The American Experiment and the Enemy Within

Discussion in 'Political Opinions & Beliefs' started by usfan, Apr 22, 2020.

  1. usfan

    usfan Banned

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    The Experiment in Self Rule.

    The American experiment was & is one of the most unique & world changing events in the history of mankind. It introduced a concept that had never been tried before: Self Rule. The mission statement of the Declaration of Independence laid the foundation:

    We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.--That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed.

    The key points in this foundation:

    1. The Equality of Man.
    2. Govt as servant, to secure the rights of the people.
    3. Natural Law as the basis for the organization of the collective.
    a. Right to Life.
    b. Right of Liberty.
    c. Right to choose your direction in life.

    So the founders crafted an experiment in self rule, based on specific tenets, & with a view to the ultimate goal: Self Rule

    This goal was spelled out in the crafting of the Constitution:
    We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defence, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.

    The goal was not a democracy, but a constitutional Republic, with fixed Law, based on immutable Natural Law, not subject to the whims of a majority. JUSTICE and LIBERTY were the primary goals of this experiment. Amendments were provided in the Constitution to clarify the specifics. Freedom of speech, religion, assembly, right to due process, arms, & specific duties of this new govt were spelled out with the hopes of sustaining the new experiment. There was even an amendment specifically forbidding the new government from going beyond its assigned duties.

    The idea of a representative govt, with regular citizens being the representatives became the cornerstone. There was not to be a ruling elite, or a noble class, but equal citizens.. farmers & shopkeepers, as the administrators of this collective organization. This election of 'citizen representatives' was a democratic process in the new republic. But it was not a pure democracy. There was not to be a professional ruling class.

    “We are a Republican Government. Real liberty is never found in despotism or in the extremes of Democracy… It has been observed that a pure democracy if it were practicable would be the most perfect government. Experience has proved that no position is more false than this. The ancient democracies in which the people themselves deliberated never possessed one good feature of government. Their very character was tyranny; their figure deformity.” ~ Alexander Hamilton

    "A government by representatives elected by the people at short periods was our object, and our maxim... was, 'where annual election ends, tyranny begins;' nor have our departures from it been sanctioned by the happiness of their effects." ~Thomas Jefferson

    "All [reforms] can be... [achieved] peaceably by the people confining their choice of Representatives and Senators to persons attached to republican government and the principles of 1776; not office-hunters, but farmers whose interests are entirely agricultural. Such men are the true representatives of the great American interest and are alone to be relied on for expressing the proper American sentiments." ~Thomas Jefferson

    This is a summary of the American Experiment. For most of our history, it was required for students & new immigrants to study these foundational concepts in a civics class, to learn about our system of self rule. For self rule to work, you need an informed electorate, with knowledge of the issues, & a firm grasp of the goals. The structure of the constitution provided a framework of governance, with the ability to change with the times. It provided a balance of powers, with various duties of governance split between separate & equal branches of govt.

    In a nutshell, here are the basic tenets of the American Experiment:

    1. Citizen Representatives (with subsistence & drudgery as compensation).
    2. Separation & balance of powers.
    3. Limited, subservient duties of govt.
    4. Emphasis on Liberty for the People.
    5. Constitutional Republic.

    Preserving the Experiment: The Oath

    To keep the experiment in self rule alive, it would be necessary to protect it from enemies. Power corrupts, & the founders recognized that there would be aggressive, aspiring, self seeking scoundrels, seeking to secure power & position for themselves.

    When extraordinary power and extraordinary pay are allotted to any individual in a government, he becomes the center, round which every kind of corruption generates and forms. ~Thomas Paine

    "Our public economy is such as to offer drudgery and subsistence only to those entrusted with its administration--a wise and necessary precaution against the degeneracy of the public servants." ~Thomas Jefferson

    To keep this foremost in mind, & to emphasize it for the citizens & the representatives, an oath was required for public service. All branches of govt were required to swear allegiance to the constitution, to preserve & protect it.

