Let the Americans party like t'was 1799!
How the first Independence Day was celebrated:
Yesterday the 4th of July, being the Anniversary of the Independence of the United States of America, was celebrated in this city with demonstration of joy and festivity. About noon all the armed ships and gallies in the river were drawn up before the city, dressed in the gayest manner, with the colours of the United States and streamers displayed. At one o'clock, the yards being properly manned, they began the celebration of the day by a discharge of thirteen cannon from each of the ships, and one from each of the thirteen gallies, in honour of the Thirteen United States.
What can be more French and American than Lady Liberty?
The Statue of Liberty was nearly a decade late to her own party. By the time she was completed in July 1884, Bartholdi had spent 19 years on the project. Laboulaye had died the year before. For half a year, Liberty stood completely assembled in Paris’s 17th arrondissement, waiting to catch a ride to America. When she finally did, she was disassembled into 350 pieces and packed in 214 boxes.
It took 26 days on a frigate to reach Bedloe’s Island in New York Harbor, her new home. The pedestal wasn’t completed until April 1886. It took another four months to reassemble her skeleton and rivet on Lady Liberty’s pre-patina skin, which was still a deep, ruddy brown. And because the pedestal was so small, no scaffolding could be erected around her! Workers dangled from ropes latched to the framework, buffeted by the harbor winds.
On October 28, 1886, the Statue of Liberty was finally ready. New York held its first-ever ticker tape parade for her unveiling. And while hundreds of thousands cheered from Manhattan, only 2,000 people were on the island when she was finally opened to the public-a "tidy, quiet crowd," an officer on duty told The New York Times.
Go and enjoy yourselves, Americans.
13 comments:
"How the first Independence Day was celebrated"
Most of American "history" from that period is a myth.
For example, their country wasn't born until 1783. Also, the Declaration of Independence wasn't sign on July 4, neither did all signees do so at once. It would take weeks before all names were there.
Also, originally, they simply wanted a system that left them associated with Britain but free to rule themselves.
With all that in mind, it is very unlikely that the story of July 4, 1777 has even the slightest basis in reality.
~Your Brother~
The first draft of the Declaration of Independence was produced on July 2nd. The final draft was signed on July 4th with only some of the signatories present because, as British subjects, they would be tried and hanged for treason.
I guess they wanted an actual non-inbred leader for whom to vote.
"I guess they wanted an actual non-inbred leader for whom to vote."
For whom only they and other wealthy land owners could vote, like any rotten borough system. Whether or not these people were also inbred could be discussed. We'll just leave a pin in that with a rider that many of them were rank and file with Britain's loyal pirate navy (often as former members), even being settled in the colonies as part of Britain's penal colony system.
We could discuss why the document was not all signed at once, but that isn't the point. The point is the amount of myth that American "history" is steeped in.
I have no interest in perpetuating such myths and chose not to abide by any attempt to do so.
It's important to note two things ;
- the United States was not the first, second or even third democracy so contrary to what many would have you believe, there was not really anything new about them
- most of the freedoms the tote came part of amendments to the original constitution.
~Your Brother~
When did Catholics get the vote in England, of which the inbred King George III was monarch?
If America was a robber baron (or rubber button), the system from which it separated was no better.
Did Canada grant the vote to women because it believed in equality or the Liberal party give white wealthy women the means to secure their position all the while screwing Asians and Indians, rather like today?
Hint: the first part is a myth.
I'm not trying to make anyone else seem better. The contrary actually. In case it wasn't obvious, I'm illustrating that the founding fathers of the United States were just as bad as everyone else.
~Your Brother~
Yes, American aggrandise things. Still, their country was founded on a social experiment that, up until this point, worked.
"Still, their country was founded on a social experiment that, up until this point, worked."
Rome worked too. They also had legal slavery, child prostitution, death sports and religious persecution.
Mere survival isn't an accomplishment.
Having an empire, while impressive, isn't in an of itself worthy of praise either. Britain Jr needs to stop patting itself on the back.
~Your Brother~
Who said anything about mere survival?
Was Canada founded on the right to property, to arm oneself, to have representation and the government not interfere with churches? Is there any Lockian wisdom in Trudeau's Charter of Rights and Freedoms (also known as A Defense Lawyer's Guide to Winning and The Francophone's Guide to Power)?
However imperfect the US is, it can at least boast it attempted to embrace fundamental freedoms.
"Was Canada founded on the right to property, to arm oneself, to have representation and the government not interfere with churches?"
Was the US? Was anyone? No.
~Your Brother~
Yes, the US was.
No, the US was founded on letting the taxes stop in New York, rather than London. The the "freedom" to choose leaders was reserved for the people who the leaders would be chosen from, not even a loosely defined "general public."
Those other freedoms came later as amendments.
~Your Brother~
How long did it take for Canada to declare it should be separated from Britain?
"How long did it take for Canada to declare it should be separated from Britain?"
Technically it still hasn't. Why is that even an issue? Being separate isn't necessarily an accomplishment.
~Your Brother~
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