The Declaration of Independence was signed by members of the Continental Congress of the United States, on August 2, 1776.
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Declaration signed!
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Benjamin Constant
“Commerce makes the action of arbitrary power over our existence more oppressive than in the past, because, as our speculations are more varied, arbitrary power must multiply itself to reach them. But commerce also makes the action of arbitrary power easier to elude, because it changes the nature of property, which becomes, in virtue of this change, almost impossible to seize.
“Commerce confers a new quality on property, circulation. Without circulation, property is merely a usufruct; political authority can always affect usufruct, because it can prevent its enjoyment; but circulation creates an invisible and invincible obstacle to the actions of social power.
“The effects of commerce extend even further: not only does it emancipate individuals, but, by creating credit, it places authority itself in a position of dependence.”
Benjamin Constant, The Liberty of the Ancients Compared with That of the Moderns, 1819.
“We were blessed to raise our three sons in a nation where they were free to be themselves and follow their dreams.”
Those eloquent words came from the lips of Khizr Khan, the Pakistani immigrant who spoke at the Democratic National Convention last week about losing his son, Capt. Humayun Khan, to a suicide bomber in Iraq.
Describing his family “as patriotic American Muslims with undivided loyalty to our country,” and charging that, “Trump consistently smears the character of Muslims.” Khan asked Donald J. Trump a great question: “Have you even read the U.S. Constitution?”
Then, reaching into his suit pocket, Khan pulled out a copy, adding, “I will gladly lend you my copy.”
Yesterday at Townhall, I declared Khan my Person of the Week. Not just because Mr. Khan is fond of handing out pocket-sized copies of the U.S. Constitution and told the New York Times that his “real hero” is Thomas Jefferson, but because he asked a great question.
Let’s ask all the candidates. That question, for sure, and three additional ones:
- Do you favor repealing parts of the First Amendment to allow incumbent congressmen to regulate their own campaigns and their opponents’ in regard to raising and spending money?
- In the Heller case, the Supreme Court ruled that the Second Amendment provides individuals a “right to bear arms” — will you appoint justices who agree or disagree with Heller?
- As president, will you issue an executive order instructing all federal agencies and police agents to cease any use of civil asset forfeiture?
I’ve got more questions. I bet you do, too.
This is Common Sense. I’m Paul Jacob.
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Slavery Ends
On August 1, 1834, Great Britain’s Slavery Abolition Act of 1833 took force, freeing slaves throughout the British empire.
Technically, it freed slaves under the age of six. On the August 1 date in 1838 and 1840, the rest of the empire’s slaves were freed, practically speaking.
August 1 births include Francis Scott Key (1779), composer of the poem “The Star-Spangled Banner”; American authors Richard Henry Dana, Jr. (1815) 
and Herman Melville (1819); and Thomas E. Woods, Jr. (1972), historian and popularizer of Austrian economics (pictured at right), podcaster of the Tom Woods Show.
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Simon Newcomb
[W]ith the progress of society, government has within its sphere grown more powerful and efficient, this sphere has not been greatly enlarged. But the sphere of individual activity has greatly enlarged, and with the spread of knowledge the individual has become better able to maintain his rights against society, and governments are becoming less and less able to manage him.
Simon Newcomb, Principles of Political Economy (New York: Harper & Brothers, 1886), p. 447.
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Townhall: Have You Read the Constitution?
What a question! But, even if you have read the document, it might be worth your time to click on over to Townhall.com, and then migrate back here for more reading.
- CNN: Khizr Khan Video of Full Speech at DNC
- Philly.com: Transcript of Khizr Khan’s Speech
- Arlington Cemetery: Humayun Saqib Muazzam Khan
- The Constitution and Bill of Rights
- New York Times: “In Tribute to Son, Khizr Khan Offered Citizenship Lesson at Convention”
- Washington Post: “Khizr Khan’s loss – A grieving father of a soldier struggles to understand”
- Heavy.com: “Captain Humayun Khan – 5 Fast Facts You Need to Know”
- Vocativ.com: “The Father Of A Muslim War Hero Has This To Say To Donald Trump”
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George Santayana
American life is a powerful solvent. As it stamps the immigrant, almost before he can speak English, with an unmistakable muscular tension, cheery self-confidence and habitual challenge in the voice and eyes, so it seems to neutralize every intellectual element, however tough and alien it may be, and to fuse it in the native good-will, complacency, thoughtlessness, and optimism.
George Santayana, Character and Opinion in the United States (1920).
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Pelted with Flowers
On July 31, 1703, Daniel Defoe — who would later become famous as the author of Robinson Crusoe and other literary works — was placed in a pillory for the crime of seditious libel. The sedition pertained to a satirical pamphlet he had published, “The Shortest-Way with the Dissenters; Or, Proposals for the Establishment of the Church.” 
The mob pelted him with flowers.
On the same date in 1912, Milton Friedman was born. Friedman became one of the most influential economists of the 20th century, and one of the most effective advocates of free markets, as well. His books include Capitalism and Freedom and two famous collaborations, A Monetary History of the United States (with Anna Schwartz) and Free to Choose (with his wife, Rose Friedman).
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Video: Why Free Trade
Free trade — Bernie hates it; Hillary has supported special agreements that increase its scope while still putting the government in a quasi-management position (and, pulled by Bernie’s supporters, has has some “second thoughts”); and the Donald has likened it unto “rape.”
But the case for the free market is pretty clear. Economist Bob Murphy makes the case, here, and puts protectionism in its place.
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George Santayana
A child educated only at school is an uneducated child.
George Santayana, “Why I Am Not a Marxist” Modern Monthly: Volume: 9 (April 1935); Page: 77-79.