IN (the People’s) CONGRESS, 2010
(I have a dream … that the below will be) The unanimous Declaration of the People of the United States of America (at the conclusion of the People’s Congress, 2010)
When in the Course of human events it becomes necessary for the citizens to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with the political elite and ruling elite in this country and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature's God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation.
We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all People are created equal, that they are endowed as members of the Human Family with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. — That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Citizens, DERIVING THEIR JUST POWERS FROM THE CONSENT OF THE GOVERNED, — That whenever any actions of Government become destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to declare their independence from such acts and such unrepresentative governance, and to institute a truly consensual and, therefore, representative Government, with its foundation being restored to one based on such principles and deriving its powers from the consent of the people, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness. Prudence, indeed, will dictate that our Government, established more than two hundred years ago, should not be changed for light and transient causes. But when a long train of abuses and usurpations surely must be regarded as nothing less than absolute Despotism, it is our right, it is our duty, to declare our independence from the tyrannies of such Government, and to provide new Guards for our future security. — Such has been the patient sufferance of the good citizens of this nation; and such is now the necessity which constrains them to alter the systematic abuses of our Government. The history of these abuses is a history of repeated injuries and usurpations, all having in direct object the establishment of an absolute Tyranny over these United States and other sovereign states and their peoples. To prove this, let Facts be submitted to a candid world:
Our government has violated its own Laws, the most wholesome and necessary for the public good (Foreign Assistance Act, 1961; Arms Export Control Act, 1976); [1]
Our (U.S.) Attorney General and President refuse to investigate former top-ranking government officials for war crimes and other offenses committed in our name (e.g., torture, rendition) -- a tyranny that has violated the rights and the honor of every U.S. citizen and, obviously, the rights of the individuals who were tortured and/or kidnapped and which violates international common law. [2] These acts of tyranny, if allowed to go unpunished, will perpetuate the climate of impunity at the highest levels of our government that allow these tyrants to act as if they are above the law – a violation of the principle of the rule of law that has been in place in civilized societies since the signing of the Magna Carta; [3]
Another tyranny that we have been forced to endure is the use of our military to invade sovereign states while our government proclaims it necessary to “protect the citizens from the scourge of communism,” or “protect us from terrorist attacks,” when it is us – the Empire of America -- which is the true terrorist; imposing our hegemonic oppression, military occupation, and employing other acts of coercion, to plunder the resources of the sovereign peoples of many lands; [4]
For quartering large bodies of armed troops among us (this, from the original Declaration, was what the King was doing to us – now, this is what WE do to sovereign states with our overseas military bases, hundreds of them, which effectively establish “US … control over 191 governments”); [5]
For protecting them, by a mock Trial from punishment for any Murders which they should commit on the Inhabitants of these States (this, again, from the original Declaration and this was included in the crimes committed by the King against the colonies). Well, in 2002, the Bush Administration announced that the United States does not intend to become a party to the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court (we signed it, but we have not ratified it in Congress). This, in effect, will similarly protect “the King” and other top U.S. government officials from prosecution for war crimes and other offenses committed against the sovereign peoples of other states under the nonsensical rubric of a war on terror and guarantee impunity for these war criminals; [6]
For imposing imperialism, militarism, guilt and responsibility for war crimes and other violations of international common law, environmental crimes, and many more atrocities upon us, the People, without our Consent (our original complaint against King George was simply for taxation without consent);
For depriving us in many cases (due to the politicization of the federal courts and the weakening by legislation of the Federal Tort Claims Act, which is the only means the people have to sue the government for tortuous acts committed by the government which causes injury to its citizens) of the benefit of access to the Judicial branch of government to protect the citizens from the tyrannies of the Administrative and Legislative branches of the Empire of America – effectively depriving the citizens from the “checks and balances” protections of their Constitution;
For transporting us beyond Seas to be tried for pretended offences (from the original Declaration. Sounds a bit like extraordinary rendition, does it not folks?);
