Principles of Liberty (Twenty-one)
By William Pressgrove
“Strong local self-government is the keystone to preserving human freedom.” (The 5000 Year Leap, W. Cleon Skousen p. 235)
“Political power automatically gravitates toward the center, and the purpose of the Constitution is to prevent that from happening. The centralization of political power always destroys liberty by removing the decision-making function from the people on the local level and transferring it to the officers of the central government. This process gradually benumbs the spirit of ‘voluntarism’ among the people, and they lose the will to solve their own problems. They also cease to be involved in community affairs. They seek the anonymity of oblivion in the seething crowds of the city and often degenerate into faceless automatons who have neither a voice nor a vote.” (W. Cleon Skousen, The 5000 Year Leap, W. Cleon Skousen p. 235)
When I read this paragraph, it hit me right between the eyes. There couldn’t be a more fitting description of what our society has slipped into. It seems that many in our society don’t want to get involved unless there is some sort of crisis for them to respond to. The Constitution was written to afford all members of society the opportunity to hold the reins of freedom in their hands and to give them the responsibility of maintaining it through involvement in the political process.
It appears that instead of being involved, we have abdicated the responsibility to govern to “professional” politicians who are just as susceptible to the enticements of money and power as any of us are. The Founders idea was to have a more or less “lay” government where the representatives would serve their two year term and then go back to their former occupation. Instead we have allowed individuals to homestead in their political offices. They have become comfortable in their positions and the powerful draw of fame and fortune have enticed them to entrench themselves so deeply in the “halls of Congress” that they have, like Frankenstein’s monster, “taken power unto themselves.”
In the search for that fame and fortune, the Federal Government has encroached on the rights and responsibilities of the States to take care of their responsibilities as well. Thomas Jefferson offered:
“The way to have good and safe government is not to trust it all to one, but to divide it among the many, distributing to everyone exactly the functions he is competent to [perform best]. Let the national government be entrusted with the defense of the nation, and its foreign and federal relations; the State governments with the civil rights, laws, police and administration of what concerns the State generally; and each ward [township] direct the interests within itself. It is by dividing and subdividing these republics, from the great national one down through all its subordinations, until it ends in the administration of every man’s farm by himself; by placing under everyone what his own eye may superintend, that all will be done for the best.”
Jefferson continues:
“What has destroyed liberty and the rights of man in every government which has ever existed under the sun? The generalizing and concentrating all cares and powers unto one body, no matter whether of the aristocrats of Russia or France, or of the aristocrats of the Venetian senate.” (Both quotes are in The 5000 Year Leap, W. Cleon Skousen p. 238 as quoted from; Bergh, Writings of Thomas Jefferson, 14:421)
It makes my skin crawl to see what is happening today to our country because of the fiscal apathy of the general public. “Let someone else do it.” “I don’t have time to get involved.” “I’m not smart enough to be in public office, let someone who is smarter do it.” Do these phrases sound familiar? That is because they are all too common in our society. That kind of apathy and self-debasement is just what Jefferson was talking about.
John Fiske, “one of the greatest American Historians of the last generation,” prophesied:
“If the day should ever arrive (which God forbid!) when the people of different parts of our country shall allow their local affairs to be administered by prefects sent from Washington, and when the self-government of the states shall have been so far lost as that of the departments of France, or even so closely limited as that of the counties of England—on that day the political career of the American people will have been robbed of its most interesting and valuable features, and the usefulness of this nation will be lamentably impaired.” (quoted in The 5000 Year Leap, W. Cleon Skousen p. 238 as quoted from; John Fiske, The critical period of American History, 1783-1789 The Historical Writings of John Fiske, Vol. 12 [Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1916], pp. 282-283.) Although some of the wording indicates that Washington would be sending “prefects” to the States, the idea that Washington would be running the show remains the same. We need to ensure that we awaken to the “sense of our awful situation” and take steps to return the governance of our country to its rightful sovereigns.
