As America celebrates its 250^th anniversary, it is worth taking a fresh look at the U.S. Declaration of Independence to rediscover how the principles embedded in this foundational document have provided the basis of a free society for a quarter-millennium. More than just a demand for freedom, and no mere list of grievances, David W. Livingstone regards the Declaration as a work of genius that speaks to all of humanity. In the worldview it propounds, human equality comes first, individual rights are intrinsic to that principle, and governments don’t “grant” rights but instead are formed to protect rights that every person already holds. The “truths” that America’s Founders proclaimed to be “self-evident”, Livingstone writes, have endured because they are true – and will continue to shine as a beacon for all.

By any measure, Canada is a success story. According to the recent United Nations World Happiness Report, we are ranked the world’s 7th happiest country (out of 156 listed). Yet more and more Canadians have lost their connection with where this all came from. Confederation was crafted by men conversant with the great traditions of Western political thought. What happens to our contemporary political culture, wonders David Livingstone, when we neglect these works and the permanent ideals they express? We need to remember, Livingstone argues, that our constitutional form of government is founded on enduring principles and should not be viewed as ongoing construction project.

Pericles, Lincoln, D’Arcy McGee, and the perils of unprincipled rhetoric

By Howard Rotberg, Mantua Books, 231 pp, $25 Howard Rotberg’s new book, reviewed by David W. Livingstone— Page 50 Rotberg sets out to show that tolerance has been “raised to the be-all and end-all of human existence” and to point out the problems that excessive tolerance brings in its wake: “It disarms our best minds and our future leaders from protecting the important values and freedoms for which our forefathers have fought, and even died.”