Tag United States Constitution

The Living and Breathing Constitution May Have Taken Its Last Breath

Allen Frederick 4 Comments

And the Lord said to Moses, Make two other stones like the first two; and I will put on them the words which were on the first stones, which were broken by you. Exodus 34:1 (BBE)

The next day Moses took his seat to serve as judge for the people, and they stood around him from morning till evening. Exodus 18:13 (NIV)

Throughout the Supreme CourtEnglish: West face of the United States Suprem... building are several depictions of Moses and the ten commandments upon which the foundations of our law were laid. Including one directly above the chief justice’s head, in the center of the 40-foot-long Spanish marble carving, is a tablet displaying Roman numerals I through X, with some numbers partially hidden. Today, just like in times past, the supreme law of the land had been smashed to bits by a judge.

The young nation of Israel had problems with rebelling against God’s commandments. They instead chose to be like the other nations around them instead of remaining separate and devoted to God. When Moses had led Israel out of Egyptian bondage he was instructed by God to climb to the top of Mount Sinai to receive instructions for the people. While he was a long time upon the mountain the people grew restless and decided that they were not going to wait for Moses to return with the instructions from God but would instead set about to do things their own way. The people grew rowdy and asked Aaron to make them a new god, and they took their gold jewelry and melted it down and fashioned an idol in the shape of an ox. The people said this is the god who brought us up out of Egypt.

And he took the gold from them and, hammering it with an instrument, he made it into the metal image of a young ox: and they said, This is your god, O Israel, who took you out of the land of Egypt. Exodus 32:4 (BBE)

Isn’t it interesting how history repeats itself? Although it was God who gave Israel the victory over the Egyptians they gave honor to their gold instead. Although our ancestors honored God for victory over the Crown, we, the later generation, have forgotten exactly how we got here and instead of honoring God with our wealth and possessions, we pass them along to the government and watch as it is melted down and fashioned into bull. We worship and honor our wealth and prosperity and not the God of that prosperity.

This week perhaps the last death knell has been driven into the heart of our Constitution, the supreme law of the land. It may well be broken beyond repair. The Chief Justice of the land decided to rule in favor of government supremacy over the person. Justice Roberts carved in stone a precedent never seen in America giving the government power to force an individual to act against his will and perhaps even his best interest to engage in commerce and offers him no recourse. This ruling empowers the government to reign as not only the law giver but also the law enforcer. With this one ruling the barrier of restraint has been removed, and the shackles of limited power has been torn asunder from off the legs of the federal leviathan. No longer bound by any restriction the course has been set for the ruling class to make subjects of us all. Yes I know they say it’s the “right thing to do” but I am here to tell you this has been a travesty of justice, and a sad day in American history.

The beast has been unleashed, and has set its eyes upon you. Like the bowels of hell itself, this monster now unrestrained will devour us all. There is no longer any protection given the individual. We have been sold out by those who were appointed to judge rightly.

There is no way to put a silver lining on this. This ruling was another in a long list of usurpations starting back before FDR. The progressive element in this society have set themselves on a course to end the restraints placed upon Government by the Constitution. They were determined to undermine and diminish the Constitutions authority in any way possible. With the election of Barack Hussein Obama, Jr., that course was accelerated under his ‘fundamental remake’ of America. The “living and breathing” constitution may have finally met its demise.

There is hope for America, but we must decide if we choose to honor the SUPREME LAW of the land or succumb to the whims of man (which includes the special interest groups). Do we wish to abide by the limitations placed upon us and the government by our Constitution, or do we all just want to do our own thing with total abandon and disregard for the rule of law? This empowerment of the central government is not in our best interest, for history has shown us that unrestrained government leads to tyranny.

At the close of the Continental convention, a woman asked Benjamin Franklin what type of government the Constitution was bringing into existence. Franklin replied, “A republic, if you can keep it.”

Regardless of one’s judgment concerning the type of government that the Constitution brought into existence in 1787, no one can deny that it was truly the most unusual and radical in history.

Consider: With the tragic exception of slavery, the United States was a society in which people could, by and large, engage in any occupation or economic enterprise without a government license, permit, or regulation.

Where people could travel anywhere in the world without restriction (no passports) and trade with whomever they pleased without the permission of their government officials.

Where people could accumulate unlimited amounts of wealth without government interference, because the Constitution did not permit the government to levy taxes on income.

Where people were free to do whatever they wanted with their own money — save, spend, donate, invest, hoard, or even destroy it.

Where government was not permitted to take care of people — no Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, welfare, education grants, or foreign aid.

With a few exceptions (e.g., 1850s Massachusetts), there were no compulsory public (i.e., government) school systems.

No wars on drugs, poverty, or wealth.