We can in nowise regain our rights to self-government unless we are willing to take upon us the responsibilities of self-government. However, I have lately learned that taking back those rights isn’t all that easy because of the power of the incumbents. They are being supported by professional lobbyist whose sole goal is to make money by getting Congressman to support pork barrel projects and earmarks for their clients. I strongly suggest and urge all who read this to see how this is being done by visiting the Independent Caucus website: http://ourcaucus.com. I knew that something was going on in Washington, but I wasn’t aware of the extent this corruption until I went to this site and listened and read all of the points they have posted there. Their research and expertise have given them the ability to put together the facts in the most compelling argument against professional government I have ever seen. These people are the same ones who unseated an incumbent who had a huge war chest in Utah and succeeded in replacing him with someone who has the interests of the people at heart. If they can do it and we can follow their example and advice, we will be able to take back our rights to self-government and show that we are willing to take on those responsibilities.
Saturday, April 25, 2009
Saturday, April 18, 2009
The Principles of Liberty (Twenty)
Principles of Liberty
Principles of Liberty (Twenty)
By William Pressgrove
“Efficiency and dispatch require government to operate according to the will of the majority, but constitutional provisions must be made to protect the rights of the minority.” (The 5000 Year Leap, W. Cleon Skousen p. 229)
This principle addresses both sides of the issue of majority rule. It first deals with the issue of what happens when more than just a simple majority is required to do business and then it deals with the rights of those who are not in the majority. Originally the country was governed by the Articles of Confederation which required a unanimous vote on all issues. That policy left the government totally inept. If the large states wanted a certain provision but the small states didn’t like it, it took just one small state voting against the proposal to stifle the provision. Therefore the larger states were held hostage to the smaller states and vice versa. There was almost nothing accomplished under the rule of unanimity because inevitably one state would object to something and vote against the proposal.
As explained by Earl Taylor in his class based on a course called American Government and U.S. Constitution that covers the principles in The 5000 Year Leap, it doesn’t make any difference what the percentage in the minority is, if it is any percent less than 50 plus one, it has the power to nullify a proposal, and the majority then is held hostage by that minority. That was one of the reasons for holding the Constitutional Convention in 1787.
But what about protecting the rights of the minority? Cleon Skousen addressed the rights of minorities in conjunction with the sixth principle concerning the fact that all men are created equal. Minorities have the same rights as the majority:
· At the bar of Justice
· At the ballot box
· At the public school
· At the employment office
· At the real estate agency
· At the pulpit (religious freedom)
· At the podium (freedom of speech)
· At the microphone
· At the meeting hall
· At the print shop
· At the store
· At the bank
· At the tax collector’s office
· At the probate court
So you see even if the minority looses in a particular political venture, they are still guaranteed the same rights under the Constitution. In essence then those in the minority can work to either educate others to see their point of view and become the majority or in the process educate themselves on the issues until they side with the majority. Either way, they have the opportunity to be part of the majority.
Now how does that apply to what is happening in our country today? Well, there was a multi-state/multi-city peaceful demonstration of people held this past Wednesday called a "TEA Party." Those at the protest had several different issues but most would agree that they all felt that the current government has perpetuated an encroachment on their posterity; with the stimulus packages for the economy (more spending of what they don’t have), bailouts of companies that have (through the help and encouragement of some government officials) failed and are bankrupt, and new spending for benefits that are bankrupting the country now (health care in particular).
These people who were peacefully protesting probably feel that they are in the majority. However, for many years complacency, on the part of the majority as a whole which preceded this past presidential election, has lulled many (of the majority) into thinking that there was no way that the minority would ever win an election because, “surely there will always be enough of the majority voting to win against the minority.” Sadly that was not the case this time. Too many of the majority stayed home and the pendulum of power swung past center and now inertia is taking it toward those who prefer to see government grow and take care of them and away from those who prefer to see government shrink and are ready, willing, and able to fend for themselves.
The major thrust of this movement is a forward looking band that would like to see their posterity have at least the rudiments of a standard of living. Instead they fear that their posterity will be, either enslaved to payments on a national debt that will eat up their living, or forced to live under the flag of some other country that owns most, if not all, of our country because they bought up that debt.
I guess when you come right down to it the majority is only the majority while all members of that body stick together. The minute that the majority forgets about the principles that make them a majority and become fractious because of disagreements on issues, they become just so many minorities. Those who were the lesser body and were called the minority but stuck together (no matter what the issue was that bound them) became the majority. There’s a lesson in there somewhere.
