The Pamphlet

Short essays and lectures to try moving forward

[the-pamphlet]

When the course of human events endeavor to repeat themselves, it is necessary and proper for a nation of diverse people to re-assert their beliefs and trust in the idea of self-evident truths, realizations, and inalienable rights. That a government institutuded by said is created by, and sustained by, the will and consent of the governed. That such a government must serve the needs of the governed, not the governing. That such a government must provide for and promote the general welfare of all the people engaged in mutual cooperation and preservation of such government. That such a government may not impede the life, liberty, or pursuit of happiness to the people consenting to it’s establishment.

Whenever any form of government becomes destructive to these ends, it is the right – it is the responsibility – of the people to alter or abolish it and institute new government and leadership, building principles and orgaization in its stated powers to ensure the safety and happiness of all said people. Prudence, indeed, would dictate that governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes, nor does this declaration call for the absolute eradication of the law of the land which so many have fought valiantly for, and which has many times been amended to reflect the needs of society.

But when a long train of absues and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same object, evinces a design to reduce them under absolute despotism, it is the right and necessary thing to call attention to said grievances, and to remove from power the individual or individuals who have caused pain and damage to the people at large.

The history of the man seeking to call himself king over these united states is a history of repeated injuries, abuses, and usurpations, all having a direct objective to establish absolutely tyranny over the nation.

To prove this, let facts be submitted to a candid world:

-He has refused to assent to and obey the very laws he swore oath to defend and protect.

-He has forbidden or intimidated the members of his party to pass laws of immediate and pressing importance, unless they are aimed at enriching himself or his legacy.

-He has continued to call together a cabinet of dubious expertise, ethics, and integrity.

-He has usurped the powers of the governors and over-extended the reach of his office in state matters.

-He has obstructed the administration of justice, both as a private citizen and an officer of the government.

-He has made judges dependent on his will alone.

-He has erected a multiude of new offices without consent of the Congress and has sent forth swarms of their officers to harrass our people and eradicate their livelihoods.

-He has sewn deceit and sought to further discredit the office of the presidency with tailored narratives created by biased access to briefings and journalist pools.

-He has affected to render departments of his branch independent of and superior to civil power.

-He has detained and deported our fellow citizens without due process of the law.

-He has further denied due process of the law afforded to any and all people residing within the country.

-He has neglected and purposefully ignored the rulings of the courts that are his equal under the Constitution.

-He has excited domestic insurrection by federalizing state troops, allowing free-roam of illicit activities, and pardoning criminal acts.

-He has damaged the propserity and freedoms of the people through harmful tariffs, inconsistent foreign relations, and emulation of dictatorships.

-He has threatened martial law, suspension of free speech and protest, and democracy as a whole.

We, therefore, the people of the United States of America, in general, solemnly publish and declare that this country is, and is of right to be, free and independent of any man that would assert himself king; that we are absolved from all allegiance to any officer of the state that aims to fashions themselves to a figurehead above the law. And for the support of this declaration, with an absolute resolution there there is not, nor will there ever be, a king crowned, do mutually pledge to each other our lives, our fortunes, and our sacred honor.

[fossilsandrelics]

Today may be a very difficult day for you. In fact, we may be at the beginning of a very difficult time for so many. It would be easy to post here about hope and change and the future, but it could easily ring hollow as we try to peer through the gathering stormclouds. It is disappointing to see what IS when we know the what COULD BE is so much brighter. It is disappointing to feel the loss of opportunity when we see what might have been. It is disappointing that someone who spews hatred and fear is set to lead us when someone else who tempered the path was in reach.

And yet…

And yet, we are still here. We are still waking up and stepping out of our doors to face the world as it is now, knowing that one single day can change everything.

And yet, we still love. We are still reaching out to our families and chosen/found families to share our support, to share our strength, to share our unity.

And yet, we still fight. We are still fighting for the life we were promised for our hard work – even if our fight continues to become harder. We are still fighting to gain the equality and justice for all, no matter what power is (or is believed to be) held.

And yet, we persist.

(I’m sorry, friends, I would not be me if I did not try to share the view of how the world could be, in spite of the way that it is)

“We must accept finite disappointment, but never lose infinite hope,” Dr. King stated in his “Broken Dreams” sermon (which I encourage you all to read), as the nation struggled with the idea of Civil Rights and a way forward. We must accept that there will be disappointment on our journey, both individually and as a people. But that does not mean adapting to it, making it normal, excusing it. Accept the disappointment in the day, and use it to make tomorrow better. Use it to fuel your infinate hope.

Because that hope is what will bring about what can be. Even in days wrapped in evils and pains, hope can still shine through the stormclouds that shield tomorrow.

[the-pamphlet]

Covid-19 Quarantine effectively began midway through March 2020.

9 months.

In that time, we’ve literally proved that nearly every system America holds dear, from justice to Wall Street to education to healthcare...does not work for the majority of Americans.

9 months to expose what America is. Not even a full year.