My how things have changed. Today there is not one activity a citizen can engage in without having to seek some type of permission slip from the Government. No matter how much power and control the central government grants to itself it is never satisfied. The government continues to grow and continues to seek new ways to infringe upon the rights of the individual. This week the government succeeded in gaining complete access to the individual’s life and health. We are now wards of the state. The government can now force us to do anything it wants of us since there is no longer any safeguards on our liberty.

Will the constitution lie in pieces upon the floor of the Supreme Court, or will we the people insist upon its resurrection? Will we once again honor and respect the SUPREME LAW of the land upon which this great republic was built, or sit back and allow this republic to be trampled under foot like the Constitution has been? You decide. But as for me…. GIVE ME LIBERTY or GIVE ME DEATH for I REFUSE to live in the midst of TYRANNY! I have not yet begun to fight but fight I shall and may God be with us.

July 4th is the day we celebrate our FREEDOM! I am afraid that this year we need to mourn freedom’s last gasp. May God bless America again? I hope so, but that depends upon us. If we truly desire God’s blessing then we must accept God’s rebuke and repent of our evil ways and return to the

God of our Father’s whose almighty hand
Leads forth in beauty all the starry band
Of shining worlds in splendor through the skies
Our grateful songs before Thy throne arise.
 
Thy love divine hath led us in the past,
In this free land by Thee our lot is cast,
Be Thou our Ruler, Guardian, Guide and Stay,
Thy Word our law, Thy paths our chosen way.
 
From war’s alarms, from deadly pestilence,
Be Thy strong arm our ever sure defense;
Thy true religion in our hearts increase,
Thy bounteous goodness nourish us in peace.
 
Refresh Thy people on their toilsome way,
Lead us from night to never-ending day;
Fill all our lives with love and grace divine,
And glory, laud, and praise be ever Thine.
Daniel C. Roberts, lyrics, 1876

Amen! Let it be so!

This has been A View from the Nest. The statements, comments, or opinions expressed are solely that of the author and do not represent the views or opinions of the host of this site or any affiliates thereof. Any questions or comments should be directed to myself and not to the host or hosts of this site.

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The High Price of Government Control

Allen Frederick 1 Comment

I was hungry, and you gave me nothing to eat. I was thirsty, and you gave me nothing to drink.Matthew 25:42 (GW)
As I read this story I was struck by how helpless the common folk were in these nations run by corrupt governments. Here is a quote from the above story:
these people are often the most affected by water-related health problems because they are “systematically excluded from [water] access by their poverty, by their limited legal rights or by public policies that limit access to the infrastructures that provide water for life and for livelihoods.”

Individual rights are the first thing to go in a totalitarian government. In order for a tyrannical government to control the lives of the people it must first deny them rights and private property protections. They need to make “classes” out of the people. Then  they are able to regulate the different classes and grant special privileges or deny access to basic human needs. With all their personal dignity stolen and being forced into government servitude the people lose their ability to care for themselves even so much as digging a well to provide fresh water.

In areas where water is available government policy makes it illegal for an individual to dig a well or to attempt to provide for him or herself. This is where BIG GOVERNMENT always takes the people. The privileged will always have because they steal from the people who are least able to defend themselves.

That is what makes America exceptional because our Founding Fathers knew the horrors of tyranny and set out to PROTECT the rights of every person by establishing that their individual rights are GRANTED by God and not handed out by governments.

HELP OUT IF YOU CAN BY MAKING A CONTRIBUTION TO:

For more information, visit www.gfa.org/cleanwater.
 

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For Freedom We Have Been Set Free

Allen Frederick 1 Comment

Christ has freed us so that we may enjoy the benefits of freedom. Therefore, be firm {in this freedom}, and don’t become slaves again. Galatians 5:1 (GW)

An article in the Patriot Post read:

David M. Walker (U.S. Comptroller General)

Image via Wikipedia

The Government Accountability Office (GAO) reported this week that virtually no progress has been made in the past year toward cutting duplicate government programs. Shocking, we know. Last February, government bean counters identified 81 areas in which redundant programs run by multiple agencies are wasting billions of dollars. Barack Obama and Congress have acted to eliminate just four in the past year while 60 other areas have undergone some undefined early steps, and 17 haven’t been acted upon at all. Last year, when talk about cutting spending was all the rage in Washington, Obama tried to convince the public that the government would save some real money by eliminating this waste. Such actions are welcome, but they wouldn’t have much of an impact on the overall deficit picture.

The GAO report certainly indicates that there was no impact at all because the president and Congress only paid lip service to the effort. The report’s findings identified some of the biggest culprits in budget redundancies, and none of them should come as a surprise. The Justice Department spent $30 billion in overlapping crime-prevention and victim-service grants since 2005. There are currently 23 agencies involved in 160 different programs to support homeowners and renters in some capacity. Fully two-thirds of all “green” building initiatives don’t have goals or performance measures, making them completely unaccountable to Congress or the public. Meanwhile, members of Congress are still drumming up ideas for new programs that duplicate existing ones.