Somewhere I read that it is not common that the voice of the people will desire anything contrary to what is right, but it is common for the lesser part of the people to desire what is not right and that if the time comes when the voice of the people does choose iniquity, then they are ripe for destruction. In this case, I don’t think that the majority of the people chose to do wrong, but they didn’t choose to vote in sufficient numbers to maintain the right so, by default, they ended up in a situation they are not very happy with, and are now being labeled the disgruntled minority even though in reality they are probably greater in number than those whom the current government says they received a “mandate for change” from.
May we work to regain those correct principles and unite again behind them and make this country great. I advocate the principles and values of The 912 Project as well as the 28 principles found in The 5000 Year Leap.
Principles of Liberty (Twenty)
By William Pressgrove
“Efficiency and dispatch require government to operate according to the will of the majority, but constitutional provisions must be made to protect the rights of the minority.” (The 5000 Year Leap, W. Cleon Skousen p. 229)
This principle addresses both sides of the issue of majority rule. It first deals with the issue of what happens when more than just a simple majority is required to do business and then it deals with the rights of those who are not in the majority. Originally the country was governed by the Articles of Confederation which required a unanimous vote on all issues. That policy left the government totally inept. If the large states wanted a certain provision but the small states didn’t like it, it took just one small state voting against the proposal to stifle the provision. Therefore the larger states were held hostage to the smaller states and vice versa. There was almost nothing accomplished under the rule of unanimity because inevitably one state would object to something and vote against the proposal.
As explained by Earl Taylor in his class based on a course called American Government and U.S. Constitution that covers the principles in The 5000 Year Leap, it doesn’t make any difference what the percentage in the minority is, if it is any percent less than 50 plus one, it has the power to nullify a proposal, and the majority then is held hostage by that minority. That was one of the reasons for holding the Constitutional Convention in 1787.
But what about protecting the rights of the minority? Cleon Skousen addressed the rights of minorities in conjunction with the sixth principle concerning the fact that all men are created equal. Minorities have the same rights as the majority:
· At the bar of Justice
· At the ballot box
· At the public school
· At the employment office
· At the real estate agency
· At the pulpit (religious freedom)
· At the podium (freedom of speech)
· At the microphone
· At the meeting hall
· At the print shop
· At the store
· At the bank
· At the tax collector’s office
· At the probate court
So you see even if the minority looses in a particular political venture, they are still guaranteed the same rights under the Constitution. In essence then those in the minority can work to either educate others to see their point of view and become the majority or in the process educate themselves on the issues until they side with the majority. Either way, they have the opportunity to be part of the majority.
Now how does that apply to what is happening in our country today? Well, there was a multi-state/multi-city peaceful demonstration of people held this past Wednesday called a "TEA Party." Those at the protest had several different issues but most would agree that they all felt that the current government has perpetuated an encroachment on their posterity; with the stimulus packages for the economy (more spending of what they don’t have), bailouts of companies that have (through the help and encouragement of some government officials) failed and are bankrupt, and new spending for benefits that are bankrupting the country now (health care in particular).
These people who were peacefully protesting probably feel that they are in the majority. However, for many years complacency, on the part of the majority as a whole which preceded this past presidential election, has lulled many (of the majority) into thinking that there was no way that the minority would ever win an election because, “surely there will always be enough of the majority voting to win against the minority.” Sadly that was not the case this time. Too many of the majority stayed home and the pendulum of power swung past center and now inertia is taking it toward those who prefer to see government grow and take care of them and away from those who prefer to see government shrink and are ready, willing, and able to fend for themselves.
The major thrust of this movement is a forward looking band that would like to see their posterity have at least the rudiments of a standard of living. Instead they fear that their posterity will be, either enslaved to payments on a national debt that will eat up their living, or forced to live under the flag of some other country that owns most, if not all, of our country because they bought up that debt.
I guess when you come right down to it the majority is only the majority while all members of that body stick together. The minute that the majority forgets about the principles that make them a majority and become fractious because of disagreements on issues, they become just so many minorities. Those who were the lesser body and were called the minority but stuck together (no matter what the issue was that bound them) became the majority. There’s a lesson in there somewhere.
