A republic madam, if you can keep it
Well Ben, it remains to be seen whether we can or cannot. Or whether what remains now of our once great republic is even worth the effort. Ones time might be more productively spent learning how to disappear from sight. For we have arrived now at a point in time where our nation is not recognizable. Some people believe this is good. Most of them who believe that call Babylon on the Potomac their home.
Great nations have faltered throughout human history. History typically remembers the reasons for their demise more so than the reasons for their lost greatness.
I have tried hard to avoid the political crap that is thrown at us every day and called news. Nothing is news about a gathering of wholly corrupt men and women who work very hard to keep the party in power, their cronies in the government’s purse, securing their own positions of power, and growing wealthy on the salary of a public servant.
Yesterday, a Republican led House of Representatives voted to fully fund the programs they have been running against for the past 6 years. Seventy-four United States Senators supported the constitutionality of executive amnesty. What they really did is tell the American people that our laws are not worth the paper on which they are written. Actually, that is the message sent out to the world. One man, whose position has been known as the leader of the free world, can violate the law of the land without any fear of repercussion. That is a republic lost, our Constitution to find its place among ancient relics. Our national compass governed by wrongheaded ideologies of men rather than laws.
Sadly, history never recalls the great people who built a nation. Rather it recalls those who destroyed it.
When the American people give successive landslide victories to one political party over the other, the mandate should be crystal clear. We the people do not like the direction our country is headed so please take this political majority and govern by the will of the people – the way our “representative” republic is supposed to function. What we got instead was flipped off. Flipped off by a collection of people who do not give a rats hind quarters about the United States of America, Americans, our laws or anything else and most specifically you and me. These are the political elitist bastards who will be remembered for our destruction.
They are the WWF. They are business people. They posture for the cameras. They do some tongue and finger wagging then retire to the back room to share whiskey and cigars while counting the loot taken from a gullible people. Has it not become obvious in recent days that our country’s very own elitist snobs, who get large government contracts, believe we are easily mislead and too stupid to know the difference.
Out in our streets and even in Congress people are saying “hands up don’t shoot.” To hear them they want justice. No, what they really want is a lynching. What the people who are playing on their stupidity (the same elitists who believe all Americans are stupid) desire is radical change in our judicial system – like doing away with the grand jury process. That is the target, but all Americans see are the riots and tee shirts.
Americans decry the plight of their communities and the conditions in their cities and want to blame anyone who is handy. They can even be egged-on into burning down their own neighborhoods. Pushed into it by people who are liars, thieves, and charlatans and who have trusted positions with the highest office in the land. I do not care from which American community you hail. The person most responsible for your plight and that of your community can be found in the mirror.
Ben, we cannot solve the problem until we identify the problem. Our problem is simple. The morality of our nation is swirling down the sewer. The world’s most tolerant nation, I have visited enough of them to accept that statement as unequivocal truth, is committing suicide. In Babylon on the Potomac, there are two types of people. There is the type that fits into the mold of liberal-communist-progressive and the type that truthfully believes in our country and the Constitution they have sworn to protect and defend. Actions speak louder than words and by recent ones it is quite clear that the latter is the minority.
Maybe we can keep it Ben, but like you and your colleagues it will require a revolution. Not one of guns, but a moral and political revolution. Otherwise Sir, the republic you gave us ended this weekend.
© 2014 J. D. Pendry American Journal.
Category: Politics
The lie has become the truth. May GOD have mercy on us and the road we have been forced to take.
Not sure that I would join the military today.
There’s an awful lot of people in this country I would want no part in defending.
400,000++ people signed up to permanently move to Mars. Running away from their problems won’t solve them.
Nor will dismissing a truth-seeking entity simply because some jackass disagrees with its findings.
This particular period in history is merely a repeat of things that have happened before. All of this has happened in the past, and all of it will happen again. It happened in the 1960s, in the 1860s, in the 1770s and 1780s. These cycles repeat themselves.