The Cause

Knock, knock is anybody home? Is there any intelligent life in D.C.? Answer: No! There is never any effort or desire on the part of elected leaders to cut anything in Washington instead they keep finding new ways to rape the American economy with new taxes and regulations. As a nation we are bankrupt. Our Nation’s leaders have led us into bankruptcy morally, spiritually, financially, intellectually, and in leadership. Over several decades, the ever-increasing size and encroachment of the Federal government as come with a continued downward slide into the bankrupt state we now find ourselves.

Faced with such a bleak outlook what do our elected leaders choose to do? More of the same failed policies that have led us to where we are today. All the problems we face in America can be laid squarely at the feet of government. The more things the government gets involved in the worse those things get.

The solution

We fought a great war in this nation to FREE US from tyrannical government. We, as a nation, were established as free. We were all granted unalienable rights under our declaration of independence. We were all declared an independent and a free people. We do not need government granting rights or freedoms! We have been granted those by God. What we need is for the Government to be restrained by the ropes of the Constitution. The constitution was written to RESTRICT government intervention into the lives of a FREE PEOPLE not to interfere in every aspect and nature of the people.

The Constitution, as ratified by the states, is supposed to be the supreme law of the land. It restricts the government and it was amended to insure the rights of the individual would not be infringed upon. The Constitution established the government in subjection to the people and not to subject the people to the government.

“It is, Sir, the people’s government, made for the people, made by the people, and answerable to the people. The people of the United States have declared that this Constitution shall be the supreme law.”  Daniel Webster (1782-1852)

Since we have been granted freedom and are guaranteed those freedoms by God, why would we so willing allow ourselves to become enslaved again? We fought off King George with the help of King Jesus, for what another king? Really? Is that why our forefathers fought a revolution? I think not?

Election day is coming. No single candidate can, nor is able to undo years of abuse by government, however as a people we can hold each elected official accountable to us for the actions they take. we must choose wisely and with great care. The status quo is no longer good enough. We must demand Constitutional representation. We must insist that each leader upholds his oath of office to protect and defend the Constitution of these United States of America. We must, as a nation, return to a Constitutional republic or as a nation we are doomed.

This is a view from the nest. What say you?

But those who are waiting for the Lord will have new strength; they will get wings like eagles: running, they will not be tired, and walking, they will have no weariness. Isaiah 40:31 (BBE)

Along for the journey

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Dictatorial Powers?

Allen Frederick 4 Comments

In those days Israel didn’t have a king. Everyone did whatever he considered right. Judges 21:25 (GW)

Two days after defying Republicans and the Constitution by appointing Richard Cordray to head the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, President Obama visited the new agency to take a little time to gloat.

Making a victory lap of sorts at the independent agency, Obama cracked a joke, telling employees that he came by to help their new director move in.

When he announced Cordray’s appointment in Ohio on Wednesday, Obama made it clear that he would not wait for Congress to act on issues he deems pressing.

“When Congress refuses to act, and as a result hurts our economy and puts our people at risk, then I have an obligation as president to do what I can without them,” he said.

“I’ve got an obligation to act on behalf of the American people. And I’m not going to stand by while a minority in the Senate puts party ideology ahead of the people we were elected to serve. Not with so much at stake, not at this make-or-break moment for the middle class.” Source The Hill

And our elected leaders said nary a peep about it. Where is the outrage? Where is the uproar? Where are those who swore on oath to uphold our Constitution?

Constitution of the United States of America

Image by The U.S. National Archives via Flickr

Ours is not a nation of men but of laws so eloquently spoken by John Adams. By taking an end run around congress Obama has set himself up as the dictator in chief. Congress is elected by the people to represent their interests and to act on their behalf. This action by Obama, like other actions rammed down the American people’s collective throats, shows exactly how little respect Obama has for the American people. Wednesday Obama gave the American people the proverbial finger. It is time we give him the proverbial kick in the butt right out the door.

In spite of the many valid criticisms leveled against John Adams, it is fair to argue that his ideal, that America was a “nation of laws, not of men,” has been the bed rock of our Nation’s longevity.  At every crisis faced by our nation, the Constitution has always been there to temper the heated passions and calm the political tempests.  The genius of the Constitution’s simplicity and brevity has been one of the keys to its permanence.  However, it is only a piece of paper.  It takes citizens to create a civil, law-abiding nation. 

Amoral relativism has reduced questions of right and wrong to simple expediency. Everyone doing what they think is right regardless of established law is a canker that becomes the death knell of free societies.

The American ideal is that we are “a nation of laws, not of men,”  but the unpleasant reality is that the ruling class obeys only the laws it chooses to obey.