Our government has abdicated the consent of the governed, by waging Wars of aggression against sovereign states for spurilous and dishonorable reasons, in violation of international common law, at the behest of the ruling corporate elite for the purpose of profit – putting economic considerations above the principles of human decency, the U.N. Charter, the rule of law, and the principles on which this nation was founded (war in Iraq, war in Afghanistan);
We, the citizens of the Empire of America, are therefore guilty of the same crimes committed against our forefathers by King George (as it appears in the original Declaration): WE “have plundered [the] seas, ravaged [the] coasts, burnt [the] towns, and destroyed the lives of [the] people” of sovereign states for the purpose of profit (as described above);
The Empire of America is (as it appears in the original Declaration) “at this time transporting large Armies of foreign Mercenaries (Blackwater, et al) to compleat the works of death, desolation, and tyranny, already begun with circumstances of Cruelty & Perfidy scarcely paralleled in the most barbarous ages, and totally unworthy the Head of a civilized nation” (Iraq, Afghanistan, etc., etc.);
(As in the original document … ) In every stage of these Oppressions We have Petitioned for Redress in the most humble terms: Our repeated Petitions have been answered only by repeated injury. A Prince, whose character is thus marked by every act which may define a Tyrant, is unfit to be the ruler of a free people (this needs no update, other than to say that this “Prince” is US – our government);
(As it appears in the original Declaration – with a few changes … ) Nor have We been wanting in attentions to our brethren in our own government. We have warned them from time to time of attempts by their legislature to extend an undemocratic deference to the ruling elite which benefits only them and not the common. We have reminded them of the circumstances of the injustices of militarism and occupation, hegemony, imperialism and the funding and other support of colonialism, Apartheid and occupation by foreign governments. We have appealed for justice and magnanimity, and we have conjured them by the ties of our common kindred to disavow these usurpations, which would inevitably interrupt our connections and correspondence. They too have been deaf to the voice of justice and of consanguinity. We must, therefore, acquiesce in the necessity, which denounces our Separation, and hold them, as we hold the rest of mankind, Enemies in War, in Peace Friends (I think this means, we have pleaded and repeated to no avail, so let’s get on with the business of separation … );
We, therefore, the People of the United States of America, in this People’s Congress, Assembled, appealing to the Supreme Judge of the world for the rectitude of our intentions, do, in the Name, and by Authority of the good People of this nation, solemnly publish and declare, That these citizens are, and of Right ought to be Free and Independent from the tyrannies of our government, that they are Absolved from all Allegiance to such unjust and unrepresentative government, and that all political connection between the citizens of conscience in this nation and the representatives in our government who refuse to acknowledge this declaration and act as we rightly request, is and ought to be totally dissolved; and that as Free and Independent people, they have full Power to conclude Peace, contract Alliances, establish Commerce, and to do all other Acts and Things which Independent peoples may of right do with the intent of restoring our democracy and our dignity, and reinstating honor in our government and respect for the rule of law and our Constitution. — 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. (Let’s Roll!)
References:
1. Rep. Kucinich’s letter to (then) Secretary Rice concerning the 1976 Arms Export Control Act calling for the investigation of potential violations by Israel of the Arms Export Control Act, January 5, 2009.
2. “AG Holder Must Reject Whitewash of Torture Findings,” Common Cause, press release, February 22, 2010.
3. “The rule of law, also called supremacy of law, means that the law is above everyone and it applies to everyone. Whether governor or governed, rulers or ruled, no one is above the law, no one is exempted from the law, and no one can grant exemption to the application of the law,” Wikipedia.
4. China 1945-49: Intervened in a civil war; Greece 1947-49: Intervened in a civil war; Philippines 1945-53: [use of military to] install a series of puppets [dictators] as president; South Korea 1945-53: [U.S. interference] led to a long era of corrupt, reactionary, and brutal governments; Iran 1953: Prime Minister Mossadegh was overthrown in a joint U.S. and British operation … [the] coup restored the Shah to absolute power and began a period of 25 years of repression and torture, with the oil industry being restored to foreign ownership; Guatemala 1953-1990: A CIA-organized coup overthrew the democratically-elected and progressive government of Jacobo Arbenz, initiating 40 years of death-squads, torture, disappearances, mass executions, and unimaginable cruelty, totaling well over 100,000 victims … Middle East 1956-58: The Eisenhower Doctrine stated that the United States "is prepared to use armed forces to assist" any Middle East country "requesting assistance against armed aggression from any country controlled by international communism" -- [meaning] no one would be allowed to dominate, or have excessive influence over, the middle east and its oil fields except the United States. [This led to the U.S.] twice attempt[ing] to overthrow the Syrian government, stag[ing] several shows-of-force in the Mediterranean to intimidate movements opposed to U.S.