I’m quite sure that the same complaints were voiced when FBI wiretapping was unveiled in the 1970s. In fact, if I remember correctly, they were.
‘Otherwise Sir, the republic you gave us ended this weekend.’
Your words. My opinion: bullshit. Unless there is a KGB agent or
To continue:
Unless there is a KGB or SS agent on the street corner demanding to see your papers, your complaint is bullshit.
If you want morality, then it is up to you to create it at its base, which is in YOUR life, not someone else’s.
If you don’t get the simple fact that idiotic behavior and obnoxious personatlities sell more newspapers and air time than common decency, you are not paying attention.
And if it’s so VERY awful, Pendry, that you actually write an entire page in this curmudgeonly manner about how badly other people behave, then account for those who do NOT act that way.
Or are they not part of your equation?
As I said, my opinion: bullshit.
And you are welcome to it…
My opinion; that’s the biggest load of horseshit I have read today.
“Nor will dismissing a truth-seeking entity simply because some jackass disagrees with its findings.” What is that about? what truth-seeking entity? Who’s the jackass? What findings?
Truth-seeking entity = Grand Jury.
Jackass = Whoever it is that wants to abandon the Grand Jury as an anonymous entity that seeks the truth.
Findings = Ferguson, MO, grand jury findings. See Paragraph 8 in article.
I can agree with your words to an extent, I just cannot agree with the conclusion you make.
This country has been through the fire before in every way imaginable for a government to be tried by forces within and without.
The out of control wannabe Hitlers know that their time is short. Boner understands that January brings an entire manner of thinking than what he is used to.
The other side had better take stock of their war inventory because a lot of us are coming with pitchforks to fry their asses over a fire…
No, I will not give up on America, most of us, including a lot of the legal immigrants that have worked their way through hellfire and damnation to become the people this country was built by.
This will be the first time in two generations that some real and decent conservative people have taken office. If they screw up, we will fire them too.
We didn’t so much vote FOR anyone in the last election as vote against the powers that be.
Don’t give up my friends, just do NOT give up !!!
For God’s sakes, Patton would roll over in his grave if he heard the surrender talk !!!
Societies change with time. Out with the old; in with the new. Every generation complains about the one that comes after it. It would appear that the author of this piece wants society preserved in amber. People complained about desegregation, interracial marriage, and many other things which we now take for granted. To-day, we see that a Black man marrying a White woman, or two women marrying each other, is not going to lead to the demise of our Republic. Rather, we are becoming more enlightened and moving on. Whenever I hear of someone talking about the demise of ‘traditional values’, I first ask what, exactly, these values are. If they give me an answer which advances any form of unearned privilege, I remind them that the era of which they speak is now dust, and they had better learn to deal with it. Equality for all people is paramount; there can be no room for unearned privilege. Remember the ‘pursuit of happiness’ part of the Declaration of Independence – do as you wish; just initiate harm towards none. All laws and regulations must be based on reason and common sense; nothing more and nothing less. I have no doubt that many conservatives are going to quote the Founding Fathers at me. If you wish to quote the Founding Fathers, first ponder this quote by Thomas Jefferson: “I am not an advocate for frequent changes in laws and Constitutions. But laws and institutions must go hand in hand with the progress of the human mind. As that becomes more developed, more enlightened, as new discoveries are made, new truths discovered and manners and opinions change, with the change of circumstances, institutions must advance also to keep pace with the times. We might as well require a man to wear still the coat which fitted him when a boy as civilized society to remain ever under the regimen of their barbarous ancestors.” If you’re going to quote the Bible, I’ll remind you of America’s ‘wall of separation between church and state’ and point out that whenever church and state conflate too… Read more »
One more thought – I suspect to-day’s young people will be doing the same griping in the year 2064 that their parents and grandparents are doing now. I wonder what society will look like then? Good thing for me I’ll be either too dead or senile to care. ;o)
The more I read the comments penned against this piece, the more I like it. Now, I’ve got things to do tonight but I will be revisiting this–and the comments this week. On my way out, though, I will say that I generally agreed with all that Pendry wrote, though, uncharacteristically, some of the points were inartfully stated.
