Election Week - 5 Things That Will Make A Difference

For many, this week is the week they pay attention to who represents us in government and what kind of job they are doing. The future is determined to a great extent by the decisions we make, not only at the voting booth, but if we take time to challenge, encourage and educate those representatives. Here are five things you can do now to help create a better future for our children and grandchildren.

1)     Understand the Principles. When we understand correct principles, we make good decisions. Without them we tend to do what “feels good” or we wait until we have to make decisions in an emergency, which usually leads to very bad decisions. I recommend reading the Declaration of Independence, the US Constitution and Bill of Rights, “The Proper Role of Government” by former secretary of agriculture, Ezra Taft Benson, and a new book just out – “We Hold These Truths to be Self-Evident” by Oliver Demille.

2)     Get informed about the ballot initiatives and the candidates before each election. I can guarantee you that voting for someone just because they belong to a specific party will lend your support to at least one or two people that do not support what you think they do. At the very least, go to vote.utah.gov, put in your address and look at the short statements from each candidate and the commentary on the ballot initiatives.  The arguments for and against these issues are critical in noticing unintended consequences of the legislation and in being truly informed. You should also go to http://judges.utah.gov/ to get evaluations of judges. There are only a few and you can be better informed in just a few minutes. As to candidates, please do not rely on television and radio ads for your information, either pro or con. Many of these ads are heavily slanted and sometimes outright incorrect on the facts. Viewing the debates helps some as does finding and reviewing the candidate websites. If they are incumbents (already serving and running for re-election), the best thing you can do is check their voting record. This takes a little time and effort, but yields surprising results. The http://www.freedomfirstsociety.org/home/ page links to an evaluation of all federal congress members and their votes as they pertain to sustaining the US Constitution. In my study of those votes, I found that some of our Utah congressional members vote much differently than they talk. For our state legislatures, check out http://libertasutah.org/resources/legislator-indexes/2014-index/ where they provide a similar and instructive scorecard.

3)     Vote! You will notice that this comes after #1 and #2. Voting uninformed leads us to support ideals and people that may not reflect what we believe and unnecessary or even destructive changes to our State Constitution and Tax Rules. Don’t assume anything based on party relationships. Refusing to vote is not rebellion, it is surrender. Not casting informed votes is to be part of the problem, not part of the solution. If you don’t vote, you have no right to gripe. If you don’t vote to change the course we are on, you shouldn’t complain about where we are going.

4)     Write and call your representatives. Annoy them. Teach them. Persuade them. They do listen, especially when large numbers of people contact them. It is true that often they don’t see your letter, but their staff tells them when 70% or more of the letters they get are for or against something and that matters. Concepts presented with thought and appropriate passion often find their way into campaign speeches and debates that form policies. Take the time. Make the difference.

5)     Encourage others to do all the above. Be someone that cares enough to be involved. Find candidates you can support and help them. Take flyers door to door. Contribute. Host cottage meetings in your home with candidates. Put up yard signs and stickers on your car. Listen, learn and be civil. People see and take notice. Make it acceptable to have opinions by making your opinions known. Some might disagree, but most will respect that you care. 

Don't Vote! - Unless... (Principles of Freedom)

As the election approaches, I am going to consciously offend a few of my readers. I apologize in advance for doing so, but this needs to be said. Please DON’T VOTE --- UNLESS…

Please don’t vote unless you care about the direction our country is going and you care enough to inform yourself about all sides of the issues we face.

Please don’t vote unless you take the time to research ALL the candidates and what they actually believe and stand for. In the case of those who have been in office, research what they actually voted for and against more than what they say. Sadly, the two sometimes don’t match up.

Please don’t vote unless you care about the good of the nation and the future as it pertains to our children and grand-children and not just about your own well-being and situation.

Please don’t vote a straight party ticket with no variation. It is a lazy and uninformed way to do things. Every party has people that are not worthy of your vote and most if not all have at least one candidate that is worthy of your thoughtful consideration though perhaps not your vote. Independents that choose not to be connected to any party can also have good ideas and character.

Please don’t vote for the “lesser of two evils”. Voting for any “evil” is a choice to support something or someone that is wrong. If you can’t honestly find one candidate (or more) that stands up for what you believe is good and right, with-hold your vote in that race or write in someone you do believe in. In most elections, write-ins are not counted unless they have registered with the state or local government, but they can’t throw out the rest of your votes if you choose to write in someone you wish would run but didn’t. That way, you can at least have integrity in who and what you vote “for” instead of leaving the voting booth with a bad taste in your mouth after voting “against” the worst candidate but for someone you don’t believe in.

