When we broke away from England way back when, we announced our intentions via the Declaration of Independence. Let's look at a short excerpt from that document.
We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness.
Clearly, the Founders viewed the purpose of the government to secure and protect the rights of its citizens. But notice that one phrase, "deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed." I highlight this, because our current government does not enjoy the consent of US citizens. It's not even close. In fact, only 23% of US citizens believe our government operates with our consent.
http://www.rasmussenreports.com/public_content/politics/general_politics/may_2011/just_23_say_federal_government_has_consent_of_the_governed
Most voters nationwide continue to feel disconnected from their government and overwhelmingly believe that Congress puts party politics ahead of its constituents' concerns.
A new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey of Likely Voters shows that only 23% believe the federal government today has the consent of the governed. Sixty percent (60%) do not think this is the case, while another 17% are undecided.
Did you catch that? A full 60% think our government is operating without our consent, while only 23% believe otherwise.
Let's return to the declaration, shall we?
That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government
Personally, I think we're far past the point when we should have taken action "to alter or to abolish" our government, as most elected officials govern for their own benefit and view ordinary citizens with disdain.
What do YOU think?
The exact wording of the question on the poll is as follows:
The Declaration of Independence says that governments derive their authority from the consent of the governed. Does the federal government today have the consent of the governed?
How would YOU answer it?
I would say that this is part of an overall building trend towards dissatisfaction with the status quo in both parties and suggests that the times is right for (another) third party candidacy. To suggest that this is indicative that the mass of the populous would support an overthrow of the U.S. government is ridiculous. The majority might even "like" a Facebook page that says explicitly that, but I would argue that very, very few people would actually take steps to do so.
ReplyDeleteI would counter that very few people would HAVE to "take steps" to do so. The rest just have to lend support for the move.
ReplyDeleteAnd please note that I didn't say our government should be abolished. I used the same language as contained in the Declaration of Independence: "to alter or to abolish."
I would agree that this government does not derive its authority from the consent of the governed, but it derives its power from its control of the military, which may not agree that this government should be abolished and replaced. What then?
ReplyDeleteMatt, YOU didn't say that our goverment should be aboloished, but further down in the preamble of the declaration are these words:
ReplyDelete"it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future security." with "duty" being the operative word.
No one now has to say it because it's in the Declaration of Independence.
Ruminator, I wasn't commenting on the wisdom or possibility that such as attempt would be successful, I was just commenting on the fact that our government doesn't have the consent of the governed. Under the terms of the DoI, we are now in the same position with our own government as we were with the British government.
ReplyDeleteRef:"Under the terms of the DoI, we are now in the same position with our own government as we were with the British government."
ReplyDeleteYou are absolutely 100% correct!