On the one hand you condone same sex marriage, on the other you decry unisex bathrooms.
The woman marrying woman can morph into man marrying sheep quicker than you think.
JD is right about the moral fabric of this once great country.
OC
Separate bathrooms are needed for privacy’s sake. The transwoman in the women’s room would be no problem – but how do we let her in without creating one helluva loophole that every Ted Bundy wannabee will exploit? I mean, all he has to do is put on a sundress, maybe some makeup, then lie about being trans. That’s the problem, see.
Insofar as man-marrying-sheep is concerned, YGTBSM – the sheep can’t consent, due to not having rational intelligence. The decision to marry should be for rational adults only. Children cannot consent, so adults marrying kids is out. If you’re thinking of incestous marriages, I don’t see that taboo going away anytime soon – and even if it did, there’d still be no need for incestous marriages, as the partners involved already have the superior protection of blood ties.
You know what…every time I peruse this thread, I think of this song:
http://youtu.be/yesyhQkYrQM
Unfortunately, I must agree with you, JD. Back in the day, we studied those things which led to the decline of nations throughout history. This nation started down the path that others went down, and is probably now past the point of recovery.
Not just your opinion or mine. It is one shared by historians, sociologists, and learned folks of all stripes. Oddly enough, stuff like that started disappearing from teaching curricula in the 1960’s.
Not the way either of us would like for it to be, but it is reality. We actually lasted longer than the founders expected us to. They mostly gave it 200 years max. It was an experiment, after all. But a nice ride while it lasted.
Beat me to it OWB. Oh, I’m still trying to keep my head above the filthy water, but I’m getting tired.
‘Against this piece’, AirCav? Oh, I think a counter-dialogue is definitely necessary. I heard exactly the same things from my high school history teacher in 1961, and that we were descending into the abyss that destroyed Rome. I heard exactly the same things in social studies in 1956, when I was 10 years old and integration was a newly-discovered bone of contention, something that would ruin this country forever. Let’s take the labor unions, a group which I personally dislike because they have no real purpose any more other than to stir up controversy and greed. In the 19th century, if you did not show up for work, regardless of the excuse, you were very likely to be fired on the spot. In 1887, a major blizzard started in the Great Plains, picked up momentum and moisture and blew eastward into New York City, burying that city in up to 6 feet of snow. Despite the conditions, people got up and struggled through the snow to get to work. Many of them froze to death. Not showing up for work meant that they would not have a job, period. They had no benefits of any kind, day wages instead of hourly, and no retirement or pensions. The abuse of the labor force was rampant, starting with the beginning of the Industrial Revolution in the 18th century. In Sheffield, England, 7-year-old children worked in steel mills at furnaces and metal-stamping machines that were lethal. Labor-related diseases such as cotton lung from working in spinning factories and black lung from working in coal mines were rampant. You survived or you died from them. The labor unions came into existence to put a stop to this, to the rampant exploitation of the work force. Their goal was to get fair wages for a day’s work and over time, health insurance and retirement benefits. At some point, the unions lost their purpose and became corrupted by greed and by association with organized crime. They almost drove auto manufacturers out of business, so they’ve turned to trying to unionize office workers (didn’t work) and teachers,… Read more »
Dunno if you have posting privileges here. If not, offer a title and I WILL post yer comment. Mind you, I don’t agree with all of the details of yer assertions, but there is no real room to argue with the ideas you mentioned.
This ain’t my patch, but I DO believe you and J.D. deserve to be heard. And Loudly!
Thank you, Zero, but I’m good as is for now.
+1; excellent summary.