[the-pamphlet]

Please remember that every time, EVERY TIME, a would be dictator or tyrant was not held accountable, it got worse.

[the-pamphlet]

If you are surprised at all by today, you’re either a liar, or you haven’t been paying attention.

I remember writing in 2016, explaining out the Constitution as best I could, to match some level of insight and eloquence long forgotten by the wayside. But today is a stark reminder that people do not talk that way anymore, and that the language of power is only violence.

The fences that safeguard our freedoms are only so high, built that way in a sign of good faith that the people of the United States would become just that, united. A dream of erasing Virginians and Republicans, Anglicans and New Yorkers, Northerners and Southerners...a dream that a people, united, would revel in their freedoms and work to secure those blessings for all posterity. It was a dream that required safeguards as if for children, to keep us on the right path as we grew.

Now, those safeguards almost seem too little. But to have made them stronger at the start would just have been a cage that discourages growth. We had to have room to stretch our wings to soar, or the nation would never begin. But now, we struggle in a headwind of those determined to break the foundations in favor of new limits that would only allow certain wings to flourish. And only now do we begin to recognize that this isn’t the first time.

We are an imperfect nation, founded by imperfect men. Changed by imperfect strugles, imperfect women, imperfect ideas. But changed, and made more perfect by the change. But only by that change which pushes all of us along. We’ve seen too much power or control given to one thing spoils all. The stock markets. The dust bowl. Education. Property. Too much given to too few is disaster.

We are imperfect, but aware, and that let’s is grow. But some wish to remain imperfect and ignorant of the fact, and that makes for dangerous neighbors.

We must reforge our safeguards to fit the imperfection of our time, and stop trying to force the standards of yesterday onto tomorrow.

We are imperfect. And we will remain imperfect so long as we lack attention and give into the loud voices that decry the way forward.

Pay attention, and we will be less surprised. Pay attention, and we may yet save this imperfect union. Pay attention, and we may finally work toward a “we”.

[the-pamphlet]

Today

We do not have to let this happen. We do not have to bow down to a man who believes half-filled arenas are a country’s mandate. Stay angry, but informed. Stay active, but don’t burnout. Our duty is to secure liberty for ourselves and our posterity. Don’t give up.

The North let the South win the Civil War by being complacent that a half-finished Reconstruction plan was good enough. Individual cities changing police is not good enough. Lip-service executive orders are not good enough. WE CANNOT BE COMPLACENT NOW. There is a chance, a CHANCE to make real change, to be a part of real change in this country RIGHT NOW. We cannot let up because something is not trending. We cannot let up because the media says we are not making a difference.

This will not be easy. And we will be uncomfortable. We will depend on the people we trust more than ever. We will challenge our own views of what is right and what is just. But that is what true change is. The lifeblood of our country begins with the words, "We, the People." We are a country nearing only 250 years, and parts of our population, parts of AMERICA have only been considered part of it for a fraction of that time.

"We now face the danger, which in the past, has been the most destructive to humans: Success, plenty, comfort, and ever-increasing leisure. No dynamic people has ever survived these dangers." -John Steinbeck These are not sins, but cautions; we must press on. We must press on to fight our own prejudices. We must press on to ensure all of our peoples are given the help and services they need. We must press on to ensure Black Lives Matter. We must press on to truly see justice done for (and to) all peoples in this land.

If we are to call ourselves Americans, we must once again earn it. We must once again answer the calls of liberty and justice. We must face down the cruelty and irresponsibility that was unleashed in fear of these changes. 2016 showed us there is a great fear of change in the country. But we must relearn that fear is not a sin, it is a reaction to the unknown. We must relearn that our fear does not define us, but our answer to fear does.

Do not be afraid of change, for we will, all of us, face it as a country of Americans. Instead, turn your fear against those who would shamelessly use it to stoke their own power, their own well-being, and their own cruelty. Do not be afraid that the America you grew up with is changing, for that only shows your country is growing and learning to better itself, as you yourself did in your youth. America was written to evolve. To learn and change. To be a living experiment of liberty.

We are not a flag. We are not a color. We are not a language. We are Americans. All of us. One people, united by the idea that anyone can be anything as long as they try. We have made mistakes, and some have over-zealously guarded their success. But we can still change.  

Today, America has to learn that Black Lives Matter.  

Today, America has to learn that there is a need to change how our local communities are guarded.  

Today, America has to learn that a loud voice does not mean answers or intelligence.

Today, America has to learn that the common good of all Americans means listening to science.  

Today, America has to learn that all voices must be heard, and voices with weight must lend theirs out.  

Today, being American means learning and understanding these truths. These facts.

