America and the Beauty of the Constitution

The other day, our President actually said that he found the constraints put on him by the Constitution to be frustrating. He seems to be missing an important little thing. That is the point of much of the Constitution.

The Founding Fathers, a remarkable group of human beings, feared strong leaders. They also feared the emotions of the people. A combination of strong leadership. playing on strong emotions in the populace, is dangerous, very dangerous. So, they devised away to keep sanity in charge.

First, and I wish folks would get this, we are not a democracy. We are a representational republic that uses democratic voting to choose representatives. When you vote for Congressmen and Senators, you are electing representatives and when you vote for President, you are voting, not directly for a candidate, you are voting for a representative in the Electoral College, who will then vote for your candidate. This was done to prevent huge states from being overly dominant. Yes, it produces the occasional anomaly, like Trump, but on the whole, it works well.

Now, the constitution sets up checks and balances. The Judicial, Executive, and Legislative Branches each has their function and each watches the other. In essence, it prevents any one group from becoming overly dominant.  As a result, we govern by conversing, arguing, and ultimately, reaching compromises. No body gets everything they want, nor should they. A Texas rancher and a New York stock broker have very different interests and to accommodate every one is not possible at the Federal level. That is why the Fathers left a lot of issues up to the States.

The system set up by our Constitution is absolutely brilliant and I am very glad that Trump feels frustrated. He is supposed to; that's how things were set up. Let's keep things that way.

We do not want a Nation where the emotions of the population converge with the plans of a strong leader. The World saw that about 80 years ago in Germany and things did not end well.

America - Watch Your Backs

Today is the first real work day of the new Administration. I like the direction things are heading and this may work. But, it is going to be a very rocky road, at least for a while.

You are witnessing a massive conflict between two groups who are fighting over what will be the future of the Country. No, I am not talking about Democrats and Republicans.

For a long while, we have been maneuvered and manipulated by those wanting a powerful, central Federal Government, one that would ultimately blend in seamlessly with a powerful, centrist World Government. This is an old idea. In this Country, it really started to take hold when Reagan was shot and Bush 1 became the real force in Washington. It continued through the years of Clinton, Bush 2 and Obama. Forget Parties. They quibbled over fine doctrinal points, but in essence, they were the same.

The Plan, was that either Jeb Bush would become Bush 3 or that Hillary would become Clinton 2. Well, that did not work. Trump is backed by another group. America first is also an old idea, quite popular in the pre-WW2 days. Folks, after the nightmarish First World War, wanted no part of a Second. In fact, they elected Roosevelt because he promised to keep us out of any European conflict, before he dumped us into a European conflict. Woodrow Wilson did the same thing with WW1.

Folks, a lot of them, enough to upset the Election, have decided that we do want to put America first. Mind you, we are not wishing others harm, we h=just want to deal with our own business, ourselves. Seems reasonable to me.

Even more, we feel that States should deal with local issues, not the Federal Government. Think for a moment. Florida does not have the same issues that Montana does and New Mexico's problems are not the same as Maine's. So why does Washington feel it should dictate to the States.

In addition, different folks have different values and that is, mostly, protected by the Constitution. If a group of parents in Alabama have different thoughts on subjects such as education, abortion, gay marriages, and marijuana legalizations than folks in Massachusetts, the why should they not have varying laws. The Constitution does not cover these areas and says that anything that it does not cover, should be left up to the States. The Federal government only has the right to intervene when the States do business with each other and then it is to set up reasonable laws that respect all sides and that are to be enforced only during the interstate processes.

President Trump has surrounded himself with people who are America first people and people who want to take a lot of the money, and money is power, out of Washington and give it back to States and to individuals. Those who have just been ousted and those who are demonstrating in the streets are aghast.

The demonstrators seem to think that. left on their own, individuals will begin some combination of the Salem witch trials and the Spanish Inquisition. The Old Guard Power Brokers are frantic because their plans have come unglued. The first group are silly people who will soon calm down.