-supported governments in Jordan and Lebanon, land[ing of] 14,000 troops in Lebanon, and conspire[ing] to overthrow or assassinate Nasser of Egypt and his troublesome middle-east nationalism; Indonesia 1957-58: Sukarno, like Nasser, was … [a] leader [that] nationalized many private holdings of the Dutch, the former colonial power ... and refused to crack down on the Indonesian Communist Party. Thus, the CIA began throwing money into the elections, plotted Sukarno's assassination, tried to blackmail him with a phony sex film, and joined forces with dissident military officers to wage a full-scale war against the government. Sukarno survived it all; Vietnam 1950-73: …Twenty-three years, and more than a million dead, later, the United States withdrew its military forces from Vietnam. Most people say that the U.S. lost the war. But by destroying Vietnam to its core, and poisoning the earth and the gene pool for generations, Washington had in fact achieved its main purpose: preventing what might have been the rise of a good development option for Asia. Ho Chi Minh was, after all, some kind of communist; Cambodia 1955-73: After many years of hostility towards his regime, including assassination plots and the infamous Nixon/Kissinger secret "carpet bombings" of 1969-70, Washington finally overthrew [Prince] Sihanouk in a coup in 1970. This was all that was needed to impel Pol Pot and his Khmer Rouge forces to enter the fray. Five years later, they took power. But five years of American bombing had caused Cambodia's traditional economy to vanish. The old Cambodia had been destroyed forever. Incredibly, the Khmer Rouge were to inflict even greater misery upon this unhappy land. To add to the irony, the United States supported Pol Pot, militarily and diplomatically, after their subsequent defeat by the Vietnamese; The Congo/Zaire 1960-65: In June 1960, Patrice Lumumba became the Congo's first prime minister after independence from Belgium. In September, Lumumba was dismissed by the president at the instigation of the United States, and in January 1961 he was assassinated at the express request of Dwight Eisenhower. There followed several years of civil conflict and chaos and the rise to power of Mobutu Sese Seko, a man not a stranger to the CIA. Mobutu went on to rule the country for more than 30 years, with a level of corruption and cruelty that shocked even his CIA handlers. The Zairian people lived in abject poverty despite the plentiful natural wealth, while Mobutu became a multibillionaire; Brazil 1961-64: President Joao Goulart was overthrown in a military coup which had deep, covert American involvement. The official Washington line was ... yes, it's unfortunate that democracy has been overthrown in Brazil ... but, still, the country has been saved from communism. For the next 15 years, all the features of military dictatorship which Latin America has come to know and love were instituted: … disappearances, death squads, torture … Washington was very pleased. Brazil broke relations with Cuba and became one of the United States' most reliable allies in Latin America; Dominican Republic 1963-66: In February 1963, Juan Bosch took office as the first democratically elected president of the Dominican Republic since 1924. In September, the military boots marched. Bosch was out. The United States, which could discourage a military coup in Latin America with a frown, did nothing. Nineteen months later, a revolt broke out which promised to put the exiled Bosch back into power. The United States sent 23,000 troops to help crush it; Cuba 1959 to present: Fidel Castro came to power at the beginning of 1959. A U.S. National Security Council meeting of 10 March 1959 included on its agenda the feasibility of bringing "another government to power in Cuba." There followed 40 years of terrorist attacks, bombings, full-scale military invasion, sanctions, embargos, isolation, assassinations ... The saddest part of this is that the world will never know what kind of society Cuba could have produced if left alone, if not constantly under the gun and the threat of invasion, if allowed to relax its control at home. The idealism, the vision, the talent, the internationalism were all there. But we'll never know. And that of course was the idea; Indonesia 1965: A complex series of events, involving a supposed coup attempt, a counter-coup, and perhaps a counter-counter-coup, with American fingerprints apparent at various points, resulted in the ouster from power of Sukarno and his replacement by a military coup led by General Suharto. The massacre that began immediately -- of communists, communist sympathizers, suspected communists, suspected communist sympathizers, and none of the above -- was called by the New York Times "one of the most savage mass slayings of modern political history." The estimates of the number killed in the course of a few years begin at half a million and go above a million. It was later learned that the U.S. embassy had compiled lists of "communist" operatives, from top echelons down to village cadres, as many as 5,000 names, and turned them over to the army, which then hunted those persons down and killed them; Greece 1964-74: The military coup took place in April 1967, just two days before the campaign for national elections was to begin, elections which appeared certain to bring the veteran liberal leader George Papandreou back as prime minister. Papandreou had been elected in February 1964 with the only outright majority in the history of modern Greek elections. The successful machinations to unseat him had begun immediately, a joint effort of the Royal Court, the Greek military, and the American