    The constitution requires the president to take this oath:
    Before he enter on the Execution of his Office, he shall take the following Oath or Affirmation: — "I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will faithfully execute the Office of President of the United States, and will to the best of my Ability, preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States." ~ARTICLE II, SECTION 1, CLAUSE 8

    Congressmen & justices take this oath:
    I, (name), do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; that I take this obligation freely, without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion; and that I will well and faithfully discharge the duties of the office on which I am about to enter. [So help me God.]

    Those in the military take this one:

    I, [name], do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; that I take this obligation freely, without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion; and that I will well and faithfully discharge the duties of the office on which I am about to enter. So help me God.

    Their oath was not to King, or Party, or region, but to an Ideal.. a principle of governance.. a document that outlines a system of self rule. The oath is very similar in all the different branches of govt. The common thread is to defend & protect the constitution from all enemies, foreign or domestic. THAT is their primary job. ..not pleasing people. ..not returning favors to donors. ..not pandering to special interests.

    The Enemy Within

    I believe there are more instances of the abridgment of the freedom of the people by gradual and silent encroachments of those in power than by violent and sudden usurpations. ~James Madison

    The most deadly enemy to any institution is not the overt enemy, but the false friend. Subversion is a deadly poison that corrupts the ideals & slowly erodes the power & efficacy of the original. We have been in a time of corruption & subversion for many decades, in America. The constitution has been under assault, not from foreign aggressors, but by domestic enemies...False countrymen, intent on destroying the experiment in self rule. The executive branch, in many recent administrations, has repeatedly ignored laws it is charged to enforce, & declared law outside of its duties. The judicial branch has overtly ignored Law, & legislated from the bench with mental distortions & rhetorical gymnastics. The congress has emasculated itself, & become a playground for elites.. a revolving door for riches for those seeking wealth & power, pandering to special interests, ignoring & trampling the very constitution they have sworn to defend.

    During times of war, the citizens of a nation are very alert to subversives, even to the point of paranoia, imprisoning Japanese Americans in WW2 & looking for communist sympathizers during the cold war. But it showed the root desire of national preservation from enemies. Communism was a real threat, & was spreading across the globe. The progressive left has ridicules this action in times of crisis, condemning the internment camps & the commie witch hunts. But they merely redefine the issue into some kind of bigotry, when the real motive was self preservation from an enemy. But this 'redefining' is part of the progressive lefts attack on American self rule. They themselves are enemies of American Freedom, & work tirelessly to undermine, ridicule, & trample the constitution. And their propaganda voices are complicit with their treachery. The media, entertainment, academia, & just about all American institutions have been hijacked by the progressive left, & are steeped in anti American, anti human ideology. They worm their way into govt agencies, & usurp the intent of the office of public servant into a ruling lord. They produce nothing themselves, but take from the working man, & use his resources against him, to undermine & vilify the constitution. They are crashing our own production planes into the towers built to protect & defend the constitution, & have perverted them into weapons against us, burning from within until they collapse the structure to rubble. They destroy the currency with manipulation & dilution of QEs, overload the safety nets with hordes of dependents, invalidate any meaning of citizenship with illegal, unconstitutional immigration, & corrupt the social consciousness with moral relativity & injustice. The progressive left is an enemy of America and self rule.

    The Solution

    1. Recognize the enemy. Rekindle the goal of self rule, & remove the conspirators against it. WAKE UP!! Your enemies have overrun you.. rise & fight!
    2. Fulfill your oath. You that have sworn to defend & protect the constitution from ALL ENEMIES, do it! What are you waiting for? If you do not, you are liars & enemies of American Freedom.
    3. Educate for freedom, & stop the leftist indoctrination for socialism. The propagandists are undermining the concept of self rule, & building fit tools for subservience. Promote the ideals of America, & do not allow them to be trivialized & demeaned for some statist plot.
    4. Stop the corruption & plundering of the treasury. Balance the budget, secure the currency.
    5. Return to the principles of citizen representation. End the professional ruling class, & the moneyed elite. Promote term limits & austerity for public service.