The second group will not go quietly. Look for them to pull every dirty trick and produce reams of fake news reports in their efforts to depose President Trump. Do not be taken in by them. Not now, not when we are on the brink of getting our Nation back.

However, they had best think twice, or maybe more, before they act, because, waiting in the wings is Mike Pence and he make Donald Trump look like a raving liberal. Stay tuned. This ought to be fun.

America - The Big Day is Here at Last

America, for good or ill, today, Donald J. Trump becomes the new President of the United States. Like him or not, all Americans should celebrate. We, as we do every 4 years, are about to  witness a peaceful transfer of power. I am not much on patriotic spectacles, but this one is special.

Maybe I over spoke in calling this transfer peaceful. Nonviolent would be a better word. God knows, this election has been far from peaceful and the term between the election and today has been noisy and somewhat chaotic. But, at its essence, this is a peaceful transfer.

What will come? There are a stunning number of people in this Country who want to see Trump fail. I find this to be utterly insane. Guess what, folks. If this Administration fails, then you are, like the rest of us, going to have a rotten few years. If the economy tanks, if we are beset by foreign enemies, if our racial divisions worsen, it is hard to understand how you can believe that is a good thing. You, like all the of us, will suffer greatly.

There are many citizens, including Senators and Congressmen, who are vowing to stop President Trump's agenda at every turn. This is irrational and reprehensible. If you wish to oppose certain aspects of the plans and have rational debate with the intention of reaching satisfactory compromise, fine, great. That is why you are there, But, to pledge a total block of everything proposed by Trump and his team, is borderline treasonous because you are undermining the safety and prosperity of Americans to further your own ideological agenda. Shame on all of you.

I did not vote for Trump because I did not trust him and because he had a habit of saying things that were just too off the wall. Well, he has backed away a bit from his more ludicrous ideas and he can do that because he is not an ideologue, hell bent on pursuing a set philosophy. He, as a businessman has had to be a pragmatist and look for practical solutions to problems.

I am impressed with his appointees. They are an extremely competent group and have made it clear that they do not agree with Trump on every issue. This proves his refusal to be attached to any set ideology  and the possibility that practical, workable solutions can be found.  He seems willing to listen to opposing views and alter his own when presented with new ideas. That is how problems are solved.

To those of you who are just anti-Trump, opposing him at any cost, I say this. Please, just shut up and go away. To those who disagree and want to make constructive arguments, get to it, because that is how work gets done. To those who are frightened by the rhetoric, relax. We have not elected the reincarnation of the Nazi party and you are not witnessing the rise of fascism in America. Everything is going to be fine if we can all just reason together.

America, celebrate. The Constitution is still intact and we are about to once again show the rest of the World the power of the American people. We do this every time we inaugurate, by way our election processes, a new President. Do not worry, do not fear. Stay calm, stay peaceful, and celebrate.

America - Will You Please Stop Whining?

I seriously believe that we have become a Nation dominated by whiny, spoiled brats. In the wake of Trump's election, we have witnessed days of idiotic protest. Now, of course, we have a right to protest, guaranteed by the Constitution, but no one has the right to go out and throw a temper tantrum. Yet, we have people burning flags, burning trash cans, breaking store windows, blocking traffic and disrupting folks who are just trying to do their business and make some money.

Peaceful, orderly demonstrations can be powerful tools for change. Throwing tantrums like an infant in a playpen is sickening.

What is worse is that these protesters have no idea how the Nation works. I have heard many declaring that Trump should not be allowed to take office. He won the election and cannot be denied the post. Many are saying that Hillary won the popular vote. True. That, and a dollar, might buy you a cup of coffee. The popular vote does not count. It never has. We are not a democracy. We are a representative republic and people need to get that straight. The Presidential election is decided by the Electoral College. The popular vote determines which candidate gets that states allotted votes. The candidate who gets the majority of the Electoral votes wins. One candidate winning the Electoral vote and losing the popular vote is not that unusual. It has happened several times.