Somewhere I read that it is not common that the voice of the people will desire anything contrary to what is right, but it is common for the lesser part of the people to desire what is not right and that if the time comes when the voice of the people does choose iniquity, then they are ripe for destruction. In this case, I don’t think that the majority of the people chose to do wrong, but they didn’t choose to vote in sufficient numbers to maintain the right so, by default, they ended up in a situation they are not very happy with, and are now being labeled the disgruntled minority even though in reality they are probably greater in number than those whom the current government says they received a “mandate for change” from.
May we work to regain those correct principles and unite again behind them and make this country great. I advocate the principles and values of The 912 Project as well as the 28 principles found in The 5000 Year Leap.
Saturday, April 11, 2009
The Principles of Liberty (Nineteen)
Principles of Liberty (Nineteen)
By William Pressgrove
“Only limited and carefully defined powers should be delegated to government, all others being retained in the people.” (The 5000 Year Leap, W. Cleon Skousen p. 223)
With the state of affairs in our country today, this is one of the principles that must be considered most profoundly. Over time the federal government has taken control of almost all of the responsibilities that the States used to have. The reason this has happened is rooted in the 17th amendment: “The Senate of the United States shall be composed of two Senators from each state, elected to a six year term by the people thereof; and each Senator shall have one vote.” (Prior to this amendment Senators were selected by the state legislatures.) When Senators became subject to the people instead of the states, the balance of power between the states and federal government tipped heavily toward the Federal government.
Since that time, people have increasingly looked to the federal government to solve all of their problems. The politicians were more than willing to take on this responsibility because that gave them more power. Thus the pendulum of power began to swing to the federal government, and it hasn’t stopped yet. What the states legislatures didn’t realize when they ratified the 17th amendment was that once the Senators were elected by the people they would lose their voice on Capitol Hill. Cleon Skousen stated it this way:
“The Founders felt that unless the principle of dual sovereignty was carefully perpetuated, the healthy independence of each would deteriorate and eventually one or the other would become totally dominant. If the federal government would become dominant, it would mean the end of local self-government and the security of the individual. On the other hand, if the states became dominant, the federal government would become so weak that the structure of the nation would begin to fractionalize and disintegrate into smaller units.” (The 5000 Year Leap, W. Cleon Skousen p. 225)
Today people look to the federal government for all kinds of help that, prior to the 17th amendment, they would have addressed to their state leaders. By doing so, they have given more power to the federal government than is constitutional. Now “we the people” are starting to rise up against the oppressions of the federal government that we (speaking of the whole and not of individuals) ourselves caused by appealing to the federal government to provide us with what, according to the Constitution, the states or we ourselves should be providing.
The real danger lies in this, the pendulum of public action has started to swing back in the other direction of “peoples rule” may, because of the weight of it and inertia, carry the country past the balance of power to the opposite extreme of anarchy. Once that happens the country could fracture into the smaller units and we would be in the same predicament that the thirteen original states found themselves under the Articles of Confederation.
Alexander Hamilton emphasized this point when he wrote:
This balance between the national and state governments ought to be dwelt on with particular attention, as it is of the utmost importance. It forms a double security to the people. If one encroaches on their rights, they will find a powerful protection in the other. Indeed, they will both be prevented from overpassing their constitutional limits, by certain rivalship which will ever subsist between them. ((Quoted in Lord Acton, Essays on Freedom and Power [Glencoe, Ill.: The Free Press, 1949], pl 218.) (The 5000 Year Leap, W. Cleon Skousen p. 225))
One thing that has to be done to ensure the return of balanced government is to work toward a repeal of the 17th amendment which would put the state governments back in balance in the legislature. It would protect the rights of the states, and along with those rights comes the responsibilities that the federal government has taken over. It would then be the responsibility of the people to work with their state governments to provide the political stability and guidance needed to satisfy the needs of the people of that state.
