The founders believed in a creator, who endowed every individual with equality and freedom. America was conceived around that truth, and the Declaration was an oath to that creator, a solemn promise that this new government would ensure the divine rights of its citizens -- life, liberty, and a shot at happiness. But the new government was overrun with debt. Furious debate roiled the continental congress. God-given rights versus materialism. Commerce carried the day, and the young country was on its way to becoming the richest corporation in history. In the process, America betrayed its oath to the creator. Economic growth was spurred by the whip and remained in the hand of the slave masters and their investors. The wealth generated by King Cotton was everywhere. The nation now prayed at the altar of commerce, but the spirit did not abandon those who had been enslaved, who brought their African gods with them to the new world.
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