[the-pamphlet]

#5

To the People of the United States of America,

In this country, there is a single sentence that serves as the keystone to nearly every liberty and freedom that we, the people enjoy. While many have challenged the forty-five words that make up that sentence, none have been able to destroy it, nor truly temper its meaning. I am speaking, of course, of the First Amendment of the United States Constitution. Its very existence proves that while we are an imperfect government, we have made strides to become a more perfect union and protect the people who created this nation. And yet, there are still those among us who would see this sentence changed, stripped of its power, or erased completely. There are those who would see us fall into a world where demonstrations of distrust in our government would be illegal. There are those of us who would see us close our borders to those fleeing tyranny to practice their only religion, apparently blind to the very history borne on the coastlines of America. To be an American is to enjoy the freedoms afforded to us by the Bill of Rights, and, just as importantly, exercise the responsibilities that come with those freedoms. As the nation prepares to enter into a new year, it is troubling to see so many that would gladly suspend those freedoms.

“Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise therof.” The very beginning of the First Amendment is, possibly, the most trodden upon. America has long been a haven for the people of the world who feared persecution for practicing their faith. The men and women of the Mayflower, whose very arrival we celebrate at Plymouth Rock, were, in essence, religious refugees. The Pilgrims who came from Europe were English Separatists, believing in the separation of power between church and state in England (I hope that sounds familiar). In an effort to keep their identity, they arranged to have new lands in the New World to freely practice their religion and in turn, founded a basic democracy in what is now New England. By the time the Constitution was written, men and women from eleven faiths and two different ideologies (Christianity and Judaism) had fought for the freedom to practice their chosen paths. And while the laws of the land do echo with tenants of the Christian faith, they do not say that we must only embrace those ideas. We are free to follow the teachings of Abraham or Mohammad, or to listen to the ideas of Mormonism. We are free to heed the call of the Vatican or to learn the wisdom of the Buddha. The only wrong answer that we, as Americans, can have towards faith is to try to outlaw any of them. Freedom of religion is the right of every American citizen.

“Congress shall make no law abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press.” Possibly the most important part of the First Amendment, the second protection granted to us, as American citizens, is the freedom of speech and press. The government may not silence us. Let me repeat that, because in so many countries around the world, this idea is foreign and unwelcome: the government may not silence us. We, the American people have the right to stand and speak out minds, whether it be with our voices or with our words in the press. It is a protected freedom and the people who make our laws and serve as our leaders may not, under any circumstance, curtail that freedom. It is my right to address you now, to take that time to voice my opinions and even to call our leaders “fools” or “unjust.” It is the right of the media to report on our leaders and their actions. It is the right of programs like “Saturday Night Live” to poke fun at those leaders for their actions. And, unpopular as it may be, it is the right of all of us to even burn the fabric of the flag of our country. However, this right also comes with some of the most awesome responsibility. We are free to say as we wish, but we are also responsible for what we say. The laws of the land, as interpreted by the Supreme Court that we, the people, ordained to power, have found boundaries that are not easily crossed. There are, in effect, only nine types of speech that have been found to not be protected by our treasured amendment:

Obscenity

“Fighting Words”

Defamation (to include libel and slander)

Child pornography

Perjury

Blackmail

Incitement to commit imminent lawless actions

True threats

Solicitations to commit crimes

These limitations only serve to protect the people from hate speech, blatant lies and misleading governments, and those who cannot protect themselves. But much like our responsibilities with our freedom of religion, these limitations serve to not only keep us free from our government, but free from others shouting us down. We all have the right to be heard in America, no matter how small a voice we may think we have. Freedom of speech is the right of every American citizen.

“Congress shall make no law respecting the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances.” Here is where we find the most important of responsibility with our rights. We have the right to assemble in petition and protest of the government. But it is important that it is peaceable, no matter how hot our blood boils for change. Remember, that even our Revolutionary ancestors used violence only as a last resort to have our voices heard. And even as the Continental Congress met, there were pleas for a peaceable resolution with England. The reasonable voices of assembly and petition often linger far longer in the minds of the people than the violent actions that can be explained away as reactionary. Assembly is often an overlooked right, as it is so often portrayed as only protests that devolve into riots. But assembly also includes the right of us to meet in our own homes and halls to discuss what we see wrong with our leaders. Assembly gives us the liberty to speak our minds to groups without fear of reprisal. Even some of our youngest Americans can understand the importance of the freedom of assembly by reading books like “Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix”; without this freedom, we must hide in fear to even have a chance of learning defense against the government. It is our right and responsibility to bring our grievances to the government by assembly and protest in order to keep our leaders accountable to our wishes. After all, the powers of the government in America are only granted by the consent of the governed. Freedom of assembly is the right of every American citizen.

