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What Made America’s Founders Unique The 40,000 hours spent by nearly every American between 1754 and 1791 forge the Founders of America to have uncommon insights into the obligations, capabilities and limitations of government. Not in academic repose, but in the commitment of their lives and fortunes to implement their insights. This is unique in all human history. This 40,000 hours explains the vast number of political geniuses that emerged from no formal education. "We the People" was not a humble statement by the "big names" of American history; it was an affirmation that they simply aggregated the wisdom that was common at that time. These insights can be seen in the very precise wording the Constitution. The Federal government is mandated to "provide" defense while specifically restricted to only "promote" welfare. There are many discussions in the Federalist and Anti-Federalist papers about governers attempt to "do good" being the path to great harm and the destruction of liberty. In 2011 America faces civilization killers of Debt, Peak Oil, Climate Change and Food Bubble because the Federal government started taxing to provide welfare. Specific example, eight Presidents have declared imported oil a threat to national security. Yet in that same period of time, Federal taxing expanded infrastructure that mandated oil imports increase from 20% to 60%; oil's Potato Famine potential, a monolithic dependence on a source of energy 60% outside our control that we must borrow to buy. "Defense" failure can be measured in the daily commitment of US combat forces to protect access to imported oil since 1990. Subsequent papers will provide details on Debt, Peak Oil, Climate Change and Food Bubble. The purpose of this paper is to highlight what made the Founders unique and how we can apply their insights to survive the civilization killers created by the mis-application of government. To create a common frame of reference, as a basic foundation please read or listen to:
America’s founding citizens engaged in an intense 37 year catharsis of abandoning what was comfortably known to embrace what might be. The abandonment of the proven, at the risk life and liberty, on the attempt to “form a more perfect Union”, America’s founders set a standard that is the hope of humanity. The process of incremental. At the Albany Congress in 1754, Benjamin Franklin proposed a unified colonial defense. French and Indian Wars (1754-1763) forced leaders of individual colonies to collaborate on a continental wide defense; the seed of nationhood was planted in the struggle and how to pay for it. George Washington was trained to lead military forces. At the end of the French and Indian War in 1763 there was a strong connection and growing trade that united the colonies in their connection to Great Britain. As Great Britain applied taxes, the colonies grew more united in their attempt to deal with these taxes. In 1775 war between the colonies and Great Britain started, On July, 4th 1776, the Declaration of Independence, stated America’s right to self-government. In 1777 the Articles of Confederation became the operational structure of the American government. Yet in this same time “reconciliation” was a dominate topic. Read Thomas Paine’s Common Sense and The Crisis. It was in this confusion of loyalties that each of the States shifted their colonial governments into States governments. Multiple experiments at the State and Articles of Confederation polished many diverse “republican ideals” into practical government. In 1781, after Virginia and New York abandoned their claims in the Ohio Territory, Maryland became the last State to ratify the Articles of Confederation. Not all these ideals worked. The debate was visceral, vindictive, and even incompetent. Ratification of the Treaty of Paris (ending the Revolutionary War between the US and Britain) was delayed as States failed to attend to duties. National debts went unpaid, obligations made to veterans went unpaid, treaties to protect trade could not be made, Shay’s Rebellion threaten the stability of the Massachusetts. In 1786 the Annapolis Convention petitioned Congress to call a constitutional convention to re-work the Articles of Confederation. In 1787 The Constitution was drafted to completely displace the Articles of Confederation, shifting the government of The United States from a confederation of State Governments to a strong central government limited to the stated powers, powers balanced between branches and State Government control of the Senate. Concerns over this shift to a strong central government resulted in an insightful debate on the nature and capabilities of government documented in the Federalist and Anti-Federalist Papers. The debate also resulted in the Bill of Rights being ratified in 1791. What makes America’s founders so unique is that never before in history and perhaps never again will such a large a portion of a population spend decades in concentrated effort, divining the capabilities and limitations of government and writing the instruments of government as happened between 1754 and 1791. The gifts they gave us were paid for in blood and treasure. The aggregated wisdom of the many. History has proven both Federalist and Anti-Federalist correct:
Even at that time, they understood that slavery was a demon beyond their capability to address. In reading their papers every side knew a war, and great social restructuring would be required. Soon Americans will again pay in blood and treasure for allowing government to encroach into commercial monopolies over power and transport infrastructures, for making oil the lifeblood of our economy, for creating the Civilization Killers of Debt, Peak Oil, Climate Change and Food Bubbles. We can mitigate but not avoid the consequences. Fortunately, the Federalist and Anti-Federalist papers provides insights into what we can expect from government. As a sampling, are a few examples:
Madison: “The operations of the federal government will be most extensive and important in times of war and danger; those of the State governments, in times of peace and security.” Brutus: "It was because one part exercised fraud, oppression, and violence on the other, that men came together, and agreed that certain rules should be formed, to regulate the conduct of all, and the power of the whole community lodged in the hands of rulers to enforce an obedience to them. But rulers have the same propensities as other men; they are as likely to use the power with which they are vested for private purposes, and to the injury and oppression of those over whom they are placed, as individuals in a state of nature are to injure and oppress one another. It is therefore as proper that bounds should be set to their authority, as that government should have at first been instituted to restrain private injuries.” “This principle, which seems so evidently founded in the reason and nature of things, is confirmed by universal experience. Those who have governed, have been found in all ages ever active to enlarge their powers and abridge the public liberty." As warned in both the Federalist and Anti-Federalist Papers, those who manage government, the poli-crats, set themselves up as America’s nobility, a privileged class. Two simple metrics:
Machiavelli, in the book, The Prince, noted this nature of nobles and we can see it as public employees demonstrate against the reigning in of their special privileges: “Besides this, one cannot by fair dealing, and without injury to others, satisfy the nobles, but you can satisfy the people, for their object is more righteous than that of the nobles, the latter wishing to oppress, whilst the former only desire not to be oppressed.” All sides in the Federalist/Anti-Federalist debate agreed that:
Our current tax systems, where the Federal Government collects taxes are returns some of the revenues to the States, makes the Federal and State governments partners in taxing the people as much as possible. Hamilton, in his Federalist Papers thought the size of the Federal taxing authority would be minuscule relative to the States. Government encroachment into commerce is everywhere. Stalin would be astounded by how effectively the US Government eliminated the family farm, collectivized American agriculture, by subsidies and promoting the use of oil. Government monopoly of communications resulted in a century of rotary telephones. Government monopoly of transportation and power infrastructure made oil and coal the lifeblood of our economy, creating Peak Oil’s Potato Famine potential; a monolithic dependence on a source of energy 60% outside our control. We are on a the clock. What we do in the last months of 2011 will fix one of two choices that will play out over the next 20 years:
Details of these tasks will be covered in subsequent papers. When we accomplish them, we will re-establish the condition common for most of America's self-reliant history. Prior to 1950, America was primarily powered within a solar budget, most people grew most of their own food, agriculture and manufacturing were local, government did not control the means of production in power and transportation.
It has only been since the mobilization to fight World War I that America started down the path to dependence when the Federal government monopolized/socialized communications, power and transport infrastructures as "natural monopolies." It has only been since World War II that Federal taxing made oil the lifeblood of our economy.
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