I cannot.
No longer will I be,
a believer in you.
A false God I see.

No one has ever said
life is fair.
If anything, life is unfair.
Only you can correct this,
by developing your strengths.

Realize, you're loved,
by many more than
you may realize.