Amidst the hot dogs and the fireworks, it's worth pondering the principles that Jefferson enunciated in that document.

The Declaration states that people have been endowed with natural, God-given rights and that among these rights are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. 

Let's focus on that last one. Is the pursuit of happiness a natural, God-given right or not? I say it is. I think Jefferson was right: The pursuit of happiness is certainly not a privilege bestowed on us by government. It's a right that preexists the existence of government. 

So, what is government for? The Declaration provides the answer: to protect the exercise of natural-God given rights, such as the pursuit of happiness. 

Is it possible for government to become a destroyer, rather than a protector, of people's rights? Of course it is. The United States is a good example of that phenomenon, given the power of the federal government to do such totalitarian-like things as assassinate people, torture people, indefinitely detain people, and punish people for drug possession.

What happens if government becomes a destroyer of rights rather than a protector of rights? The Declaration provides the answer: It is the right of the people to alter or even abolish such government and institute new government that protects rather than destroys people's rights.