> > * We could get into a long discussion about why the phrase "pursuit of Happiness" was put in (short answer: slavery) but suffice it to say everyone who signed the Declaration knew it meant property.
>
> I'll bite. What's the story here?

Basically, Jefferson's original draft was ripping off Locke wholesale and used "Life, Liberty, Property" the same way Locke had. When it got to the delegates at large, there was concern among the northern colonies that this would imply that slavery was a natural right. Slaves were considered property (if you were a slave owner, at least) so they decided to change it to "pursuit of happiness" meaning the right to earn a living. At the time, this basically implied the right to own land since our economy was almost entirely agricultural.

It's just saying that the government can't kill you, lock you away or take your stuff without reason, because these are natural rights. It has nothing to do with "being happy" which many people these days seem to think it implies.

I also think it's interesting among people who like to claim that all the founding fathers were evil racist slave-owners. If you follow the debates over the DoI and later the Constitution, you will see a very large number of people who wanted to make the practice illegal.

Stephen