    It has taken decades for the slow corruption of the American ideals to take hold, & it will likely take drastic action to reverse it. This is not a time for timidity or compromise. Our liberty is at stake. The Constitution is under assault. It is time for patriotic Americans to rise up & defend our way of life, our system of government, & our basic freedoms. We owe it to our forefathers, our posterity, & ourselves. We owe it to humanity as the only successful experiment in self rule, to show it as a valid way of life. We owe it to God, who has given us this precious gift of freedom.

    This is not a matter of different opinions or flavors of American Liberty, but is Liberty vs Bondage. It is America vs treachery. These are ENEMIES of America.. they are not benign. They do not express mere opinions, but treason, as they attack the very foundation of the constitution. The future of America as an experiment in self rule is at stake. You can choose to be a citizen in a nation of self rule, or a subject in a nanny state regime. Passivity is choosing the latter. Make your choice wisely. The future depends upon you.

    "The issue today is the same as it has been throughout all history, whether man shall be allowed to govern himself or be ruled by a small elite." ~Thomas Jefferson
     
  2. Bondo

    Bondo Well-Known Member

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    Ayuh,....... President Trump, is that You,..?? did you hi-jack usfan's id,..??
     
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  3. RodB

    RodB Well-Known Member Donor

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    Outstanding!
     
  4. david gullikson

    david gullikson Banned

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    YEs, that reads that we must purge all liberals and Democrats. And install judges that are already OATHED to right wingers. Such as the oath to not raise taxes. We need to implement obstructions, so the will of the people is thwarted. We need to convince everyone that the constitution is set in stone, and it is unpatriotic to amend, or update the SOCIAL CONTRACT. In fact, the right wing wants to END the social contract.

    As I said, we are ALREADY in a soft civil war. I expect the right wingers to go hot any time now. And they will be puffing out their chests, as they attempt to murder MORE than half the US population.
     
    Last edited: Apr 23, 2020
  5. bricklayer

    bricklayer Well-Known Member Past Donor

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    It is easy to forget that, until 1776, almost everyone who ever lived was owned by someone else.

    DOWN WITH THE KING
     
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  6. Bondo

    Bondo Well-Known Member

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    Naw,...... Leftists/ democrats/ progressives ain't more than a 1/3rd of the population,......

    'n I'd rather just export 'em, to say Venezuela,.....
     
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  7. david gullikson

    david gullikson Banned

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    Right now, we have a monarchy, or at least an Oligarchy, all because we just had an olidarky.
     
  8. Mr.Incognito

    Mr.Incognito Well-Known Member

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    Its funny reading that last quote, coming from a slave owner!
     
  9. bricklayer

    bricklayer Well-Known Member Past Donor

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    Seriously? You're not satisfied? They're already living all stacked on top of each other. Heck, 85% of our nation lives in 15% of our country. I'm happy to have the other 85% of our country to us 15%ers. Aren't you?

    Come on man. Can't we agree that as long, as they stay in their densely populated enclaves, we will tolerate them living and pooping the streets.
     
  10. Bondo

    Bondo Well-Known Member

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    Nope,.... Not really, because they insist on rulin' over us, 'n passin' laws against us,.....

    They're not interested in live, 'n let live, unless you live exactly the way they tell you to live,.....
     
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  11. bricklayer

    bricklayer Well-Known Member Past Donor

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    That's a darn good point. It's just that paper thin constitution standing between us and them.
    People in densely populated places have historically exercised unjust powers over people in less densely populated places. Our electoral college helps to mitigated that.

    One of the things that makes the US exceptional, that is to say that the US is unique in this way, is that we prioritize the protection and defense of individual liberty over the general welfare.
     
    Last edited: Apr 23, 2020
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  12. Bob0627

    Bob0627 Well-Known Member

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    Excellent post and quite accurate

    In addition to or in concert with the above, the following are Proposed Amendments to the Constitution of the United States:

    1. We need a legitimate process to enforce the Constitution on government. That would mean among other things, taking away qualified and absolute immunity for government servants.

