so, in the beginning, our founders gathered together to make a republic, not a democracy, and follow the path of Nature's Law invoked and prescribed by the leading thinkers of the day, past and present, to create a more perfect union based entirely upon the Rule of Law, not man.
Why was "man" out of the equation, we wonder? Because "man" was, and is, and forever more, imperfect; man is sometimes-- dare I say, many times -- wrong.
Or worse, sometimes man is evil.
Then again, sometimes man is just plum stupid... greedy, inconsiderate, self-serving, and rude...or man can be just plain bad...while we're at it, man is, quite often I might add, simply thoughtless, soul-less and heartless... and if we go down that road, let's just narrow it down to Dante's Seven Deadly Sins, or is it God's -- either way, we all know what they are, right ...
And if man doesn't ever fall in the "really bad" category, he is certainly deceptive, manipulative, and egotistical whenever it serves him best, and especially when it is a matter of gaining and controlling the general public opinion, persuasion, or sway.
From The 5000 Year Leap:
According to W. Cleon Skousen, as an individual, John Adams was not very popular -- but what the people saw in Adams, was a man they could trust, without any further thought, doubt, or concern. It was Adams who wrote this little tidbit, some time following his presidency:
"I do not curse the day when I engaged in public affairs...I cannot repent any thing I ever did conscientiously and from a sense of duty. I never engaged in public affairs for my own interest, pleasure, envy, jealousy, avarice, or ambition, or even the desire of fame. IF any of these had been my motive, my conduct would have been very different. In every considerable transaction of my public life, I have invariably acted according to my best judgment, and I can look up to God for the sincerity of my intentions."
And it was Adams, who often reminded his fellow statesmen, this:
"Our Constitution was made only for a moral and religious people. It is wholly inadequate to the government of any other."
And coming from another man and founder, Samuel Adams, he wrote:
"The sum of all is, if we would most truly enjoy the gift of Heaven, let us become a virtuous people; then shall we both deserve and enjoy it. While, on the other hand, if we are universally vicious and debauched in our manners, though the form of our Constitution carries the face of the most exalted freedom, we shall in reality be the most abject slaves..."
"But neither the wisest constitution nor the wisest laws will secure the liberty and happiness of a people whose manners are universally corrupt. He therefore is the truest friend to the liberty of his country who tries the most to promote its virtue, and who, so far as his power and influence extend, will not suffer a man to be chosen into any office of power and trust who is not a wise and virtuous man."
And here's one more, from James Madison:
"If man were angels, no government would be necessary. If angels were to govern men, neither external nor internal controls on government would be necessary."
Creating a nation that would encourage and develop civic virtue, in hopes of continually bestowing upon the public a flood of upstanding political leaders, began with the moral and civic duty to create a good people from the start; sound principles, values, and virtues was not political lip-service, it was true blue American public service, from the heart, from the right place, beginning with man's first intention.
Our problems of the day,
streaming live and in a chorus of continuous, voracious debate,
centering upon the political discourse of the moment,
throwing barbs and jabs at individuals
(people like Palin, Bachman, Limbaugh, Beck...) --
even entire groups of people (republicans, tea party, conservatives..) --
through outright character assassination and rabid vitriol --
taking turns taking pot shots --
pow, pow, pow pow pow
and simply showering the mainstream media with untruths
and linking something so unthinkable
to the entire right side of the political spectrum
is reprehensible,
disgusting
and
wrong.
That is man, acting at his worst, all the way around.
And now, to have politicians, wondering how they will continue to serve the public safely, heighten the debate on gun control, or even have the audacity, at a time when we are broke, to give a second thought to increasing the budget for congressional security -- and to top it off, act as if the rhetoric has always been one-sided, as if the Pelosi's, Reid's, Weiner's or Grayson's are angels...even Obama himself has been hopped up on using rhetoric for political gains. Are you kidding me?
And I guess MSNBC only spins a weave of proverbs and grace.
Please don't misconstrue -- it is essential, for everyone's well being, to feel free to live and work and interact in a safe, secure environment. No question. Congress is no exception to the rule, no doubt about it.
The thing is, if you really think about it, what happened last Saturday could happen again tomorrow; there is nothing keeping something like that from happening every day of the week actually from here on out, from here to kingdom come.
The only thing that truly keeps that from happening, is living in a country that not only encourages our people to be of kind heart, to take care of one another, to honor our mother and father, and treat our neighbors as ourselves, but one that TEACHES it, RESPECTS it, and above all, EMBODIES it through and through; the founders gave us principles and values to follow for a reason, for they recognized the first truth about man and built an entire nation from it, respective of the very imperfect nature of the beast that we are.
Guns don't kill people; people kill people.
A civil, compassionate, honorable society is made in America only by creating, and teaching, to be of good nature, to be good people; the duty begins at first breath, and ends at our last, for each and every one of us who share this nation, let alone the entire world.
Given that "the shooter" was a registered Independent, I am most certain, his horrific actions, do not speak of the nature of the entire body of independents.
But wonder how one person can make a difference no more -- for isn't it painfully obvious, and tragically true, in this moment; how an unconscionable act, by one person no less, can not only wreak havoc and destroy the lives of 20 innocent people, but also trigger an endless supply of careless, knee-jerk responses that in turn discredit friends, neighbors, countrymen and women of good heart -- all of us who lean just right of center who can feel it, one by one. throw a little more salt on our wounds why don't you.
All Americans -- feel real emotional pain -- and hold a heavy, heavy heart -- with what happened last Saturday; what happened does not usually happen, for by and large, we try to be of sound mind and body and act accordingly.
Tragically, the only person we can point to, is to the one crazy person who did it, Jared; who, for all intents and purposes, hindsight being what it is, showed all the signs he needed a little help; at twenty-two, Jared he is a man, who knowingly set out, in public, with a semi-automatic weapon to do harm -- and as we know now, he intended to do harm upon the life of Gabrielle Giffords and anyone else who got in his way -- and believed, he, himself, would not live to deal with the aftermath. He said his good-byes.
Look, one bad apple should not spoil it for the whole bunch, that's all I'm saying right now; this kind of regulation and continuous taking away of the freedoms and civil liberties of a good people is not the answer; for then, Sam Adams would be absolutely right on target in a people becoming 'abject slaves.'
Talk about a moving target, we seem to be missing the point; good people in, good people out. wax on, wax off. it is a tedious drill, but over time, it truly works.
Before I close, a few noteworthy individuals seem to stand out, reacting with eloquence and grace and compassion is Governor Jan Brewer; if you were able to catch her State of the State address you know what I am talking about -- of course, it wasn't a S of S address at all...understandably, that will be saved for another day. Her remarks were beautiful, thoughtful, unwavering in her commitment to hold the candle of fearless leader, even after being thrust into a state of utter devastation and loss.
Upon Gov. Brewer's lead, the entire legislative body gave a standing ovation to Daniel Hernandez, an intern of only one week for Giffords local congressional offices, who selflessly acted without thinking, and quickly came to her aid in the seconds after being struck by gunfire; he held her up, applied pressure to her wound, and spoke to her, calmly encouraging her to hold on while awaiting paramedics; as Gov. Brewer pointed out, he probably saved her life, without thinking of his own...perhaps another Adams in our midst.
America, in actions and in our words, let us do no harm -- today and always.
Make it a Good Day, G
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