“We the people”can persuade its ruling class to “choose to obey” its laws through various means, and not even the absolute monarchs of ancient times could casually disregard all of them.We need to challenge our representatives to take a stand against unconstitutional government and voice our positions firmly but politely, reminding them that they work on our behalf and were chosen to represent our interests not their own. Groups like the Heritage Foundation, Americans for Prosperity, the TEA Party movement and other grass-roots activists groups have been successful in stemming the tide of tyranny rapidly overtaking our society.

Of course, there is always the punishment we can administer at the ballot box, but this is a “limited.” The rate of re-election for the House of Representatives hovers around 95%, and rarely drops below 90% . Senators enjoy high re-election rates as well, with the worst years of the modern era barely dipping below 80%. The most fabulously corrupt members of Congress have been there for decades.I guess we are gluttons for punishment. It is time we enforce our own term limits upon these ‘career politicians’. We must insist that they represent our interests or they will be replaced at the next election. One term until they learn that our government is of the people, by the people, and for the people.

The growth of the modern super-state will continue to grow and become more unruly as it continues to circumvent or disregard legal restrictions on its power enumerated in the Constitution.We the people must hold our elected officials accountable to us and urge them to uphold and defend the Constitution as ‘rule of law.’ Things have degenerated to the point where no one even bothers asking if the actions taken by congress, the President, or the courts is constitutional. The government has become unhooked from the restraints of the constitution and it is now operating lawlessly.

A government that is not restrained by the ‘rule of law’ is both immoral and inefficient. It’s interesting to note that almost the only restraint on government power to survive the last few decades intact is the two-term limit on the presidency, imposed through the 22nd Amendment in 1951.  Of course, like any law, it could be changed – and there are people who wish to repeal the 22nd Amendment – but changing a law is vastly more difficult than ignoring it, particularly when dealing with amendments to the Constitution.

Equally strong term limits for Congress would go a long way toward draining the Washington cesspool, making each politician less attractive targets for graft, and preventing them from accumulating decades of power to insulate themselves from the consequences of their actions. In a similar vein, dramatic tax reform is the only reliable means of preventing Washington from believing it can appropriate unlimited funds to indulge its grand designs. I am a strong advocate for abolishing the IRS and instituting a flat tax or fair tax. Eliminate all tax loopholes and apply the tax to everyone. None is exempt thereby making everyone invested in how their tax money is being spent. With almost 50% of the population not paying any taxes is it any wonder there is a large percentage of the population in favor or raising taxes? Since they do not contribute they are not concerned about those who must pay the bill.

We need to take our country back but that requires effort on our part and the willingness to actually take part in our own leadership. We need to embrace the IDEAL that we are a self-governing people and not looking to be ruled by a ‘elite ruling class’. By our silence and inaction, we have allowed our current state of affairs. We have not sought to maintain our autonomy but rather went looking for a king. Well my friends a king is what we have crowned. Giving all authority and power to an individual or a ruling class delimits our own liberty and makes us slaves of the masters.

I do not know about you and your house but this current administration does not speak for me on nearly all matters pertaining to my life and liberty and pursuit of happiness, therefore the ruling class is not seeking to defend my liberties but is only interested in advancing their own agendas and gaining power and control over my freedoms.

And this is another view from the nest. What say you?

But those who are waiting for the Lord will have new strength; they will get wings like eagles: running, they will not be tired, and walking, they will have no weariness. Isaiah 40:31 (BBE)

Along for the journey

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Obama Vows to Take Jobs Bill into Own Hands if Congress Defaults in Passage

Allen Frederick Leave a comment

President Obama continued the drumbeat for his jobs plan on Tuesday, even as White House officials acknowledged that the bill’s prospects in the Senate were tenuous and Mr. Obama himself vowed not to wait for Congress to advance ideas to get American back to work.

In what sounded almost like an outright acknowledgement that Congress would reject his jobs proposal, Mr. Obama said he was making plans for what to do afterward. “If they don’t pass the whole package, we’re going to break it up into different parts,” he said, echoing White House officials who have said that they would seek to push individual components of the bill that had the best chance for passage.

Meeting with his Council for Jobs and Competitiveness for the unveiling of yet another set of ideas to increase economic growth, Mr. Obama also said that he had instructed White House officials to “scour” a jobs council report in order to identify executive actions that the administration could take.

That is what Mr Obama had to say about the legislation process. Basically he said that he wants things done HIS WAY regardless of the political process or what the Constitution states. Let us hear from another President shall we concerning Presidential powers.

“In questions of power, then, let no more be heard of confidence in man, but bind him down from mischief by the chains of the Constitution.” –Thomas Jefferson, fair copy of the drafts of the Kentucky Resolutions of 1798

Is it any wonder why the progressives hate the Constitution? It is SO RESTRICTIVE of their desire for unlimited power.


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