In this lies a word of warning to those of us who are very angry at the Federal Government. It is good for us to let our leaders in Washington know that we are upset with the way they are stealing from our grandchildren and great grandchildren to support their “lifestyle” with pork barrel projects and earmarks. However, we need to make sure that the state governments are willing and ready to stand up to the tasks that will be laid upon them when we finally get the Federal Government to return sovereignty back to the states and to the people. We have to be willing to curb our lifestyles as well, and return to living within our means. That will mean some hardships for many of us that have been accustomed to having someone else take care of our mundane tasks. When we take back our rights to “life, liberty, and pursuit of happiness” we also take back our responsibilities for attaining them. If we don’t take back those responsibilities, or we think that it is too hard for us to rely upon ourselves, then we will fall back into the hands of the bureaucrats in Washington and our plight will be even worse than it is now under federal government control.
By William Pressgrove
“Only limited and carefully defined powers should be delegated to government, all others being retained in the people.” (The 5000 Year Leap, W. Cleon Skousen p. 223)
With the state of affairs in our country today, this is one of the principles that must be considered most profoundly. Over time the federal government has taken control of almost all of the responsibilities that the States used to have. The reason this has happened is rooted in the 17th amendment: “The Senate of the United States shall be composed of two Senators from each state, elected to a six year term by the people thereof; and each Senator shall have one vote.” (Prior to this amendment Senators were selected by the state legislatures.) When Senators became subject to the people instead of the states, the balance of power between the states and federal government tipped heavily toward the Federal government.
Since that time, people have increasingly looked to the federal government to solve all of their problems. The politicians were more than willing to take on this responsibility because that gave them more power. Thus the pendulum of power began to swing to the federal government, and it hasn’t stopped yet. What the states legislatures didn’t realize when they ratified the 17th amendment was that once the Senators were elected by the people they would lose their voice on Capitol Hill. Cleon Skousen stated it this way:
“The Founders felt that unless the principle of dual sovereignty was carefully perpetuated, the healthy independence of each would deteriorate and eventually one or the other would become totally dominant. If the federal government would become dominant, it would mean the end of local self-government and the security of the individual. On the other hand, if the states became dominant, the federal government would become so weak that the structure of the nation would begin to fractionalize and disintegrate into smaller units.” (The 5000 Year Leap, W. Cleon Skousen p. 225)
Today people look to the federal government for all kinds of help that, prior to the 17th amendment, they would have addressed to their state leaders. By doing so, they have given more power to the federal government than is constitutional. Now “we the people” are starting to rise up against the oppressions of the federal government that we (speaking of the whole and not of individuals) ourselves caused by appealing to the federal government to provide us with what, according to the Constitution, the states or we ourselves should be providing.
The real danger lies in this, the pendulum of public action has started to swing back in the other direction of “peoples rule” may, because of the weight of it and inertia, carry the country past the balance of power to the opposite extreme of anarchy. Once that happens the country could fracture into the smaller units and we would be in the same predicament that the thirteen original states found themselves under the Articles of Confederation.
Alexander Hamilton emphasized this point when he wrote:
This balance between the national and state governments ought to be dwelt on with particular attention, as it is of the utmost importance. It forms a double security to the people. If one encroaches on their rights, they will find a powerful protection in the other. Indeed, they will both be prevented from overpassing their constitutional limits, by certain rivalship which will ever subsist between them. ((Quoted in Lord Acton, Essays on Freedom and Power [Glencoe, Ill.: The Free Press, 1949], pl 218.) (The 5000 Year Leap, W. Cleon Skousen p. 225))
One thing that has to be done to ensure the return of balanced government is to work toward a repeal of the 17th amendment which would put the state governments back in balance in the legislature. It would protect the rights of the states, and along with those rights comes the responsibilities that the federal government has taken over. It would then be the responsibility of the people to work with their state governments to provide the political stability and guidance needed to satisfy the needs of the people of that state.
In this lies a word of warning to those of us who are very angry at the Federal Government. It is good for us to let our leaders in Washington know that we are upset with the way they are stealing from our grandchildren and great grandchildren to support their “lifestyle” with pork barrel projects and earmarks. However, we need to make sure that the state governments are willing and ready to stand up to the tasks that will be laid upon them when we finally get the Federal Government to return sovereignty back to the states and to the people. We have to be willing to curb our lifestyles as well, and return to living within our means. That will mean some hardships for many of us that have been accustomed to having someone else take care of our mundane tasks. When we take back our rights to “life, liberty, and pursuit of happiness” we also take back our responsibilities for attaining them. If we don’t take back those responsibilities, or we think that it is too hard for us to rely upon ourselves, then we will fall back into the hands of the bureaucrats in Washington and our plight will be even worse than it is now under federal government control.
