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Bill of Rights Day

Today is it, and it brought a memory to mind. I wasn't in DC at the bicentennial of the Constitution, but I knew it was a big affair. A committee headed by the Chief Justice to organize it, celebrations, a huge parade with entries from all over the country, etc.

I was in DC for the bicentennial of the Bill of Rights, in 1991. I had expected something big... but it was nothing.

Then it occurred to me--DC is a company town, and the company is the federal government. If it wasn't for that, DC would be a small backwater port town, far out-shadowed by the better port at Baltimore. The Constitution created and empowered the federal government. The Bill of Rights restrained it. It is understandable that for the government, the Constitution is greatly to be celebrated, while the Bill of Rights is a minor thing indeed.