military and CIA stationed in Greece … followed immediately by the traditional martial law, censorship, arrests, beatings, torture, and killings, the victims totaling some 8,000 in the first month … James Becket, an American attorney sent to Greece by Amnesty International, wrote in December 1969 that “people [were] tortured, usually in the most gruesome of ways, often with equipment supplied by the United States;” East Timor, 1975 to present: In December 1975, Indonesia invaded East Timor, which lies at the eastern end of the Indonesian archipelago, and which had proclaimed its independence after Portugal had relinquished control of it. The invasion was launched the day after U.S. President Gerald Ford and Secretary of State Henry Kissinger had left Indonesia after giving Suharto permission to use American arms, which, under U.S. law, could not be used for aggression. The United States consistently supported Indonesia's claim to East Timor (unlike the UN and the EU), and downplayed the slaughter to a remarkable degree, at the same time supplying Indonesia with all the military hardware and training it needed to carry out the job; Nicaragua 1978-89: … for eight terribly long years, the people of Nicaragua were under attack by Washington's proxy army, the Contras, formed from Somoza's vicious National Guardsmen and other supporters of the dictator; Grenada 1979-84: American invasion in October 1983 … Washington was again driven by its fear of "another Cuba;" Libya 1981-89: Libya refused to be a proper Middle East client state of Washington. Its leader, Muammar el-Qaddafi, was uppity. He would have to be punished. The U.S. dropped bombs on the country, killing at least 40 people, including Qaddafi's daughter. There were other attempts to assassinate the man, operations to overthrow him, a major disinformation campaign, economic sanctions, and blaming Libya for being behind the Pan Am 103 bombing without any good evidence; Panama 1989: Washington's mad bombers strike again. December 1989, a large tenement barrio in Panama City wiped out, 15,000 people left homeless. The official explanation for the American ouster was Noriega's drug trafficking, which Washington had known about for years and had not been at all bothered by; Iraq 1990s: Relentless bombing for more than 40 days and nights, against one of the most advanced nations in the Middle East, devastating its ancient and modern capital city; 177 million pounds of bombs falling on the people of Iraq, the most concentrated aerial onslaught in the history of the world; depleted uranium weapons incinerating people, causing cancer; blasting chemical and biological weapon storages and oil facilities; poisoning the atmosphere to a degree perhaps never matched anywhere; burying soldiers alive, deliberately; the infrastructure destroyed, with a terrible effect on health; sanctions continued to this day multiplying the health problems; perhaps a million children dead by now from all of these things, even more adults. Iraq was the strongest military power amongst the Arab states. This may have been their crime. Noam Chomsky has written: It's been a leading, driving doctrine of U.S. foreign policy since the 1940s that the vast and unparalleled energy resources of the Gulf region will be effectively dominated by the United States and its clients, and, crucially, that no independent, indigenous force will be permitted to have a substantial influence on the administration of oil production and price; Afghanistan 1979-92: Everyone knows of the unbelievable repression of women in Afghanistan, carried out by Islamic fundamentalists, even before the Taliban. But how many people know that during the late 1970s and most of the 1980s, Afghanistan had a government committed to bringing the incredibly backward nation into the 20th century, including giving women equal rights? What happened, however, is that the United States poured billions of dollars into waging a terrible war against this government, simply because it was supported by the Soviet Union. Prior to this, CIA operations had knowingly increased the probability of a Soviet intervention, which is what occurred. In the end, the United States won, and the women, and the rest of Afghanistan, lost. More than a million dead, three million disabled, five million refugees, in total about half the population; El Salvador 1980-92: Officially, the U.S. military presence in El Salvador was limited to an advisory capacity. In actuality, military and CIA personnel played a more active role on a continuous basis; Haiti 1987-94: The U.S. supported the Duvalier family dictatorship for 30 years, then opposed the reformist priest, Jean-Bertrand Aristide. Meanwhile, the CIA was working intimately with death squads, torturers and drug traffickers. [The U.S. goal:] Haiti would continue to be the assembly plant of the Western Hemisphere, with its workers receiving literally starvation wages; Yugoslavia 1999: The United States is bombing [ongoing at the time this book was printed] the country back to a pre-industrial era. It would like the world to believe that its intervention is motivated only by "humanitarian" impulses. Perhaps the above history of U.S. intervensions, can help one decide how much weight to place on this claim. (All the preceding from: Blum, William, “A Brief History of United States Interventions, 1945 to the Present.”)
5. Dufour, Professor Jules, “Review Article: The Worldwide Network of US Military Bases, The Global Deployment of US Military Personnel,” Global Research, July 1, 2007.
6. Bradley, Curtis A., “U.S. Announces Intent Not to Ratify International Criminal Court Treaty,” The American Society of International Law, May, 2002.