Friday, April 3, 2009
Principles of Liberty (Eighteen)
Principles of Liberty (Eighteen)
By William Pressgrove
“The unalienable rights of the people are mostlikely to be preserved if the principles of government are set forth in a written constitution.” (The 5000 Year Leap, W. Cleon Skousen p. 217)
In reality, the only written constitutions that were to be had before the Articles of Confederation were those of either colonies like the charter known as the “Mayflower Compact” or the “Fundamental orders of Connecticut.” (The 5000 Year Leap, W. Cleon Skousen p. 218) Prior to that there were bills of rights written up, but not constitutions. The political affairs of the Anglo Saxons were governed by common law and custom both of which were unwritten. So having a written Constitution was traveling in uncharted waters to use a maritime metaphor.
However, since our Constitution has proven to be of great benefit for maintaining government on an even keel and served, up until now, to rein in politicians with voracious appetites for power, it has served as a model for the constitutions of many other nations. The underlying principle for having a written constitution is that it sets forth the consequences for its violation and parameters for its use. This type of guidance serves to settle many of the disputes that arise in nations without such a constitution.
As we move into the 21st century it has become apparent that this concept of living by a written constitution is coming under tremendous fire from those who have been maintaining the appearance of living by the Constitution when in reality they have been usurping power from the people and imposing laws and acts that do not have any basis in the Constitution. Today it has gotten to the point where, under the guise of having a “national crisis” the usurpers have taken it upon themselves to invest tax payers, including the taxes of future generations to the third and fourth generation, in the purchase of common stock in private businesses and in bailing out companies. All of this undermines the fundamentals of a free market economy and turns it into a collective run by the central government much like the socialistic nations of Europe have, which I might add have not been successful in maintaining their programs and are continuing to tax their citizens more heavily each year in an attempt to maintain them.
The only way for this country to keep this usurpation from happening is for the people who are the sovereign to take action and let the elected officials know that they are aware of the principles the Constitution is founded on and that they are our servants and not our masters. One way to do that is to join with the many that are gathering on April 15th to hold TEA (Taxed Enough Already) parties that are being held in most of the major cities throughout the country. Another way to let your Congressmen know your feelings on the individual bills of legislation they are attempting to pass is by writing/calling/e-mailing them each time they attempt to usurp the authority of the American people by instituting laws that take away our rights and responsibilities for self and family. Each time they take away more of our rights, it is in the name of security. So many people want their freedom to be secured. They give up more freedom than they secure with each new program to secure some freedom. People don’t realize that when government “secures” any freedom, they make demands and set parameters that restrict other freedoms in order to achieve their goal of securing that specific freedom. Example, to secure the freedom of having a government program for retirement, the freedom to use the funds you make are partially curtailed in the form of a tax to pay for the “social security” program. Even more funds are taken from your paycheck to secure freedom from medical problems for the entire country with Medicare/Medicaid taxes.
If we don’t do something soon, we will be taxed with a very burdensome tax to pay for the contrived culprit of “global warming.” All of our energy will be taxed to the point that you can’t use your furnace to keep warm because the natural gas or electricity will cost so much you can’t use (consume) them in an amount sufficient to keep yourself warm, so make sure you have enough quilts for the entire family or make sure that your relationships are in good repair because you might just have to huddle under the one quilt you do have to keep warm. Of course, that is said tongue in cheek, but it isn’t as farfetched as it might seem.
All of this comes from allowing politicians to deviate from their responsibility to adhere to the Constitution, as it is written. Politicians have expanded the meaning of the term “general welfare” to the point that the majority of the money we pay to “run the government” is being spent for social programs (none of which were ever in the purview of the Constitution under the hand of those who were instrumental in writing it). Today 61% of the national budget goes to pay for these social programs. (fairtax.org) We need to unite to turn this trend around and get our national debt paid off so that it isn’t a burden to future generations to the third and fourth generations.
Lets return to the principles the Founding Fathers put into place to secure our freedoms and then take responsibility for ourselves so we can protect them. Benjamin Franklin said, “They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety.” Following this principle will do more to restore our liberty and security than any amount of money that we can pay the government to provide security for us. God bless us in endeavoring to return to correct principles.
