I'm convinced the town I work in is full of crazy people.

[kandrathe]

... all really based on some old documents made a few 100 years ago. As mentioned before here, time when there was fear of the british or indian tribes etc. So very emotion-based is probably the best description.

No. I believe it was based on the best ideas of a what free society means going back to Greek and Roman times, if not older.

I think it is older, John Locke, Francis Bacon, Magna Carta, Presocratics (Democritus, Empedocles, Parmenides), Plato, Aristotle, Cicero, etc.