We need to remember that all positive change started with a group of people looking around them and saying ‘this society is broken; we need to fix it’, then doing just that. All of these groups faced the same foe – those who proclaimed that society was doing well as it stood and needed no change. It’s telling that those who upheld the society as it stood were those who profited from it the most, and those who stood to change it were those hurt by it the most. Yet, here’s the thing – both sides wanted to avoid an irreversible death spiral into oblivion. Both sides need to recognise that the other side makes good points and bad ones.
Yes, we need stability. Yet, we also need change – if this means accepting what our ancestors would have rejected or vice versa, so be it. We do need to watch where we’re going in our forward motion, learning from past mistakes. Yet we do need to move forward.
As Simon Bolivar once put it: ‘He who serves a revolution plows the sea.’
Without labeling it such, Pendry delivers his piece as an open letter to Ben Franklin who, when asked by a Mrs. Powel the nature of the new national government then being formed in Philadelphia replied, “A republic, madam, if you can keep it.” Few of us are walking history books and I think that before Pendry delved into the present day morass of social ills and incremental changes in mores, it might have been helpful if these words of Franklin had also appeared in the piece: “Only a virtuous people are capable of freedom.” Franklin used the word virtue in its classical sense– maximizing the good for the greatest number. He most certainly was not referring to the avoidance of personal sin, such as sexual promiscuity or overindulgence in drink or food, although there is no question that Franklin was well aware of this sense of personal virtue, as well as its antithesis: vice. I have no doubt that Pendry gave his readers less than we needed to appreciate what he had in mind, that the republic is being undermined both within and without the government through a lack of classical virtue. Within the government, there is a pronounced loss of institutional integrity such that men—personalities—not law, are ruling the roost. (To the extent that commenters to the Pendry piece disagree with him by pointing to previous cults of personality and social change not easily embraced by a majority of past generations, I agree. And, what’s more, I believe Pendry agrees too.) Outside of the government, among the people, virtuousness is likewise lacking. People, many ill informed or uncaring about the very nature of our republic, demand structural changes to our legal system and latch on to silly phrases and slogans that well reflect their level of comprehension of our legal institutions and processes. They want what they want and they want it now. I see that as no great threat in itself and I agree with Pendry that most of America views the mass of protestors as (in my words) so much rabble. The threat comes from those who… Read more »
We used to call what you describe as hedonism. Not sure if the term is fashionable these days.
I may be getting older, but I’m beginning to believe in Heinlein more and more.
Unless you served. You don’t get to vote.
Love it. Service Guarantees Citizenship!
If you’re referring to all productive citizens, then I’d agree with you. Thing is, we all contribute something of value. This applies just as much to the butcher, baker, candlestick maker, or teacher as it does to the Soldier, Sailor, Airman, or Marine.
Patriotism isn’t all jump wings and Purple Hearts. No sensible person will denigrate military service, but only a fool will state that military service is the only service.
No, but military service IS the only service that requires you face our nation’s enemies in combat in defense of the nation itself. It is also the only job where you can be ordered to die as part of your job. THAT is why it is a short path to citizenship where others are not.
Okay…so where would our military be if it weren’t for the teacher who taught the Soldier how to read and write, or the doctor who takes care of the Sailor’s needs, or the mechanic who takes care of the Airman’s car, or the highway repair crew that maintains the roads the Marine needs to drive to and from work?
Face it, it takes all of us. Yes, the troops are crucial – but then again, so are many other civilian professions. The military cannot thrive by itself; it needs our support. We cannot be free by ourselves; we need the military’s support.
In sum – let’s get a path to citizenship for all people who are prepared to contribute five years of service in a crucial profession and demonstrate English language proficiency at the high school level. Yes, military service would count – but it wouldn’t be the only one.
Remember, this ain’t Starship Troopers. We all contribute.
To all who serve in a vital capacity – both military and civilian – thank you for your service to the USA.
