Is the country known as America a free country? Are there allegiances to European countries currently? If you do a historical background on the United States of America, you could conceivably build a case for America still being under the control of foreign entities. Would you believe England being the major country that claims, (by some) and still has, (according to some,) control over America by legal rights? First, let us define the term Colony!
Colony
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
For other uses, see Colony (disambiguation).
In politics and in history, a colony is a territory under the immediate
political control of a geographically-distant state (or city, in ancient times).
Some colonies were historically separate countries, while others were
territories without definite statehood at the moment of colonization. The
metropolitan state is the state that owns the colony. In Ancient Greece, the
city that owned a colony was called the metropolis within its political
organization. Mother country is the term used to refer to the metropolitan state
by its citizens that live in a colony. Today, the terms overseas territory or
dependent territory are preferred. See also the United Nations list of
Non-Self-Governing Territories.
People who migrated to settle permanently in colonies controlled by their
country of origin were called colonists or settlers.
A colony differs from a puppet state or satellite state in that a colony has no
independent international representation and the top-level administration of a
colony is under direct control of the metropolitan state.
The term "informal colony" is used by some historians to describe a country
which is under the de facto control of another state, although this description
is often contentious.
Contents
1 Definitions
2 History
3 Colonies in ancient civilizations
4 Recent colonies
Definitions
In the modern usage, colony is generally distinguished from oversea possession.
In the former case, the local population, or at least the part of it not coming
from the "metropolitan" (controlling) country, does not enjoy full citizenship
rights. The political process is generally restricted, especially excluding
questions of independence. In this case, there are settlers from a dominating
foreign country, or countries, and often the property of indigenous peoples is
seized, to provide the settlers with land. Foreign mores, religions and/or legal
systems are imposed. In some cases, the local population is held for unfree
labour, is submitted to brutal force, or even to policies of genocide.
By contrast, in the case of overseas possessions, citizens are formally equal,
regardless of origin and it is possible for legal independence movements to
form; should they gain a majority in the oversea possession, the question of
independence may be brought, for instance, to referendum. However, in some
cases, settlers have come to outnumber indigenous people in overseas
possessions, and it is possible for colonies to become overseas possessions,
against the wishes of indigenous peoples. This often results in ongoing and
long-lasting independence struggles by the descendants of the original
inhabitants.
Colony may also be used for countries that, while independent or considering
themselves independent of a former colonizing power, still have a political and
social structure where the rulers are a minority originating from the colonizing
power. Such was the case with Rhodesia after the Unilateral Declaration of
Independence.
The term informal colony has also been used in relation to countries which,
while they have never been conquered by force or officially ruled by a foreign
power, have a clearly subordinate social or economic relationship to that power.
History
Colonization and imperialism in 1945. Originally, as with the ancient (Hellenic)
Greek apoikia, the term colonization referred to the foundation of a new city or
settlement, more often than not with nonviolent means (but see for instance the
Athenian re-colonization of Melos after wiping out the earlier settlement). The
term colony is derived from the Latin colonia, which indicated a place meant for
agricultural activities; these Roman colonies and others like them were in fact
usually either conquered so as to be inhabited by these workers, or else
established as a cheap way of securing conquests made for other reasons. The
name of the German city Cologne also derives from colonia. In the modern era,
communities founded by colonists or settlers became known as settler colonies.
The "age of imperialism" began in the 15th century with the initiation of the
vast Portuguese Empire and also the Spanish Empire in the Americas and lasted
until the mid-20th century with the dismantling of the British Empire. During
these centuries European states, the United States and others took political
control of much of the world's population and landmass. The term "colony" came
to mean an overseas district with a majority indigenous population, administered
by a distant colonial government. (Exceptions occurred: Russian colonies in
Central Asia and Siberia, American settlements in the American West, and German
colonies in Eastern Europe were not "overseas"; British colonies (or "overseas
territories") like the Falkland Islands and Tristan da Cunha lacked a native
population.) Most non-European countries were colonies of Europe at one time or
another, or were handled in a quasi-colonial manner. The European colonies and
former colonies in America made extensive use of slave labor, initially using
the native population, then through the importation of slaves from black Africa.
The Spanish colonial empire once encompassed all of South and Central America
except for Brasil, with few exceptions; it crumbled starting in the early 19th
century. After the Spanish and the Portuguese, the Dutch East India Company
(VOC-1602) and later the Dutch West India Company (WIC) took over a lot of
Portuguese possessions and expanded their large trade empire (See; Dutch
colonial empire). In the 19th century, the largest European colonial empire was
the British Empire under Queen Victoria, including India. France once held much
of Western and Central Africa, along with Indochina.
