To the editor:

A message to Trump’s supporters: I suspect we’re all familiar with a document known as the Declaration of Independence. Or at least we’re probably all familiar with the Preamble. If you’re unfamiliar with the entirety of the document, it’s included in that Trump Bible you bought but never read.

Part of the Declaration was a list of 17 grievances the colonists had with King George III of England. Some of the grievances included were:

Cut off America’s trade with the rest of the world.

Denied trial by jury.

Transported colonists overseas to be tried for offenses.

Ignored petitions for redress, answering only with more injury.

Other grievances included the King overriding laws, overruling courts, pardoning his minions when they violently did his bidding, declaring he had authority to ignore laws, etc. Sound familiar? Also, one of the earliest skirmishes the colonists had concerned a tariff they were being forced to pay, on tea, remember that one?

As for the part you do think you know, the Preamble, do you recall what it says? Here’s a reminder:

“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…”

It’s a little flowery, so I’ll paraphrase: All human beings, even non-Americans, are born with an innate set of rights permitting them to better their lives. With this understanding we allow governments to work toward that end and governments have no other purpose or right to exist, so when they stop doing that, it’s our obligation to be rid of them.

In the past, we, as a people, have harnessed the power of that righteous idea to overthrow foreign governments. We defeated the Nazis because they built concentration camps. We undermined the USSR out of existence because of their gulags. We did this because funding and operating brutal death camps is anathema to the American ideal. We know this because we abolished our own versions of this mistake apologizing for and feeling shame over slavery, the Trail of Tears, Japanese Internment, and more.

We as a people are better than this. If not, it’s time to wipe the slate clean and start over. At least that’s what our founding fathers said. Heck, it’s what they did. Examine your hearts, and if you find nothing there, examine your history books. The good ones, not the ones approved by the Texas school board. If you can’t find one, check the local library. If you can’t find one of those, blame the Ohio state legislature, and check with ChatGPT or some other A-one — sorry – I mean AI.

J. David Core

Toronto