Why We Fight
A letter to Americans from Secretary of State Daniel Gallatin,
"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 to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness... 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."
Over three score years ago these words were written down and signed by the delegations of what would become the United States of America. This is our history, and what made us great.
But that is not enough. We cannot rest simply on what our forefathers did for us. This must also be our legacy in the times to come.
The Cameron administration understands this history and our need to continue basing American actions on the principles and ideals that make us American. I am in the region known as Alta California because of this. Here we see people whose government, lead by the despot Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna, does not support their unalienable rights. We have seen this before, in Texas. In Texas, people - including American citizens who like the people of Moses had gone from the land of freedom and were enslaved to the persecutions of a cruel master - were denied these rights.
We did not stand up for Texas then. We waited, dealing them no protection until they fulfilled their duty to rise up against the government to institute for themselves a new one which could better promote their safety and happiness. They shed much blood for that, but by the hand of Providence and our late support for the rights of man they were spared from the goals of Santa Anna to make Texas a "graveyard".
We now fight to carry out our duty towards our fellow Americans, and our brothers among all mankind - these men who have these inalienable rights.
We fight for the people of Texas. I said before that they were spared, but it was not fully so. Still, many Texans and American citizens residing in American property were under the persecution of the Mexican army in its occupation of Southern Texas. Such a grievous disregard for human rights and the sovereignty of our nation angers us.
We fight for the people of Colorado. Of Montana. Of Oregon. We fight for the border states, as Santa Anna has shown that he has no regard for borders, and his armies occupy or raid what they cannot claim and suppress.
We fight for the people of Alta California. Of the Nevada region. Of Deseret. We fight for the citizens of Mexico whose government has disregarded and trampled upon their rights. It is our duty as well that they might have new guards for future security. We will not wait and see them bleed for our ideals, lose their futures when we could have saved those futures. We will not wait to see them ravaged like Texas, and simply hope that again they might be spared complete destruction. We will fight for their unalienable rights because we can and they cannot - not without horrific costs.
This is our right, to serve the interests of mankind rather than the petty interests of feudal monarchs and imperial states. This is our duty, to protect and preserve life liberty and the pursuit of happiness for those who are oppressed.
This is why we fight.
Secretary of State
Daniel Gallatin
((the reasons why he is in Alta California will become clearer if I ever finish writing a little something extra I have planned))