Bill of Rights Video Blog

As announced earlier today, the Jefferson Area Libertarians sponsored a reading (out loud) of the Bill of Rights on Charlottesville's Downtown Mall this afternoon. The occasion was the 215th anniversary of the ratification of the first ten amendments to the U.S. Constitution.

The weather cooperated nicely: temperatures were in the 50s (perhaps even the low 60s) and the sun was just beginning to set, giving the setting a nice, even light that was neither too bright nor too dull. This resulted in some good photos, like this one taken near the big city Christmas tree at Central Place:



I was at the event and managed to get most of it recorded with my handy cell phone. Unfortunately, while the audio is pretty good, the video is rather blurry. Still, it's the words that are more important than the images.

The three gentlemen who conducted the ceremony were John Munchmeyer, Jim Lark, and Arin Sime. (Arin is also a candidate for the Virginia State Senate, running in the 2007 election in the 24th District.)

The ceremony was introduced by John Munchmeyer:

Then the three traded off in reading sections of the Bill of Rights, including the seldom-referenced preamble:

This was followed by comments by Jim Lark:

Arin Sime then spoke briefly about the threat to the Bill of Rights from eminent domain abuses:

Finally, John closed out the ceremony with a few summary remarks:

I thought it noteworthy that the commemoration took place just an hour or so before the beginning of Chanukah (at sunset), which may be the most libertarian of religious holidays, in that it memorializes a righteous uprising against tyranny.