No machine works without it’s various parts. Neither does a nation. But here’s the crux of the matter: the military protects the other professions so that they can function, unhindered by people who would destroy them. If you don’t believe that, go talk with teachers/doctors/etc. in Somalia or any other third-world sh*thole where warlords or drug cartels rule unchecked. Our military is the reason we live our lives in some kind of peace, where we can be and produce and create without fear of lawlessness swamping us. When you don’t have sheepdogs to protect the sheep, all the sheep are is prey.
Okay, when you put it like that…NOW we agree. ;o)
How about this for a compromise approach? The fast track to citizenship comprises of two tracks – one military and one civilian. Time spent in the military track counts double; time spent in a war zone counts triple; receiving the Medal of Honor is instant citizenship.
So…what do you think?
I’d agree with that except that there is still no guarantee that any political candidate will be uncorrupt.
That’s the basis of AirCav2/17’s statement above: the republic rots from within because the government is inhabited by those who are corrupt or who become corrupted after they arrive there.
This is nothing new. I think it was Pericles who said ‘People vote with their stomachs and gonads’, or something like that. (Not sure about the source.) If that weren’t close to the truth, Slick Willie wouldn’t have been elected.
I doubt that you will ever find anyone who wants a job in a political office of any kind, who is not or does not become corrupted by the process. My personal favorite, a recent episode of pure corruption, was the controller for the city of Dixon, IL. She embezzled $52 million in city government funds and spent it on herself and her horse ranch. She actually outdid Betty Loren-Maltese; now THERE is one bitch on wheels in politics.
It hits all levels, not just federal offices. It’s up to us at our level to weed these people out in ALL parties, but as we all know, shit floats and political scum will always rise to the top.
I do not think there is such a thing as a virtuous politician.
However, you should be aware that of people who were surveyed before the latest elections, the majority were more dissatisfied than ever with the way the government is being run.
Ex-PH2, you have to admit back “in the day” when about 3/4 of the congress critters were veterans thing were considerably better – and certainly more civil.
OC
My real point is that we are in a time of change, which is always uncomfortable and disruptive, but is this any worse than the 1950s and 1960s?
Is this less uncertain than what led to the American Revolution, or any different than a bunch of students reading Aristotle and Socrates on the steps of the Admin Building at UC Berkeley in 1961, to exercise their freedom of speech?
Is there any more real disruption than occurred following Pope Urban II’s speech at Clermont, specifically aimed at rousing Europe out of its lethargy by inciting people to go on the 1st Crusade? (Think about how disruptive that must have been.)
Do you realize that the Saudis are so threatened by US and Russian oil production, that they are bumping up their own production to undercut oil prices and drive drillers and producers out of business, because they don’t like competition and WE threaten their status and their way of life?
It is not going on only in this country. It is going on everywhere and will continue until it runs out of steam, not too far off.
At this point, I’m not sure that military service would influence any politicians at all.
It seems to me that Command Sergeant Major Pendry is just letting off some steam after being subjected to so much bad behavior by our cynical, self-serving politicians and the greedy, self-promoting exploiters, both individuals and media organizations, of the growing racial divide in this country.
As we should expect from the author of a widely praised book on military leadership that is required reading lists at many military institutions of learning, J.D. vents his frustration a bit more eloquently than somemost.
What I find so positive about his venting is the level of discourse it has produced here at TAH. ExPH2, 2/17 AirCav and Semper Idem have responded with their own thoughts and with equal eloquence and I find merit in all the arguments.
What many younger readers here may not understand is that for old-timers like J.D. and Ol’ Poe, it is bitterly frustrating to see our country, that we served and so love, fall into a condition that we so deplore, and realize that we will not likely live to see the listing ship of state right itself.
And while I am, as I wager J.D. is, hopeful that the listing ship will level and sail on, we lack the luxury of time that will likely be required to witness that. As I said, it’s exasperating.
Keep these good comments coming…
most, not somemost.