"Independence Day; Life, Liberty and Fireworks"

- by Chris Newton -

July 4, 2001

The July 4th holiday is a day for gathering of family and friends in America. Most of us get the day off from our jobs to commemorate the Declaration of Independence by the thirteen original United States of America from the tyranny of the British Crown. This is a day many in our land take for granted, few of whom ever take the time to discuss the significance of the Founding Fathers’ signing and submitting of a treasonous document and the sacrifices they and those who fought ultimately made on our behalf. We enjoy the barbecues, baseball, swimming and of course the hallmark activity of any Independence Day – fireworks.

Today, some 225 years later ours is a Union consumed with Nationalism, one that often forsakes the fundamental principles on which our Republic was founded. Government entitlement programs and socialist agendum have taken hold of an alarming percentage of the citizens in this land. These are sold under the guise of compassion and fairness in an effort to buy votes from populist majorities to secure political power, subjugating the restrictions placed on government by the Constitution. Bureaucrats illegally taxing the wealthy to redistribute income Robin Hood-style somehow has become acceptable to most in our society. Over time many of the "inalienable rights endowed by our Creator," have disappeared. Most frightening about this is the fact we unwittingly yet voluntarily surrender them on a daily basis in exchange for perceived services to be doled out by the Federal Government. How can this be happening – surrendering our rights voluntarily? Let us count the ways.

Most of us being Natural Born Citizens of one of the 50 states of the Union, we are guaranteed sovereignty, just as the 50 states. This sovereignty, together with "inalienable rights" of natural law assures us power over our own lives. The Constitution specifically tells the Federal Government what it can and cannot do with "Enumerated Powers" in Article I, and sets aside anything not granted it or restricted from the states, to be granted to the states or the People (10th Amendment). The power to levy taxes in Article I is restricted to duties, imposts, and indirect excise taxes. Direct taxes can only be levied on the states themselves (not the People) and must be apportioned according to census data. Additionally, the Federal Government only has jurisdiction in the District of Columbia and possessions of the U.S. Government such as Puerto Rico and Guam, as well as "Federal Zones." What exactly does all this mean? You may not be ready to hear what it means, as the truth is often difficult to accept especially upon recognition of fraud and deceit. If you are like me, outrage is soon to follow.

The implications of the facts above don’t become clear until it is understood what the IRS means when they ask us on Form 1040 if we are a "U.S. citizen." Most of us mark yes believing this to mean we are citizens of the United States of America. The truth is, "U.S. citizen" has a legal definition in the U.S. Code which means a 14th Amendment citizen, who is completely subject to the United States Government and thereby not assured of any rights protected by the Constitution. Rather, they are given privileges by the U.S. Government. Confused? So who qualifies as a 14th Amendment citizen of the United States? Persons born or naturalized in the District of Columbia, Federal Territories or other "Federal Zones." This does not include Natural Born Citizens of the 50 states. Unfortunately, when we mark "Yes" on the IRS form stating we are a "U.S. citizen" we voluntarily give up our Natural Born Citizenship of the 50 states and thereby surrender all the rights which are protected under the Constitution. We volunteer to be "completely subject" to the jurisdiction of the Federal Government which means we have no rights, just privileges. What is the implication of doing this in our everyday lives? For starters, we "volunteer" to subject ourselves to IRS Code and to pay income tax. The Feds cannot levy direct taxes on sovereign Citizens of the 50 states according to the Constitution so what did they do to get around this problem? They defraud us of our God-given rights and sovereignty by getting us to unknowingly volunteer to be under their jurisdiction. There are much more than just tax implications here.

Disgusted yet?