There existed various statuses and modes of operation for foreign countries,
direct control by the colonizing country being the most obvious. Some colonies
were operated through corporations (the British East India Company for India;
the Congo Free State under the very brutal rule of Léopold II of Belgium); some
were run as protectorates. Quasi-colonies were run through proxy or puppet
governments, generally kingdoms or dictatorships. For instance, it may be argued
that Cuba before the Revolution was a quasi-colony of the United States, with an
enormous influence of US economic and political interests; see banana republic.
The United Kingdom used Australia as a penal colony: British convicts would be
sent to forced labor there, with the added benefit that the freed convicts would
settle in the colony and thus augment the European population there. Similarly,
France once deported prostitutes and various "undesirables" to populate its
colonies in North America, and until the 20th century operated a penitentiary on
Devil's Island in French Guiana.
The independence of these colonies began with that of 13 colonies of Britain
that formed the United States, finalized in 1783 with the conclusion of a war
begun in 1776, and has continued until about the present time, with for example
Algeria and East Timor being relinquished by European powers only in 1962 and
1975 respectively (although the latter was forcibly made an Indonesian
possession instead of becoming fully independent). This process is called
decolonization, though the use of a single term obscures an important
distinction between the process of the settler population breaking its links
with the mother country while maintaining local political supremacy and that of
the indigenous population reasserting themselves (possibly through the expulsion
of the settler population).
The movement towards decolonization was not uniform, with more newer powers,
sometimes themselves ex-colonies or once threatened by colonial power, trying to
carve a colonial empire. The United States, itself a former colony, expanded
westwards by waging brutal wars against the Native American population,
including whole massacres of civilians, so as to make it possible for settlers
to colonize the American West. It also colonized Hawaii, and waged various wars
and conduct armed expeditions so as to assert power over local governments (in
Japan, with Commodore Perry and in Cuba, for example). European countries and
the United States, exploiting the weakness of China's waning imperial regime,
also maintained so-called international concessions in that country, a sort of
colonial enclave; the coastal towns of Macau and Hong Kong were held on
long-term leases by Portugal and the United Kingdom. During the first half of
the 20th century, until its defeat the Second World War, Japan, once afraid of
becoming a European or American colony, built itself a colonial empire in China,
Korea and the Western Pacific, using brutal military force.
Under the Geneva Conventions of 1949, it is a war crime to transfer, directly or
indirectly, the civilian population of a country power onto land under that
country's military occupation. The reasoning for this crime is apparently to
emphasise that it is now a violation of international law to annex territory
through military force. This phrase describes many of acts of colonization in
the past, and arguably outlaws colonization.
See also: British Empire, Portuguese Empire, Spanish Empire, French colonial
empire, Dutch colonial empire, Colonialism, Colonial mentality, Colonization,
British Nationality Law, Slavery, Imperialism, New Imperialism, settler.
Compare protectorate, Crown colony, dominion, Proprietary colony.
The Latin name colonia also became the name of several towns, the most famous of
which is Cologne.
Colonies in Ancient Civilizations
Assyria was originally a colony of Babylonia
Carthage was a Phoenician colony
Cyrene was a colony of the Greeks of Thera
Naples formed as a Greek colony
See also Colonies in antiquity
Recent Colonies
West Papua has been a colonial possession of Indonesia since 1969.
India was a Dominion in the British Empire until 1947. See also Crown colony.
Rhodesia was formally a colony in the British Empire until 1980.
Korea was a colony of Japan
The Philippines were a colony of the United States until 1946
Today, none of the colonizing European and North American powers hold colonies
in the traditional sense of the term. Some of their former colonies have been
integrated as dependent areas or have closer integration with the country.
Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colony"
Category: Colonialism
How did it all start? Was this already planned by the true intellect behind everything, Yahweh? America's forefathers saw opportunity when oppression arose because of religious belief conflicts. Perhaps a little history on this would be in order?
Until the latter part of the sixteenth century, the only Bibles available were printed in Latin. After the Reformation began the Geneva Bible was published in English. For the first time the common men were able to read the Scriptures for themselves. The Geneva Bible is the version that would have been most familiar to the older generation of Pilgrims. At the beginning of the seventeenth century, King James authorized another translation of the Bible into English, which still bears his name [The King James Version]. Until these English versions came into being, the common man was not able to read or understand the Scriptures. It was necessary for the ministers and church officials to tell the worshippers what was in the Bible and interpret the Scriptures. As the English translations became more readily available, the people were able to read the Scriptures for themselves, and controversies began to arise concerning the interpretation of many passages in the Bible. Other controversies arose concerning the rituals of the ch--ch service.
