Citizens most certainly do own the country. It comes directly from the fact that all government power is granted to it by the people.
>That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed
To the extent that the land claimed as part of the United States belongs to and is controlled by the United States, it belongs to the people.
People certainly own an interest in the culture and have a right to keep it from changing too much too quickly and to fight and refuse the changing of certain aspects of that culture.
> Citizens most certainly do own the country.. To the extent that the land claimed as part of the United States belongs to and is controlled by the United States, it belongs to the people.
Citizens are the beneficiaries of a trust. The land is held in a trust. That is not the same thing as ownership. Think about it: in some other countries you can't even outright own land. That should indicate to you that your notion is overly facile.
The underwriters of that trust are all of the current citizens and more importantly all those that came before. In the USA that includes indigeneous peoples, slaves, naturalized immigrants, etc.
> People certainly own an interest in the culture and have a right to keep it from changing too much too quickly and to fight and refuse the changing of certain aspects of that culture.
Lol what does it mean to "own an interest"? I own an interest in blue spotted blue spotted stingrays - what rights does that bestow upon me with respect to the stingrays? None.
>Citizens are the beneficiaries of a trust. The land is held in a trust. That is not the same thing as ownership.
Citizenship is the most absolute (though diluted) ownership possible. I own a car, but if I commit a crime heinous enough I can have that confiscated as a penalty. On the other hand, in the United States there is no crime for which my citizenship can be revoked. What about the other elements of ownership? Participating in the decision-making process of the disposition of the property for instance... that's called voting or representative democracy or whatever you want to call it. At times, the government, acting on behalf and with the consent of people, has bought more territory, or traded it away to other nations. We employ a policy of absolute defense against any belligerent encroachers.
Looks like ownership to me. Calling it a "trust" is just the weasel words.
I don't care what you think - this isn't a creative writing exercise. Trust is the technical term describing the legal framework for much of the land in the United States
I will remember that you don't care what I think or want... so that when I hear you and yours whining after you lose another election, it will be music for me. Since no one owns any country, you will of course be encouraged to move abroad, where you will no doubt be welcomed for the progressive hero that you are.
>That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed
To the extent that the land claimed as part of the United States belongs to and is controlled by the United States, it belongs to the people.
People certainly own an interest in the culture and have a right to keep it from changing too much too quickly and to fight and refuse the changing of certain aspects of that culture.