Two hundred and thirty-three years ago today, 13 Colonies boldly separated themselves from government they accused of having denied their God-given right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.

But because servitude comes in many guises, the celebration of America's independence seems like an appropriate time to assess whether this nation remains as free as it would like to believe.

According to USA Today, one of every six dollars of Americans' income now comes in the form of a federal or state check or voucher - the highest percentage since the government began keeping records in 1929. That's an average payment of $17,000 per household and, based on first-quarter numbers, reflects a 19 percent annual rate of increase caused in part by a jump in unemployment benefits. And that doesn't even include the staggering cost of President Obama's proposed health care reform.

To millions of Americans, that money provided freedom from want. But can a people comfortably and increasingly reliant on government support truly be free?

Thanks to those programs and a host of others, coupled with politicians' reluctance to pay for the money they distribute, the national debt is more than $11.5 trillion - nearly $37,700 per American - and is growing by $3.96 million per day.

Can people who demand such benefits for themselves while gutlessly shifting the bill to their unborn descendants claim, or even deserve, freedom?

Do we have the stomach for such honest self-examination? It's hard to say. A Gallup Poll last month found that the number of Americans who consider themselves politically conservative - which should include a commitment to sound economics - has risen slightly this year, to 40 percent. Thirty-five percent identify themselves as moderates and just 21 percent as liberals.

An ABC News/Washington Post poll, meanwhile, shows support for Obama and many of his proposals - while still strong - has begun to erode. Fifty-two percent of Americans believe his stimulus program will help revive the economy, down from 59 percent in April. Just 47 percent of Americans believe the country is on the right track, compared with 50 percent in April. Eighty-seven percent said they are worried about the deficit. Only 48 percent approve of his handling of the issue.

Yet a self-described conservative nation has elected one of its most socially and economically liberal presidents and, according to Gallup, has a newfound confidence in the presidency: 51 percent today compared with 26 percent a year ago.

No doubt the often-deserved unpopularity of President Bush and congressional Republicans accounts for some of that. But can a people who vote without knowing what candidates believe, or whose policy concerns are subordinated to politicians' likeability or charisma, truly be free?

The Declaration of Independence, the ratification of which we commemorate today, is too radical and contemporary a document to be relegated to dry history texts. It gave voice to the notion that legitimate political authority rests with the people, not the government, and that governments can and should be abolished when they abuse the relatively few duties specifically delegated to them, or usurp power to which they are not entitled.

Can a people who no longer know and appreciate the difference between authority and power truly be free?

I've made this point before, but it bears repeating especially on the Fourth of July: The right to pursue happiness is a far cry from the right to achieve happiness. One asks only to be left alone in an orderly society in which each individual's talent, ambition and character determines success and failure. By confusing outcome and opportunity, the other defines happiness not as the freedom to do or be something, but to possess something - a right others are legally obligated to guarantee through their taxes.

Can a people with such a shallow and narcissistic view of happiness be truly free, or even content?

The Founders knew better, establishing a nation in which government existed not to ensure its people an ever-increasing supply of stuff, but to protect their freedom and ability to do for themselves and others.

Eleven years after the Declaration was signed, Benjamin Franklin was leaving Independence Hall in Philadelphia after signing the Constitution when someone asked him: “What kind of government did you give us - a monarchy or a republic?”

“A republic, if you can keep it!” Franklin responded, putting the burden squarely where belonged.

The struggle continues. And as long as it does, freedom survives.