These freedoms and responsibilities must be protected by all Americans. They are the cornerstone of our liberties that we enjoy every day, from where we choose to go to worship to who what we spend our evenings on. And we must be cautious, for there are enemies to these rights lurking everywhere. The proposed ban on immigrants who practice Islam is an attack on our First Amendment, as it prevents the free practice of religion on our soil. The proposed loss of citizenship for burning a flag is an attack on our First Amendment, as it tries to limit protected speech. The quick label of “riot” on the actions of a few is an attack on our First Amendment, as it is often out of context with the true assembly taking place. These are insidious assaults, as they hide under the false pretense of providing safety for all at the expense of a few. But these are our rights. All of our rights. The moment you let our leaders strip them from one group is the moment they begin to disappear from all of us. If it becomes easy for us to turn on each other because we cannot agree on a religion or a petition…if it becomes second nature to shout down all other opinions outside of our own…if it becomes normal to ignore the ability to praise the deity that each individual chooses, we will lose everything. These rights come with responsibility to practice them without impeding the practice of others, along with a vigilance to protect them. The freedoms of religion, speech, and assembly are the rights of every American citizen. Let us always hold them dear and protect them for our posterity.

-Libertas

[the-pamphlet]

#4

To the People of the United States of America,

Today, we all live in a seemingly constant state of fear of attack from nameless, faceless terrorists. And who can blame that fear? It seems every day the news reports are filled with stories of the “Daesh/ISIS” and of nightclub shootings. With so much media coverage in a 24-Hour News Cycle, it is easy to feel as if, at any time, someone may jump out from the shadows to cut us down. This fear has become so inherent to the fabric of America that we have been content to give up some of our freedoms to the government for safety. We take our shoes off at the airport because of one failed attempt at a bomb. We prohibit parking near certain buildings because of the possibility of an explosion. America as a whole now has to pause to step through metal detectors and carry clear bags in order to watch a game in a stadium. Even browsing the internet can now lead to a foreign attack on our information and economy, so we download the next big thing from the government to protect our “cookies”.

Most of us will say that these are trivial things to worry about, that it’s no big deal if we feel safer out in public because of it. And to extent, yes, they are right. Minor inconveniences to keep the public safe can often be overlooked and dealt with. Does it really make a difference to my day if I have to wait an extra five minutes in line to get to my seat on the airplane? No, I can just arrive a bit earlier to the airport to make sure I can clear TSA in time. It is really life-changing if everyone can see my scorebook and pens in my backpack as I go into the ballgame? Not really, not in the long run, although it may put a stop to sneaking in my own supplies of peanuts and crackerjacks. If we are a strong country, we have to act strong, and sometimes that means being willing to stand up to terrorism by preventing it with simple sacrifice. And yet, at the same time, I must ask myself, and all of you a simple question: “Doesn’t this mean that terrorism has won?” Do we truly deserve liberty and safety, if we are willing to give up these simple actions in exchange for peace of mind? If we look to the origins of our country, I would argue that we may not. After all, one of the greatest minds amongst our founders once said, “Those who would give up essential Liberty, to purchase a little temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety.”

Today, we have given up some of our liberties in the attempt to fight an idea. We censor our own free speech under threat of terrorist attack. In the heart of America, far removed from any border or international presence, we whisper instead of speak proudly. But what is it that we are afraid of? The fear of terrorism and extremists. But why? Terrorism is not based on murder, political agenda, or retribution. Terrorism is, at the most fundamental level, the spread of terror. It has no set agenda, it has no political aim, no final victory to strive for and achieve. No, the only goal is to spread fear and hatred as far and fast as possible. And by forcing us to a point where we give up small parts of our day out of fear, the men and women who are referred to as terrorists have won a victory against America. The foreign forces lurk as an out of sight threat in the deserts of the Middle East and the urban sprawl of Southeast Asia. And in America, we pay for these threats every day. Whole populations of people that practice the same basic religion or have the same colored skin or speak the same language are looked down upon by the public at large. Even international students on college campuses are avoided if they wear a turban or a burka, because we are at war against people who look similar. Fear has won out.

Even worse, we have become so secure in knowing to direct our hatred and fear at these people that we do all we can to ignore the domestic terrorists. The white men who purchase heavy assault weapons and lay waste to movie theaters and night clubs and classrooms are only “outliers” and “mentally ill.” A man can even attack one of our elected representatives, so long as he can claim mental illness. But looking at this case (Jared Loughner, who opened fire on Representative Gabby Giffords), we find anti-government writing and anti-Christian sentiment in regards to the shooter. How does this, combined with the assassination attempt, not constitute terrorism? Why, in America, do we excuse the actions of a white man as those of a mentally ill individual, going so far as to ignore his statements against the government? This individual is just as guilty of attacking the American way of life as any man or woman that fly the Daesh/ISIS flag. But it is much easier to fear what we do not understand in a different culture than it is to fear what is in our own backyard. Yes, a foreign party scored a hit against America in 2001, striking fear into our hearts by attacking on our own soil. Yes, we have sent out forces in masse to try to defeat these groups abroad. Yet, on the home front, that fear and hatred has manifested itself in the same kind of attacks on our liberties and way of life.

