This is my first blog entry for the Bartblog. So I angsted over it for some time. For my first entry I decided it was important to introduce myself and tell you how I think.
So here goes. The most important thing I can convey to readers is I truly love my country. Yes, I am a lefty, liberal, secular humanist, atheist and maybe a couple of other “ists.” Regardless, I fervently believe in the ideals enshrined in our Constitution. The unfortunate reality is we, the people, are not living up to the obligation of our Constitution.
Yes, I do mean the OBLIGATION of our Constitution. That is the way I think. I am certain that each of us, citizens of the USA, has a responsibility to be a part of the government of this country. It is not enough to begrudgingly pay our taxes and feel we’ve done our part. No, it is the responsibility of every citizen to care about our country and take an interest in nurturing it. Anyone who does not believe this is beneath my contempt.
So what do I mean when I say we have an obligation and we should nurture? It’s simple. Each of us should actually care about what our elected representatives are doing in “our name.” Yes, the government acts in our name – the name of the people. I know that’s a bit confusing these days since the government is pretty much acting in the name of Haliburton, Exxon-Mobile and other corporations.
Each of us has a responsibility to vote. In exercising that responsibility we each have the obligation to know who and what we are voting for. As the wise sage once said: “If you don’t stand for something you’ll fall for anything.” So I am certain we all have an obligation to stand for something. Blindly walking into a voting booth and pulling a lever is not responsible.
Responsibility is learning about the issues of the day and the candidates’ positions on those issues. Responsibility is volunteering for an organization that represents the values you hold dear. Responsibility is taking your role as a citizen seriously. Rights do not come for free. They have obligations. The first obligation is ensuring those who come after you will still have those rights.
Are you doing that now? Are we, as a people, ensuring those who come after us have a Constitution?
I hope we are.
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In our Constitutional Law class in law school, we learned that the Constitution is a contract between the Federal government and its Citizens. As you have so eloquently said here, it is up to us to enforce this contract. We as Citizens have done a pretty crummy job.
We also learned that the Federal government simply does not have the Constitutional authority to do many of the things that it does. Do you wonder why the Commerce Clause is inserted into almost every shaky bill? That’s the thin veneer of justification that they use to rationalize their otherwise-illegal actions.
Sadly, I think that the United States Constitution is a dead document. We as Citizens have neglected it for far too long and have transferred all of our power to our enemies.
Comment by bhelverson — May 19, 2007 @ 2:12 pm