Taken from the historical study by Duane A. Cline
When the Bible was made available to the common man and his family, the influence by ch--ch, and ultimately state, was broken. Man was no longer subject to the interpretations of Ministers favorable to the state. They now could read, and understand what the Bible really said. This freedom gave way to new ideas. They saw the freedoms described in the Bible. They could read the Exodus story for themselves. They could see a way of escape from the tyrannical rule of their oppressive dictatorial Kings and Queens. The New World offered hope! It offered opportunity! It offered freedom!
THE STATE
CH--CH
At the time the Pilgrim Fathers were
living in England there was only one ch--ch approved by the English rulers.
Everyone was required to attend that ch-ch - and ONLY that ch--ch - every week.
If the English ruler were Protestant, all people of the realm were required to
follow the Protestant beliefs and attend those ch--ch services; if the ruler
were Catholic, everyone in the kingdom was required to practice the Catholic
faith and rituals. All religion in the kingdom was strictly dictated by the
government. This is what we call a "State Ch--ch."
The reigning ruler appointed the archbishop of his or her choice and every
ch--ch in the kingdom was under the direct orders of the ruler and the
archbishop.
There was no freedom to choose what a
person believed or how he could worship.
Anyone who objected to
the beliefs of the state ch--ch or the forms of the ch--ch services could be
arrested, questioned and thrown into prison.
If they refused to give up their personal beliefs, they could be tortured in an
effort to make them agree with the state ch--ch.
If they still refused to give up their
convictions after torture, they could be executed. Many people were imprisoned,
tortured and put to death.
Those who were executed for
their religious beliefs died painful deaths. Many were hanged and quartered,
some were burned at the stake, while others were crushed to death under heavy
weights.
There were two major groups of believers who disagreed with the beliefs and
practices of the Ch--ch of England. One group wanted to stay in the ch--ch, but
hoped to change its forms of worship: This group was called "Puritan" because
they wanted to "purify" the ch--ch. The other group did not believe the state
ch--ch could be changed: This group was called "Separatist" because they wanted
to separate completely from the Ch--ch of England.
At the beginning of the 1600s, a group of Separatists began to gather at Scrooby
in the northeastern county of Nottingham. Scrooby was located on the main post
road which ran between Scotland and London. When Queen Elizabeth I died in 1603
and James VI of Scotland was to become James I of England, he traveled the post
road on his way to be crowned.
James I was a Protestant and the Separatists were hopeful he would be more
tolerant of differing religious views. It was not long, however, before the
Separatists learned that differing religious views would not be allowed under
the new king. [Ibid]
Since the goal of modern historians is to rewrite history, and, to make it more, shall we say PC, (politically correct?) the true story is sometimes lost in the translation. In the aforementioned paragraphs we read the account of true tyrannical rule by ch--ch and state. If? You did not attend ch--ch each week, you were in trouble. If? You objected to the beliefs of the so-called ch--ch-state religion, you could be arrested, questioned and even imprisoned! There was no freedom of choice then! If you held beliefs contrary to the state controlled religion, you could be executed for those beliefs.
From where we sit, Americans are no longer even aware of the previous generations personal conflicts to make this country free from religious oppression! They take these freedoms for granted! Many Americans are spoiled, self-centered and selfish individuals, who would not even be willing to give up their MP3 or iPod players if called on to do so for National Security reasons, hypothetically speaking of course. My point? They would not even be willing to sacrifice anything for America today! This narcissistic generations concerns itself with self!
Are all Americans like this? No! There are still some who are willing to fight, yes, even die for freedom. They have the spark, no? the flame of freedom's passion, burning in their veins! They are willing to travel to distant lands and fight an evil aggressive enemy without any reservations whatsoever! While on the other hand! We are inundated with cowards who constantly consider surrender as the only viable option! Traitors! These traitors appear regularly in news columns, television talk shows, and guests on the MSM programming schedules. They promote treason and weakness at every given opportunity. In bygone days, they would have been executed for such actions!
I'm calm now!
Americans fail to realize the Communist, Socialistic influence present in our country now! Their presence can be felt in the State Department. How? By this departments Anti-Semitic stance against Israel, for one reason, that's how! Their presence is noticeable in our educational institutions called colleges. How? By the college's itinerary, enucleated as curriculum, that's how! Also, the current drive to remove every vestige of any religion from the public's conscience. Religion according to Communist ideals, is considered an opiate to or for the people.
The founding father's wanted religious freedom! They wanted to be free from governmental tyranny, so they fought for it, and won!
This ends Part One! More to come!
Yours in Yahshua, Hawke
© Truth on the Net Dot Com 2005-13