Now, if people want to change that, fine. And, good luck to you. It would mean changing the Constitution and it would be easier to change the path of the Sun. Be that as it may, any changes would not be retroactive so, if you dislike  Trump, get over it.

It is time to get everything and everybody in this Nation back to work. If you are participating in these demonstrations, you are not working. If you want change, you will get that by hard work and that does not include breaking windows and starting fires.

When children lose, they throw fits. Adults accept it gracefully. If you protesters go to Vegas and lose your money, are you going to break casino windows until they give your money back? If you lose a tennis match, are you going to whack the winner on the head with your racket? Your side lost. Get over it.

America and the Constitution

A couple of mornings ago, I saw Glen Beck on CNN. In a surprisingly rational conversation with the host, Glen stated his undying devotion to the Constitution. This is certainly not surprising but, I have come to understand, it  is not a viable position.

Do not misunderstand me. I love the Constitution, just as I love my memories of small town America and my memories of our Nation's simpler times. However, to stubbornly cling to the past is foolish. I can say that because I have, at times, done just that. When you do, you grow stagnant.

My Dad loved the old days and spoke fondly of them often, but as he grew older, he grew more accepting of change and realized that things would not hold still for him. He slowly, but inevitable, came to enjoy, not all, but many of the changes in our culture. I, slowly, kicking and screaming at times, have come to understand that change is inevitable, and you cannot fight everything. This does not mean cheerfully accepting everything, but many of our changes, are for the better.

The Constitution was never intended to be eternal. Thomas Jefferson, who wrote much of it, said that he hoped it would be changed often lest, as he put it, it became nothing but 'dead leaves.' The document was a product of a time when America was sparsely populated and had a largely farm based economy. Jefferson lived long enough to see the first signs of the Industrial Revolution and knew that much of the Constitution would not work as time went on. In fact, he, seemingly quite seriously, said we should have a revolution about every 25 years, that an occasional blood letting was a healthy thing.

I once read a comment, and I wish I could remember who said it, that all politics is ultimately theological. Our view of God determines our view of government and many, such as Mr. Beck are stuck in the traditional Christian view of God as unchanging. They believe that everything God, according to Bible, has said is etched in stone. Thus, the Bible is always correct, and if you believe as they do, that the constitution was written by God-inspired men, then it must be unchanging. Jefferson and many of his colleagues would be amused at this since they were rational Deists. By the way, there are other interpretations of Christianity that are far more valid.

The World will change, that is inevitable. If you wish to remain a contributing member, you must change and guess what, that is not only fine, it is wonderful, because you stay engaged. Again, you do not have to follow every idiotic fad. You can retain many traditional values, adapting them to the current world. If you do not change, you will become irrelevant and isolated in your nostalgia. If you adapt, you can temper change with wisdom. If all of us who remember the past opt out, then the future will take a rudderless direction and God help us all. Then you will see a future society that will likely be a blend of Orwell's 1984 and Huxley's Brave New World. The poor and uncooperative will feel the wrath of Big Brother and will be crushed under his boot, while those who play along will be treated to a mindless existence, numbed by the best drugs and rigid programming, mixed with a bit of genetic manipulation.

Traditional Christianity is no longer viable in a World where Science has disproven much of the Scripture and History has dealt much of the rest a crippling blow. Likewise, the Constitution cannot stand as is. The World is small now, there are vast numbers living in urban areas, and, thanks to the manipulations of the mega-corporations, there are too many poor folks lost in a poverty that will soon become hopeless. Something must change because I can guarantee you that there is no more dangerous creature on Earth than a human with nothing left to lose, and. since I see no hope of businesses willingly changing, the Government must step in and begin to balance things. If not, before long, this Nation will be swept with a violence that will make ISIL look like church mice. and do not speak to me of the Churches as instruments of change; the little ones are remnants from an ignorant superstitious past and the big ones have become little more than a blend of social club and big business.

So, to Americans who remember the traditional ways, I say, get over it, and move on. Cheer up, it's not that bad. Change keeps you alive.