Fear and hatred are, indeed, still deeply rooted here in America. Fear and hatred of racial differences have led to countless deaths at the hands of police who were sworn to protect and serve. The Black Lives Matter movement has erupted to combat this fear, to have equal justice and protection under the law for all. Fear and hatred of sexuality have led to nightclub massacres. Now we see more and more pride flags flying to combat the darkness and spread awareness. Fear and hatred of religion has sects of the same faith fighting each other for dominance in the public mind, tearing away basic rights from women and immigrants. Instead of reaching forward, together, the American public has succumbed to fear, choosing to tear itself apart. Abortion and illegal immigration are at the top of the list instead of curing disease or eliminating poverty.

 Throughout all of recorded history, the greatest threat to humanity has always been fear. The worries of the unknown, be it from a faceless people or from economic downturn. The desperate, aching fear that something must be done to protect a way of life from ending. Fear has played a role in every change of every age of civilization. And from that fear, the darkest chapters of our race have emerged. The loudest voices have echoed above all, filled with nothing but blame and misdirection. “It is not our fault, but THEIR fault,” they cry, “that OUR way of life is in peril.” These are the voices that take power, the voices with outlandish promises to the weak and scared, who feel their own control slipping away. And these are the ones so eager to give up their rights in order to feel some of that control, some of that safety once more. It doesn’t matter if others get hurt, because they are clearly the ones who deserve the blame (I’m hoping this extreme rhetoric reminds you all of a certain government that fell across the oceans. While that regime was defeated, its influence echoes on today, and we must both acknowledge and guard against its chance to rise once more). Gone is the hope for America that was built on the idea that all men are created equal, that all are endowed with the rights of free religion and free speech. America is fear and fear is American. And American fear creates world fear, as the fate of so many countries and cultures are so closely tied in with our own. We stand on the precipice of giving up so many more of our rights and liberties in order to satisfy our desire for safety. Again, we face the outspoken words of a few, claiming that others are responsible for our misfortunes…that we have enemies spying on us from every corner…it is only a matter of time before we find ourselves in another Red Scare. And we are walking, almost willingly, to surrender our hearts and minds to the fear and hatred. Willing to surrender our freedoms of speech and religion…of assembly and the press…because our leaders say it is painting them unfairly. That to be safe, we must follow them without question. But with this first link, the chain is forged. The first speech censured, the first thought forbidden, the first freedom denied, chains us all, irrevocably.

If we truly wish to “take back” America…truly “make America great again”, we must learn to step away from the fear. We must step away from the media’s non-stop coverage of despair and disaster. We must step away from the drudgery of political promise and division. We must step away from the lie that race is based on the color of your skin. America…humanity…we are one race divided by culture and language. Nothing more. We all bleed the same, are all hurt every time another liberty is extinguished. We must not surrender to fear and hatred, but we must acknowledge their presence. We must not turn a blind eye to those abroad who would hurt us, but we must also acknowledge those closer to home that would do that same. We must learn to be afraid without living in fear…to temper hatred with understanding. Because yes, anyone can hurt you. Anyone can be a bomber or a shooter or a villain. But just as many people can be a friend, an ally, a hero. It is up to each of us, individually, to stand up against the hate and fear. To be heroes ourselves. Upon taking office in the midst of one of the greatest national perils in the Great Depression, Franklin Delano Roosevelt reassured us that, “The only thing we have to fear is fear itself”. And to this day, those words still ring true. We do not need to fear our neighbor, or their skin color. We do not need to fear our allies who speak in another language or worship in a different way. We only need to fear the idea of fear, and what it leads to on its own. To quote another great American thinker, we must not “anticipate trouble, or worry about what may never happen. Keep in the sunlight.” While it may be necessary to anticipate in this world, we all should take heart to the meaning of the message and stay in the sunlight to battle the darkness of fear.

-Libertas

[the-pamphlet]

#3

To the People of the United States of America,

“I do solemnly swear that I will faithfully execute the Office of the President of the United States, and will to the best of my ability, preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States.”

In order to sit as the head of the Executive Branch of the United States, every one of the forty-three men has had to stand before the Congress and the people of America and recite these few words that make up the oath of office. Though simple, their meaning carries great weight in the demands of preparation to preserve, protect, and defend the Constitution. Soon, a forty-fourth man will recite these words, and it is because of the election cycle that will usher him in that I have begun writing. To be clear to you all, I offer no political opinion on the President-Elect, I only wish to express the ability of America to choose its own course through the years.

The Executive Branch was created with the second Article of the Constitution. This means that the creation of this office was of less importance to our founders than was the creation of the Legislative Branch. The head of the branch, the President of the United States has the duty to enforce the laws that the Congress has created. The majority of the Presidential power was created to be within checks and balances of the other branches of the government. The President may order military forces into a region, but may not declare war without approval of Congress. The President may appoint members to the Cabinet, the Supreme Court, and other federal positions, but each appointment must be met with the approval of Congress. The President may begin the process of treaties with foreign powers, but they, along with any ambassador, must be approved by the Congress. Even the famed “Executive Order” must find precedent in Constitutional language or Congressional directive. Therefore, in basic principle, the people of the United States must approve nearly every action taken by the President of the United States.