We claim to be U.S. citizens in many ways, not just on our Form 1040. By accepting benefits from the Federal Government or by claiming any civil right – not a natural right, civil rights are privileges granted or revoked by Congress – we enter into a contract with the U.S. Government and agree to abide by any law passed by Congress, enforceable in Federal Courts. In 1940 the Buck Act created "Federal Zones" inside states which offers more opportunities for the Feds to weasel into our lives and claim jurisdiction. Post offices are "Federal Zones," and most of us would think this makes sense. But did you know the ZIP Code regions are federal areas as well? By accepting mail with a ZIP Code on it we subject ourselves to the laws of the IRS and all other municipal laws of the District of Columbia (neither ZIP Codes nor two-letter state abbreviations are required to send mail contrary to popular opinion). Social Security created Social Security Districts, or federal territories and the creation and assignment of SS numbers to individuals strips us of our state Citizenship. Fact is, no law exists requiring ust to have, or provide a SS number for any purpose other than obtaining federal services. Public Housing which receives federal funding is a "Federal Zone." The War Powers Act of 1941 gave broad powers to the President to enact legislation in times of "national emergencies," by way of Executive Order, a function that today is performed regularly and without any necessity of a national emergency. The Victory Tax, part of the War Powers Act, though voluntary was implemented by convincing Americans it was their patriotic duty to help pay for the WWII effort. Not entirely a bad thing one could argue yet this is what started employer income tax withholding, something most Americans today erroneously assume is required of them by Federal Law. We are victims here of the status quo.

Contemplating writing your representative in Washington for the first time in your life? There’s more, much more…

The Federal Reserve Bank, created in 1913 ironically coinciding with the first implementation of the Federal Income Tax, was responsible for the Great Depression and moved our monetary backing from gold to debt, all under the control of a few private corporations – the Federal Reserve and it’s branches are not agencies of the government but private corporations. When we are born the state and the Federal Governments make out generic birth certificates and use them as collateral to borrow money from the Federal Reserve, currently up to $600,000. Is it coincidence that when we die we are allowed to pass on up to $600,000 tax-free to descendants? Hardly. The U.S. Government borrows over a half-million dollars from each and every one of us at birth and exempts us from tax on that amount when we take the celestial dirt nap. How nice of them. Incidentally, the 16th Amendment – the one allegedly giving Congress the ability to collect taxes on incomes – in actuality does not repeal any of the restrictions from Article I and therefore is a "do nothing" amendment. Rights of property ownership and to travel freely in and among the 50 states including use of public easements (roads) have been held by high courts to be fundamental natural rights. Registration of our cars and state-issued operator’s licenses cannot be compulsory when measured against these. Has anyone ever known of or seen evidence to show our ancestors had to register their horse and buggy or to obtain a license to "operate" them? The list, already laborious, continues on and on. The Founding Father’s would be shocked to learn of these developments that rule the land they bequeathed us. Not so much that our governments have attempted to take our God-given rights from us, rather in how we have allowed them to succeed. They fully anticipated the attempts by government to acquire power over the People and put in place a series of measures to help us protect ourselves from such. At what point will we rise up and say enough is enough, just as they did?

As I sit in my apartment on this 225th Independence Day I wonder if anyone out there knows what is happening or even cares to know. Walking out on the terrace, looking out from the 29th floor as the sun has set over the hills in the distance hope springs in the form of a few pops and bangs. Spanning the city, celebrations begin erupting all over town. Not one of those municipally sponsored choreographed shows that synchronize to music for entertainment but thousands of random, individual expressions of illegal exploding fireworks. Individually none are particularly impressive however, taken in collectively from such a vantage point is indeed moving. To me, it signals that perhaps if the word gets out and the outrage swells from the grass roots there is still a chance to save ourselves from the oncoming certainty of fascism. Just as each of the thousands of Citizens of the 50 states in cities and towns all across the Union tonight express themselves with fireworks deemed illegal by the government, maybe the loss of liberties will be someday protested in kind. Both individually and collectively taking back our Rights, reasserting our Sovereignty and a government of, for and by the People.

We can reclaim our sovereignty and our natual rights. For most of the information here I must give credit to the Family Guardian Fellowship, Author of "The Great IRS Hoax: Why We Don’t Owe Income Tax." The Fellowship's years of research and solutions to how we can respond to these atrocities perpetrated by our own government can be found at http://famguardian.org.