By William Pressgrove
“The unalienable rights of the people are mostlikely to be preserved if the principles of government are set forth in a written constitution.” (The 5000 Year Leap, W. Cleon Skousen p. 217)
In reality, the only written constitutions that were to be had before the Articles of Confederation were those of either colonies like the charter known as the “Mayflower Compact” or the “Fundamental orders of Connecticut.” (The 5000 Year Leap, W. Cleon Skousen p. 218) Prior to that there were bills of rights written up, but not constitutions. The political affairs of the Anglo Saxons were governed by common law and custom both of which were unwritten. So having a written Constitution was traveling in uncharted waters to use a maritime metaphor.
However, since our Constitution has proven to be of great benefit for maintaining government on an even keel and served, up until now, to rein in politicians with voracious appetites for power, it has served as a model for the constitutions of many other nations. The underlying principle for having a written constitution is that it sets forth the consequences for its violation and parameters for its use. This type of guidance serves to settle many of the disputes that arise in nations without such a constitution.
As we move into the 21st century it has become apparent that this concept of living by a written constitution is coming under tremendous fire from those who have been maintaining the appearance of living by the Constitution when in reality they have been usurping power from the people and imposing laws and acts that do not have any basis in the Constitution. Today it has gotten to the point where, under the guise of having a “national crisis” the usurpers have taken it upon themselves to invest tax payers, including the taxes of future generations to the third and fourth generation, in the purchase of common stock in private businesses and in bailing out companies. All of this undermines the fundamentals of a free market economy and turns it into a collective run by the central government much like the socialistic nations of Europe have, which I might add have not been successful in maintaining their programs and are continuing to tax their citizens more heavily each year in an attempt to maintain them.
The only way for this country to keep this usurpation from happening is for the people who are the sovereign to take action and let the elected officials know that they are aware of the principles the Constitution is founded on and that they are our servants and not our masters. One way to do that is to join with the many that are gathering on April 15th to hold TEA (Taxed Enough Already) parties that are being held in most of the major cities throughout the country. Another way to let your Congressmen know your feelings on the individual bills of legislation they are attempting to pass is by writing/calling/e-mailing them each time they attempt to usurp the authority of the American people by instituting laws that take away our rights and responsibilities for self and family. Each time they take away more of our rights, it is in the name of security. So many people want their freedom to be secured. They give up more freedom than they secure with each new program to secure some freedom. People don’t realize that when government “secures” any freedom, they make demands and set parameters that restrict other freedoms in order to achieve their goal of securing that specific freedom. Example, to secure the freedom of having a government program for retirement, the freedom to use the funds you make are partially curtailed in the form of a tax to pay for the “social security” program. Even more funds are taken from your paycheck to secure freedom from medical problems for the entire country with Medicare/Medicaid taxes.
If we don’t do something soon, we will be taxed with a very burdensome tax to pay for the contrived culprit of “global warming.” All of our energy will be taxed to the point that you can’t use your furnace to keep warm because the natural gas or electricity will cost so much you can’t use (consume) them in an amount sufficient to keep yourself warm, so make sure you have enough quilts for the entire family or make sure that your relationships are in good repair because you might just have to huddle under the one quilt you do have to keep warm. Of course, that is said tongue in cheek, but it isn’t as farfetched as it might seem.
All of this comes from allowing politicians to deviate from their responsibility to adhere to the Constitution, as it is written. Politicians have expanded the meaning of the term “general welfare” to the point that the majority of the money we pay to “run the government” is being spent for social programs (none of which were ever in the purview of the Constitution under the hand of those who were instrumental in writing it). Today 61% of the national budget goes to pay for these social programs. (fairtax.org) We need to unite to turn this trend around and get our national debt paid off so that it isn’t a burden to future generations to the third and fourth generations.
Lets return to the principles the Founding Fathers put into place to secure our freedoms and then take responsibility for ourselves so we can protect them. Benjamin Franklin said, “They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety.” Following this principle will do more to restore our liberty and security than any amount of money that we can pay the government to provide security for us. God bless us in endeavoring to return to correct principles.
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