The formal responsibilities of the office include the “time-to-time” address to Congress that we know today as the “State of the Union Address” to not only appraise the people and the Congress of the state of the nation, but to recommend courses of action that may need to be taken to form a more perfect union and secure future. The President is also responsible for receiving foreign dignitaries and calling Congress to session. But most importantly, the President in responsible for carrying out the execution of the laws written by Congress. The limitations on the Presidency were created by a group of men who had fought off the oppression of a far-off monarch, and were, therefore, designed to fall within purview of the very people who would elect the officer. It is, therefore, also possible for the Congress, and by extension, the people, to impeach the President when the officer has acted unfaithfully within the powers of the branch of government.

Because of the responsibilities of the President, and the inherent appearance of power, Office of the President is the only branch to have specified term limits. Each term for the office is set at four years, and, with the addition of the Twenty-Second Amendment, each individual is limited to only two terms in office (this include non-consecutive terms; an individual may only serve as an elected president for a total of eight years). The Vice-President is now an office that is elected alongside the President, thanks to the Twelfth Amendment. The President must also be a natural-born citizen of the United States, meaning that he or she will have been born in one of the fifty states of the United States of America, or a designated territory such as a foreign soil military base or protectorate. Further, the Presidential candidate must be at least thirty-five years old and a fourteen year resident of the nation.

While the office of the President serves as the Chief Executive for the government, the Commander in Chief of the militaries, and the Chief Dignitary for the United States, it is important to remember that the Presidential office does not make laws. It does not create full policy after suggestions. It is not an autonomous office, but rather, a collaborative position that must have the full support of the nation by means of the Congress to work well. To put things into perspective, outside of the Oval Office, should the President and Vice-President both succumb to the worst, the Speaker of the House of Representatives (i.e. a popularly elected official who only has a two year term on the merits of the office) will take control of the Executive branch. We can see even now, that should the Congress turn its back on the President, the government can come to a standstill (I am referring, of course, to the United States Congress of 2016, who refused to acknowledge or attempt confirmation hearings for a potential candidate for the Supreme Court of the United States; although the death of a Justice took place a full nine months prior to the 2016 election, the Congress blocked any and all nominees by then President Obama).

With all the vitriol of the election cycle, it is important to remember that, essentially, we are electing a figurehead, and even then, not directly. The President of the United States, while an influential and seemingly powerful office, still bends to the will of the people. If it did not, the office would erode into a tyrannical force, following in the footsteps of the most dangerous people in the history of our existence. In the future, I will write on the flaws in the system of elections and execution, but for now, I offer this thought: The President of the United States has no real requirements but age and citizenship. It is up to us to fill that office accordingly.

-Libertas

[the-pamphlet]

#2

To the People of the United States of America,

“We, the people, in order to form a more perfect Union, establish justice, insure domestic tranquility, provide for the common defense, 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.”

It is my hope that all who read this letter recognize these words, be it from high school studies or Saturday morning cartoons. With these words, the founders of this nation outlined their overall goal and beliefs for the document that has become known as the law of the land in America. The Constitution provides the framework and basic structure of this country, and has stood for over two hundred years as a guide to freedom and liberty. Over the course of history, hundreds of thousands of men and women have fought to defend, interpret, and enforce the ideas and hopes imbued in this parchment, and hundreds of thousands more will do the same as the years come. But we must, in these times of great change, re-examine what is being said to us in these words and what our responsibilities are to them. Please, take no offense in the nature of my words, as I only wish to explain my position in the broadest of terms. For those of you very familiar with the Constitution, it may seem unnecessary. For those of you unfamiliar, it may seem over-simplified. My letter to you today will be used to explore the first Article, and try to resurrect a greater faith in the establishment it concerns; that of the Congress of the United States.

The Congress of the United States serves as the Legislative Branch of our government. The men and women who make up this body have the seemingly simple job of making the laws for our citizens. The congress also has the power to:

Lay and collect taxes

Borrow money

Regulate foreign and domestic commerce

Establish Naturalization laws

Coin money (and punish those who coin counterfeit money)

Establish the Post Offices

Secure rights to authors and inventors (copyrights)

Convene tribunals inferior to the Supreme Court (such as the committee hearings you might see on CSPAN to confirm White House Cabinet appointments or even the dramatizations you see in movies, like Tony Stark refusing to give up the Iron Man suit)

Define piracy on the seas

Declare war (yes, the Congress is the body that declares war, not the President)

Raise and support Armies

Provide and maintain a Navy

Make rules for land and naval forces

Provide for calling forth the Militia to execute the Laws of the Union

Provide for organizing said Militia

Exercise legislation over all places purchased by the consent of the Congress (such as military bases on foreign soil, or territories)

Make all laws to be considered necessary and proper (this may be slightly problematic, as we shall see in future letters)

