Were Thomas Jefferson writing today, the baggy monsters with which he opens the Declaration of Independence would be hacked to bits by editors and spin doctors mindful of the need for quick sound bites.
United Nations inspectors in Baghdad have said the Iraqi declaration will set a "base line" of truth, and that any deceit by Iraq in the declaration could open the path to an immediate swoop by the inspectors on sites where banned programs are under way.
This novel opens with the declaration of the second world war, but Mitford completed it by Christmas 1939.
In Illinois, business interests are campaigning against the chief justice after a case that removed a cap on malpractice liability, prompting him to run a television ad that opens with the declaration, "I am not a politician".
It opens with the declaration that their Noble Lords' inquiry is based on a 'fallacy' and, although it frequently asserts that UK science will be immune to any ill-effects following exit from the EU, offers not a single link to external sources in support.
Garcetti spokeswoman Connie Llanos said the mayor's request to Brown had a pragmatic purpose: An emergency declaration from Sacramento would open the way to Federal Emergency Management Agency funding, which only the governor can formally request.
As West Hawaii Today reports, the declaration opens the way for Hawaii Gov. David Ige to make his own emergency declaration, which would provide state funds for mosquito-control efforts.
The Iranian filmmaker Mohsen Makhmalbaf opens "The Gardener" with the declaration: "I am an agnostic filmmaker".
Mr Suslu, who has a reputation as a table-thumper, opened the meeting with a declaration of intent.
20 Feet Tall opens the show with a declaration of power, slowed so Badu can savour the words on her lips.
