Happy July 4, Ever'boddeh!

From today's New York Times editorial page:

"...nothing in our history has annulled the revolutionary principles of the Declaration of Independence itself. The declaration is a historical document; it is also an open one, even now. The same is true of our history. As a nation, we have often acted ignobly, selfishly, willfully, yet that does not mean that we are doomed to go on doing so. Nor are we bound to go on acting nobly, selflessly or courageously, simply because we have often done so in the past. Neither our history nor our principles are self-determining, self-fulfilling. They depend entirely upon the choices we make."

Amen.