As you can see, the powers of the Congress are clearly defined by the writers of the document. These powers have been slightly expanded, including the creation of the IRS to collect the levied taxes (so, yes, in fact, the power of the IRS is an extent of the Congress). It is also the sole responsibility of the Congress of the United States (that is, the representatives of the people) to vote to declare war on a foreign power. In essence, if the Representative or Senator you voted for to take office votes in favor of war, it IS “your war.” With these great responsibilities in the hands of the people, the Constitution only lists seven limitations of power. The limitations include:

the inability to prohibit the importation of people (this power is obsolete, as it referred to restricting the slave trade)

the inability to pass a Bill of Attainder or ex post facto law (meaning that a person or group of person may be arbitrarily found guilty of a crime and punished without trial)

the inability to law a tax unless a proportion of the census is taken (this power is obsolete, as the 16th Amendment allows taxes on incomes without regard to any census)

the inability to lay tax or duty charges on articles exported from any state

the inability to provide preference in revenue to ports of state; to oblige vessels to pay duty in others (this means that the Congress cannot direct ships to certain ports in order to increase the revenue of an area)

the inability to draw money from the Treasury of the United States unless appropriated by the law; these expenditures will be required to be made public.

the inability of any person holding office in the United States to hold a Title of Nobility from any King, Prince or foreign state (which means if you wish to run for any kind of public office, you should leave behind any dreams of being knighted by the Royalty of England)

In order to use these powers responsibly, the Congress of the United States is further divided into two chambers of different populations, the first being the House of Representatives and the second being the Senate. While writing the Constitution, the states argued how representation would be achieved. The larger states presented the “Virginia Plan”, wherein all states would be given representatives based only on population (including, at the time, the slave population). The smaller states issued the “New Jersey Plan”, wherein all states would have equal representation in a unicameral congress. After debate, the Constitutional Convention came to what is known as the “Connecticut Compromise”, allowing one for the distribution of legislative power between two houses. The members of the Congress are elected by popular vote every two years (or every even numbered year, to provide a better frame of reference). As you may remember from your Saturday morning cartoons, a law must be approved in both chambers to be presented to the head of the Executive Branch to be signed into law. The format of the national level of Congress is so successful that it is recreated in all but one state in the union (the sole exclusion being Nebraska). However, each chamber has differences that all of us must take into account in order to understand how our nation is meant to be run.

The first chamber, the House of Representatives, is the closest to true representation that we have in America. Each state has a number of states equal to the total population of citizens as counted in the census, meaning the more people that live in a certain state, the more representatives the state will have to seat in the chamber. While the states are supposed to be divided into Congressional districts with similar populations and diversity, there have been issues in the past of specifically creating maps that allow strong centers of party-specific voters to remain in a district together, despite having not geographic logic (i.e. Gerrymandering). Each state is guaranteed at least one representative, and each territory occupied by the United States (to include the District of Columbia) are represented by non-voting members. These men and women are meant to serve the interest of their constituents (voters that elected them) in two-year terms, and in order to be elected must be at least twenty-five-years-old, have been a citizen for at least seven years, and currently live in the Congressional District which they represent. There are currently no term limits in place, meaning a Representative may be re-elected for as many terms as they choose to run. The House of Representatives has select exclusive powers in the United States Government, including the power to initiate bills for revenue, the power to impeach officials, and, in the event the Electoral College lacks a majority, the power to elect the President of the United States.

The second chamber, the Senate, is a slightly more elite house in which every state is entitled to two representatives for six years per term. Like the House, these terms are not limited, and re-election is a decision by each Senator. The Senate holds the responsibility of electing the Vice President in the event there is no majority in the Electoral College (a self-serving purpose, as the Vice President of the United States serves as the President of the Senate), consenting to treaties, confirming the appointment of Cabinet members, Supreme Court Justices, military officers, and other federal executives, and holding the trials of federal officials who have been impeached by the House of Representatives. Like the House Members, Senators running for election must live in their respective Congressional Districts, but must have been a citizen for nine years (two more than a House member) and be at least thirty-years-old (five more than a House member). The thought is that, with a smaller body, more experience is required to adequately serve the constituency.

With the civics lesson over, and the base of understanding established, you may wonder why I have called so much attention to this body of the government. It is important for the people of the United States to remember where the true power is: in themselves! It is the power of the people, who directly vote for their representation, to change the face of the country. It is not the man who has been re-elected for years because he is popular, it is not the individual put at the head of the Executive Branch as President. No, the power of the government lies in the consent of the governed. That is the keystone of the American way of life. We have the power, at all times, to elect new officials who can better serve our interest. By voting for these Congressmen and Congresswomen, we declare that a certain law must be passed. That a war must be declared. That a tax must be repealed. That it is our desire to see our country change directions from one course to another. The men and women of this country did not fight against “taxation without representation” for the America of today to simply check a box because we recognize the name. They fought so that we may choose the people who tax us and hold them responsible. And both the people and the Congress seem to forget that simple fact. The Congressmen and Congresswomen are not easy to contact, nor do they seem willing to listen to the very people they were elected by. Their only concern seems to be re-election by way of blind allegiance to their party lines. It is their duty to ask what is to be done by their presence, and it is our duty to relieve them of that duty if they do not do as we have mandated. The will of the people must be heard at all times, loud and clear. The Congress and the Legislative Branch hold the true power of the American Democracy, which means that the people have the true power. Do not be fooled by the Presidential campaigns and the vitriol you may see in the media. We, the people, have ordained in ourselves the power to run our country.