    2. We need to repeal the Federal Reserve Act and enforce Article I Section 8 Paragraph 5 (To coin Money, regulate the Value thereof, and of foreign Coin, and fix the Standard of Weights and Measures;).

    3. We need to remove the seized power of the judiciary to "interpret" the Constitution. With that, we need a system that reviews all proposed legislation for constitutional compliance and return all non-compliant bills to the legislature for correction. This should be controlled similarly to a jury system (in the hands of The People). Judicial review would be limited to interpreting laws for constitutional compliance, not the Constitution itself. Judges should be also be elected and serve no more than 2 terms of no more than 6 years each.

    4. We need to make corporate lobbying illegal. Only people lobbies would be legal.

    5. We need to make corporate campaign contributions illegal (overturning SEC vs Citizens United and along with it protected corporate "rights"). Only contributions by ordinary people would be legal and limited to a maximum per person per candidate per office.

    6. We need to repeal the 16th Amendment and end the income tax permanently. Along with that disband the IRS.

    7. We need to enforce Article I Section 8 Paragraph 11 (To declare War, grant Letters of Marque and Reprisal, and make Rules concerning Captures on Land and Water;) and remove all such decisions from the Executive.

    8. All candidates for public office should be required to pass a rigorous test on the Constitution and be barred from running for office if they cannot answer at least 90% of the questions correctly.

    9. A petition to Amend the Constitution (or repeal an Amendment*) can be submitted by any verified American citizen at any time. And any petition to Amend must be supported by a minimum of 50,000 signatures (this number can be modified to what may be considered reasonable) by verified American citizens to be achieved no later than 90 days prior to Election Day (the time period can also be modified to what is appropriate). Once enough signatures are obtained, the proposed Amendment is voted on within the originating state on Election Day (just Yes or No). If a vote achieves a 60% Yes vote or more, the proposed Amendment is then placed on the ballot in every state the following Election Day and is deemed ratified when passed by 60% or more of the states by 60% or more Yes votes per state.

    * Note: The Bill of Rights would be exempt when proposing any repeal.

    The above can be found at the thread at the below link:

    http://www.politicalforum.com/index.php?threads/proposed-constitutional-amendments.507699/
     
  13. Daniel Light

    Daniel Light Well-Known Member

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    And 75% of the nation's GDP is generated in those densely populated areas. All the major sea ports and airports. Most
    of the medical research centers and Universities. Most of the tech industry. All located in larger population zones. The entire banking and stock market economy.
    Did you ever consider the whole picture when you wrote this post?
    It takes a centralized work force to operate these large infrastructure and research areas, so duh, more people in a small geographic area.
     
    Last edited: Apr 23, 2020
  14. Distraff

    Distraff Well-Known Member

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    This experiment of almost perfect freedom has failed. With advancing technology, we humans have more and more ability to destroy each other and our planet. Without national action, we can't fight viruses, protect the environment, prevent anthroprogenic climate change, and prevent nuclear war. One day, weapons like nukes will be easier to build, AIs will be created that can do immense damage, viruses can be created that can wipe out humanity, and possibly humanity ending nanobots and robots will be created. Machines will one day take most human jobs, and we will need a UBI to ensure that the people reap the rewards rather than just those at the top.
     
  15. Daniel Light

    Daniel Light Well-Known Member

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    Given that the post is in complete sentences, we can easily rule out that it came from Trump.
    But the OP should have credited the original author.
     
  16. usfan

    usfan Banned

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    I am the original author.

    I will take the accusation of plagiarism as a compliment.

    But, i do agree that Trump is not as eloquent, nor does he employ a wide vocabulary.. he must appeal to the lowest common denominator, while i can address concepts and ideology with the full spectrum of the English language.

