Unfortunately, Washington policymakers long ago buried a foundational maxim in their pursuit of dominating much of the globe.

“We, your Majesty’s faithful subjects…” began the petition beseeching reconciliation with King George from the Second Continental Congress on July 5, 1775. That offering became known as the Olive Branch Petition. The following day, Congress issued its Declaration of the Causes and Necessity of Taking Up Arms, explaining why hostile British troops would henceforth be gunned down on the battlefields of America.
Were the petition and the Declaration on Taking Up Arms sent to England on the same ship? If so, was a sticker attached to the Olive Branch petition saying, “Open me first”? The petitioners “entreat your Majesty’s gracious attention to this our humble petition,” stressed their “utmost deference for your Majesty,” boasted that “our breasts retain too tender a regard for the kingdom from which we derive our origin,” and stressed that they remained “faithful subjects” to “our Mother country.”

