I Pledge Allegiance to the Constitution…Not the flag. The flag is merely a fabric symbol. Not the Declaration of Independence. The Declaration is a fine piece of rebellious historic rhetoric, but does not carry significant legal authority. And not the Federalist Papers. Although they provide enlightenment to the thoughts of Alexander Hamilton, James Madison, and John Jay, they were an instrument of public persuasion and their rhetoric was never endorsed by the Constitutional Convention nor ratified by the States. So why whack at this hornets’ nest? I just spent the weekend watching delegates to the Oregon GOP convention in Eugene as many inserted their personal religious dogma into the GOP Platform, and frankly I was appalled. Perhaps it’s not the end of the world – no one is legally bound by anything that goes into a party platform, but as one who considers himself a Republican, I had hoped to associate with a party holding a more enlightened view of government and civil liberties. Much of the self-righteous religious agenda stems from a few words in the Declaration of Independence; “endowed by their Creator with unalienable rights.” These “conservatives,” backed by the likes of Newt Gingrich, argue that all morality flows from “the Creator” and thus, that anything not aligned with their dogma is immoral. This judgmental moralizing may be appropriate from the pulpit, but should have no place in governmental policy. Jefferson’s words about the Creator drew an important distinction from an argument that rights were to be granted by a monarch, but “unalienable” is the key word we should focus on. These rights apply to all regardless of religious belief, Creator or no. And the law of the land, the Constitution, supplies no such justification for the religious conservatives. I find no language about the Creator, but we do find a fairly clear prohibition against governmental endorsement of religious concepts. The first amendment states: Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances. There may be a fine line between “no law respecting an establishment of religion” and “prohibiting the free exercise thereof,” but any language regarding a Creator assumes we all believe in a Creator. To include such language is to alienate the rights of those who don’t believe and implies an establishment of religion. In matters of government and politics, I pledge allegiance to the Constitution and to the Republic over which it governs. I respect the flag, I appreciate the Declaration of Independence, and I value the various historical documents that enlighten us regarding our founders’ thoughts and intentions. I oppose those whose primary allegiance is to their God in matters of politics and public policy. Religion is a personal matter that should stay personal. Michael Previous: Unprincipled Politics -- Next: Do I believe these things, Comment from MsAmber: Well written. Couldn’t have said it better. MsAmber Posted by MsAmber Aug 3, 04:18 AM # Comment from chris farrell: Hey, I don’t disagree with you on this issue. Republicans wrapping themselves up in Christianity is a drag. Posted by chris farrell Aug 3, 08:02 PM # Comment from Max Zinner: You are absolutely right, and I applaud you for following in the footsteps of John Danforth in this issue. His book this fall should be very interesting! Posted by Max Zinner Aug 5, 04:28 PM # Comment from Anonymous: If you pledge allegience to the constitution, please describe, in detail under what authority provided by the constitution you would impose a national sales tax? Posted by Anonymous Aug 7, 06:04 AM # Comment from Michael Smith: The 16th amendment, which established the income tax, is often argued as not properly ratified. I would seek its repeal and advocate a system of consumption taxes as seems to be authorized to Congress under Article 1, sections 7 and 8. “The Congress shall have Power To lay and collect Taxes, Duties, Imposts and Excises, to pay the Debts and provide for the common Defence and general Welfare of the United States; but all Duties, Imposts and Excises shall be uniform throughout the United States...” Posted by Michael Smith Aug 7, 10:16 AM # Comment from willCode4Beer: I’m going propose something a little more “radical”. Let me start with some background. As an Army veteran, I had to take an oath to protect and defend the constitution. Immigrants also have to take an oath of allegance to the United States and the constitution. However, the average person ‘born’ here gets all the rights without pledging allegance to anything. So, I’m going to propose that nobody can become a full citizen until they meet 4 requirements: • reach 18 years of age • register for selective service • register to vote • take a similar oath as that of an immigrant or soldier (BTW, I’d really like to add the citizenship test too but, that may be too extreme) You could argue that because of the requirement to take an oath that an naturalized immigrant is more American than someone simply born here. Lets set a higher standard. Schools should not only teach the oath to students but also teach them what it means. Registering for selective service should require the oath. How can you draft someone who refuses to defend the contry and constitution? BTW, I am 3rd generation American. I’m not posting this to start an immigration debate but, to stir up a citizenship debate. Oath of Enlistment: http://www.army.mil/cmh-pg/faq/oaths.htm Naturalization Oath: http://www.uscis.gov/graphics/aboutus/history/teacher/oath.htm Posted by willCode4Beer Aug 10, 03:21 AM # Comment from Weird: Two of my favorite things about the Constitution are that; it doesn’t mention God and it doesn’t mention Democracy, not once, not anywhere. Consumption tax would be nice, or even a flat income tax, either way we could trim a lot of fat in the IRS and reduce the Federal Government’s overhead. Posted by Weird Aug 11, 05:45 PM # |
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