    I also do not see Trump, or most republicans, viewing progressives as enemies of America.. domestic enemies, that should be exposed and resisted with greater concern. My warning here is an alarm for the Soul of America. She can either return to the values she was founded upon, or be transformed into a collectivist nightmare, and end the experiment.

    The choice belongs to this generation, and those who have sworn an oath to defend her from all enemies..
     
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  17. bricklayer

    bricklayer Well-Known Member Past Donor

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    We are being fundamentally transformed from a nation of people endowed by their Creator with certain and unalienable rights into a nation of people endowed by each other with uncertain and arbitrary entitlements.
     
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  18. Daniel Light

    Daniel Light Well-Known Member

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    Bull crap.

    Far more American Citizens have fundamental rights - the right to vote, the right to personal property, the right to marry - than they had in the first 50 years after the Constitution was ratified. It' like you ignore women, and millions of
    other minorities in an attempt to whitewash our history and fit it in a warped narrative.
     
    Last edited: Apr 23, 2020
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  19. ImNotOliver

    ImNotOliver Well-Known Member

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    You seem to have hit the nail on the head, that conservatives would prefer everyone not like them dead, or at least removed from the country, even if that means putting lots if people in overcrowded prisons. Believe they way they do or suffer the consequences.

    I find it funny, well not exactly funny, maybe deceptive is more the word for it, that conservatives, especially the libertarian variety, like to quote Jefferson, Madison, and Paine. Yet it seems to me that the ideologies of Jefferson, Madison, and Paine were quite the opposite of what those like the OP peddles.

    First, central to both Jefferson and Paine's ideologies was to diminish the role of religion in public policy. Not exactly a Republican talking point.

    More to the subject at hand, Jefferson thought that as many people as possible should vote. That voting should be accessible, widespread and often. It was central to his political Philosophy. The idea that no one man is truly qualified to rule over others, and as such the "people" should decide our direction by voting to elect the appropriate office holders. He expected that the people may go too far one way, but that changing sentiments would swing things the other way. So that even though the average man may not be on top of things, the various forces balance out and lead society in what should be the ideal path.

    Yet if one reads the OP, one sees that a democracy is the problem. That only the right kinds of people should be allowed to vote, exactly the opposite of what Jefferson fought for.
     
  20. RodB

    RodB Well-Known Member Donor

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    This is such an idle inane rant it does not deserve a response, yet here I go.

    Taken literally, which you did not intend or imply, that statement is correct. But neither Jefferson nor Paine wanted religion to be excluded from all government functions.

    Not correct. Jefferson thought as many eligible people as possible should vote. He thought that no ineligible people should be allowed to vote. He did not fully explain this because he assumed it was second nature and of course natural.

    By accessible he meant the voting locations should be readily close and convenient, meaning, for an extreme example, a state could not get away with just one or two voting locations. He did not mean that the voting process be open, like early, late, in absentia or by post or carrier pigeon. usfan does not need my help, but he means, like Jefferson, that eligible and only eligible people are the "right kind" of voters, and that democracy per se is not a liberty sustaining system, though voting and elections are.
     
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  21. yabberefugee

    yabberefugee Well-Known Member Past Donor

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    Is there any sane content to the pst above?? .....or is it just me?
     
  22. yabberefugee

    yabberefugee Well-Known Member Past Donor

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    We just understand you have a general disdain for America, it's traditions and the President. Nothing new here at all.
     
  23. RodB

    RodB Well-Known Member Donor

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    No, and it is not you........
     
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  24. FreshAir

    FreshAir Well-Known Member Past Donor

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    much of the issues in this country are caused by Corporatism which is killing capitalism

    excessive foreign outsourcing and foreign imports

    and of course foreigners using our social media to divide us, by pretending to be us
     
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  25. FreshAir

    FreshAir Well-Known Member Past Donor

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    people are becoming less religious, religion has less influence on our government, that is also one of our freedoms

    secular rights trump religious rule

    in early times people thought they had a God given right to own slaves.... using religion to justify bad acts and deny equality is wrong
     
    Last edited: Apr 24, 2020
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