The Declaration of courage

The Declaration of Independence's perfect blend of words and ideals, though utterly familiar, still stirs awe. But that amazing document's themes, and its signers, weren't merely wise. They were brave.

The Declaration's most famous, and uplifting, passage: "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness."

That straightforward sentence's timeless appeal remains, to borrow from it, self-evident. But Thomas Jefferson, who wrote the Declaration (with editing help from Benjamin Franklin, John Adams, Roger Sherman and Robert Livingston), didn't stop there.

While pointing out "that Governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes," they affirmed that "when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future security."

Thus, the Declaration's signers ended their "patient sufferance" by daring to reject the British crown's "absolute Tyranny over these States."

Those were, and are, extraordinarily powerful words. Yet the Declaration of Independence was much more than a profound and well-written argument. It was a daring action fraught with grave peril for its 56 signatories.

Hence, the closing line: "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."

The consequences of that pledge were severe for many of the signers. Among their losses were their lives, sons, homes and fortunes. South Carolina's Edward Rutledge, Thomas Heyward and Arthur Middleton all were captured when Charleston fell in 1780. Our state's other signer, Thomas Lynch, died in 1779 when a ship he was on, bound for Europe, disappeared.

So today, celebrate not just the eloquence but the courage of those who gave us our Declaration of Independence — and our continuing national experiment in self-government. Celebrate, too, this reminder of our continuing zeal for having our grievances, however slight, fairly redressed:

The city of Charleston this week backed away from its initial plan to ban July Fourth revelers from "tailgate" cooking in the parking lot before tonight's Dave Matthews Band concert at Joseph P. Riley Park. The ban on "tailgate" beer, however, remains in effect.

As you fret about these and other perceived modern aggravations, including the rising price of gasoline and the rising level of local traffic, remember the far graver challenges faced by our founding fathers. And remember that they made our ongoing pursuit of happiness possible with not just their inspiring words, but their inspiring valor.