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Our Lives, our fortunes, and our sacred honor….

Our Lives, our fortunes, and our sacred honor…. Tom G. Palmer Cato University Annapolis, Maryland 2011. The concluding text of the Declaration of Independence is worth parsing carefully…. And for the support of this Declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of Divine Providence,

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Our Lives, our fortunes, and our sacred honor….

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  1. Our Lives, our fortunes, and our sacred honor…. Tom G. Palmer Cato University Annapolis, Maryland 2011

  2. The concluding text of the Declaration of Independence is worth parsing carefully…. • And for the support of this Declaration, • with a firm reliance on the protection of Divine Providence, • we mutually pledge to each other • our Lives, our Fortunes, and our sacred Honor. • Nine Lost Their Lives During the Struggle for Independence; • Five were imprisoned; • Many lost their fortunes, either outfitting troops, as a result of military action; • Not one lost his sacred honor.

  3. Each of the founders was but one person….but a mutual pledge makes a whole that is more than the sum of the parts We can make a difference by acting in concert. We can also make a difference by acting individually.

  4. What can one person do?

  5. 1. Educate Yourself to Become a Beacon of Information “Advancement of Libertarian ideals requires that each of us . . . achieve that degree of excellence in understanding and exposition which will inspire others to seek one out as a tutor.” ---Leonard Read Founder, Foundation for Economic Education

  6. 2. Don’t Be Afraid to Speak Out

  7. A. You Can Speak Out in a Dramatic Way, Entailing a Great Commitment….

  8. Without This Woman’s Courage, How Much Freedom Would We Enjoy Today? Rosa Parks 1913-2005

  9. Without This Man’s Willingness to Stand Up, How Many People Would be in Jail for Love? Dr. Franklin Kameny, 1925 --

  10. Without This Woman’s Courage, How Secure Would Property Be? • Susette Kelo • Lead Plaintiff in Kelo v. New London • “The specter of condemnation hangs over all property. Nothing is to prevent the State from replacing any Motel 6 with a Ritz-Carlton, any home with a shopping mall, or any farm with a factory.” • Justice Sandra Day OﾕConnor

  11. How Secure Would Our Right to Keep and Bear Arms Be Without this man? Robert Levy Prime Mover in the Heller v. DC Case that Clarified that the Second Amendment Secures an Individual Right to Keep and Bear Arms

  12. B. You Can Speak Out in Less Dramatic Ways Letters to the Editor Letters to Elected Representatives Questions at City Council Meetings, Campaign Events, and Constituent Meetings

  13. 3. Give a Book to a Friend or a High School Student You Can Dramatically Change the Course of a Person’s Life

  14. What can you do in cooperation with others?

  15. 1. You Can Organize a Local Group to Combat Injustice and Promote Liberty

  16. 2. You Can Organize a Local Group to Combat Injustice and Promote Liberty Anti-Tax Pro-School Choice Pro-Peace Pro-Health Freedom Pro-Property Rights Protection Pro-Spending Control Anti-Drug War

  17. 3. You Can Provide Financial Support to Existing Groups Goldwater Institute Bill of Rights Foundation Students for Liberty Institute for Justice Institute for Humane Studies Atlas Economic Research Foundation Foundation for Economic Education Mackinac Center Americans for Limited Government NORML National Taxpayers Union LEAP: Law Enforcement Against Prohibition Drug Policy Foundation Cascade Institute Heartland Institute FreedomWorks Cato Institute Competitive Enterprise Institute

  18. Without This One Person, How Much Freedom Would We Have Today? • Jacques Claude Marie Vincent de Gournay, 1712-1759 • Successful merchant and businessman • Intendant of Commerce, 1751-1758 • Translator, financier, and publisher of works explaining the free-market • Promoter of the slogan “laissez-faire, laissez-passer” • Teacher and mentor to Anne Robert Jacques Turgot, in turn a great promoter of freedom, friend and collaborator of Adam Smith, advisor to the American Founders, enemy of slavery....and inspiration to a century of classical liberals

  19. Let Us Celebrate the Sponsors of Liberty..... • On the marker for Sir Christopher Wren, the great architect, buried in St. Paul’s Cathedral: LECTOR, SI MONUMENTUM REQUIRIS, CIRCUMSPICE. • “Reader, if you seek his monument, look around you.” • If you seek the monument to the supporters of liberty...look around you...at the freedom, the individuality, the progress, the wealth, and the prosperity of the modern world

  20. Each of Us Can Have a Positive Impact By Making Liberty One of our Life Projects So What Are We Waiting for? I Hope to See You Again in a Freer, Better World! --Tom

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