-Libertas

[the-pamphlet]

#1

To the People of the United States of America,

“After an unequivocal experience in the inefficiency of the subsistence of the federal government, you are called upon to deliberate on the future of the United States of America. The subject speaks its own importance; comprehending in its consequences nothing less than the existence of the union, the safety and welfare of the parts of which it is composed, the fate of a nation in many respects the most interesting in the world. It has been frequently remarked that it seems to have been reserved to the people of this country, by their conduct and example, to decide the important question, whether societies of free people are really capable or not of establishing good government from reflection and choice, or whether they are forever destined to depend for their political constitutions on accident and force. If there be any truth in the remark, the crisis at which we are arrived may with propriety be regarded as the era in which that decision has to be made; and a wrong election of the part we shall act may, in this view, deserve to be considered as the general misfortune of mankind.”

Forgive me, America, as I borrow great words from great men gone by to history. While I may be able to temper my own words and thoughts to convey a better thesis, I still find that the founders of our country spoke with greater eloquence than I can bring to bear. Yet, today, I see another time of great upheaval for our country and our very way of life. We have come to a crossroads of sorts, as we often do after elections, as to the fate of our country’s very soul. The nation we so love and cherish is at risk of becoming a land that is steeped in shame and darkness. A great many of our people have fallen into ignorance, while a great many others have ignored their fall. This once proud melting pot of cultures, races, and ideas has fallen into fear and despair, threatened by the abstract and ever-changing face of an idea. And instead of standing together, as our ancestors did against great threats, we have divided ourselves further and farther against each other with hateful rhetoric and actions.

More disturbing yet, since the time of Andrew Jackson, the American public has invested greater faith in the ideas and leadership of one man within the Oval Office instead of where the power and stability was meant to extend from: The Congress. The people of country have moved from trusting their chosen representatives in the House of Representatives and the Senate, to trusting their party and the figure-head President. Executive Orders are more easily issued than the voice of the people is heard by the career politicians in the Capitol. In a way, the government is indeed broken and in need of a repair. But to what end? What is the limit of change needed? Where is the power to be placed? What is the fate and destiny of these several united states?

To continue to borrow great words from the very first essay of what are now known as the Federalist Papers, “it is not, however, my design to dwell upon observations of this nature. I am well aware that it would be disingenuous to resolve indiscriminately the opposition of any set of free people (merely because their situations might subject them to suspicion) into interested or ambitious views.” I know that my views will not reflect the nation’s views, but in all reality, they should not. The American dream is that of the individual, of the independent thinking and dreamer. And it is, therefore, only fitting that individual thoughts and dreams must come to light once more in an attempt to speak out to others. And while my thoughts and dreams are not wholly new, they seem to have fallen by the wayside.

This country was founded by immigrants fleeing the oppression they face for thinking a different way. We charged across a great ocean in the hopes of finding a home where we could be free to think and worship and speak in our own ways. As time went on, more and more refugees came across the Atlantic to sew themselves into the great tapestry along the coastline of the new world. And while the great many of them were Christian and of Anglo-decent, whole populations found new homes under different languages, different faiths, and different hued skin. American culture was born of the morals taught by the Christian faith, but blended with the hopes of Judaism and the strength of African faiths. Indeed, when the revolution began, there were people of all faiths and colors united under the idea that all men were created equal with certain unalienable rights; that among them were life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. And after decades of work and civil war, finally all men and women were granted those rights. But now, as in times of humanity’s past, we find ourselves embroiled in fear and hatred of a foreign religion that is not that different from any other. Like American classrooms and workplaces, whole opinions are formulated on the actions of the few…we have judged a whole population from the standalone actions of a few. And we have begun a cycle of misunderstanding that threatens to tear apart not only our nation, but the populations of the entire earth.

You must forgive me for encompassing so many topics all at once, but this is to serve as an opening statement. This will be the first time I speak with you, but certainly not the last. I hope to write to you all on the ideas of the Congress, the President, and, most important to our Nation, the People. “In the process of this discussion I shall endeavor to give a satisfactory answer to all the objections which shall have made their appearance that may to have any claim to your attention.” I do hope that I will be able to open your ears and minds to the ideas I have, that I have already shared with so many. I hope that I am able to discuss with you all of your ideas. And most importantly, I hope that I am able to work with you, instead of against you. The only enemy we have is that of hate and fear and misunderstanding.  

-Libertas