Utah puts out a voter information packet that you can either look at online or have sent to your home. It is a starting point, but each candidate only gets 200 words to tell you what they think and will do. That is not enough. Check their websites, campaign literature and especially voting records. Check out voter pages at KUED where they have videos of each major candidate (more than 200 words, but still not enough info). Check out report card sites like www.freedomfirstsociety.org that keep track of important votes by our national congress people. That one is considered conservative and constitutionally oriented, but others track votes on the environment, social issues and special interests such as aging, health care, etc.

Informed voters can have a real impact on our government and our future. In Utah, approximately 40% of those of voting age don’t even register to vote. Of those who register, only about half vote. That means that about 30% of possible voters make the decisions that affect us all. I actually want every one of you to vote. But, I want you to care enough to be informed before you do it. If even 10% of those of voting age were well informed, they could make a difference in our future, our state, our communities and our country. 

The "Other" Gardener - Principles of Freedom

There is a story of two gardeners. Both were asked to consult for a golf resort that had a couple of problems. The grass on part of the course had turned brown and watering it more seemed to make the problem worse. There were also a number of trees that were not thriving and were in danger of dying. The two were both asked for their advice. The first said, “Well obviously, the person in charge doesn’t know what they are doing. They are applying the wrong solutions to these problems”. When told that they had replaced the greenskeeper just a few months ago, he said, “Well, he doesn’t know what he’s doing either.”

They then turned to the other gardener and asked his advice. He said, “Let me spend a day with your greenskeeper. The grass needs a little less water and some ammonium nitrate and the trees could use a bit of bug spray to get rid of the borer beetles that are afflicting them. I can show him how to take care of the problem.”

Can you see the application in our current political situation? Most of our politicians want us to believe that all the problems we face are either the fault of those who were in charge or those who are in charge. When we change politicians, the new ones continue to blame the old ones and the old ones blame the new ones. Meanwhile the problems get worse.

A very wise man when confronted with a similar argument, said, “It’s not who’s right, it is what is right!” That is what the other gardener believed and lived by. That is what we need to require of our elected officials. We need to insist that they quit blaming each other and do what is right and effective and helpful.

I happened upon a recent debate about thousands of young people coming into our country illegally. One group argued vehemently that we need to close the borders and send them all back where they came. The other group insisted that they are only children and we must in good conscience let them all come and stay here. I was asked my opinion and so I asked them the following question. “Where are their parents?” I then said, “Where their parents are, that is where they should be. If their parents are here, they should be with their parents. If their parents must go back to their home country, they should go with them. If their parents are back in their home country, that is where they should also be.”

I was surprised at the reaction. Silence. Then it was followed by mumbled agreement from both sides of the argument and the debate basically died away. When we allow politics to determine the answers instead of just looking at and solving the problems, we not only do a disservice to our nation, but we compromise our future. Please take the time, as the election approaches, to find out which type of representative you are voting for, what they stand for and if they are people of integrity and vision. And don’t just look at the two major parties. Some of the best ideas are coming from the newer parties that are not stuck in the blame game. We should all be supporting and asking for the help of “the other gardener,” whoever that is.

Why the Constitution?

September 17^th is Constitution Day. Did you know that? For most people, the anniversary of this document that changed the world forever passes unnoticed. Why is it important? Does it really matter in our modern world? Is it still relevant?

You can read the whole document in 20 minutes or less. You can understand it pretty well with maybe an hour of thought. This document has guided and shaped our nation and influenced governments and people around the world. The principles it reflects have guided great thinkers and philosophers for hundreds of years – it simply put those principles into a framework that would create the most powerful, prosperous and free people the world has ever seen.

The greatest thinkers and statesmen we have ever seen have been unanimous in their praise for this document. Daniel Webster said “I regard it as the work of the purest patriots and wisest statesmen that ever existed, aided by the smiles of a benignant (gracious) Providence…it almost appears a Divine interposition in our behalf…” He also said “It is hardly too strong to say that the Constitution was made to guard the people against the dangers of good intentions. There are men in all ages who mean to govern well, but they mean to govern. They promise to be good master, but they mean to be masters.”

In this short and clear document, basic concepts that allow good government and discourage bad government and tyranny are laid down. Just a few of these concepts allow us to see the brilliance and good will of those who crafted it.

One branch of government, the legislative, is responsible exclusively for the creation of law. The other two branches may not do this. Their duties include the enforcement of law (executive branch) and interpretation of the law and punishment of law breakers (the judicial).

The system of checks and balances provided that no one branch could overwhelm or diminish the power or effectiveness of the other two branches. They would be confined to the responsibilities granted and if one began to usurp ungranted powers, either of the other two could stop that usurpation.

Each state will have a republican form of government (not the party – the system of representation). They can make their own rules, as long as those rules do not conflict with the Constitution. They must honor the contracts made in the other states, even if their laws do not agree.

The government can raise money through taxation, import and export duties or tariffs and can print money, establish post offices and raise and support armies and navies for the general defense. Funding for the military can only be determined for up to two years at a time.

All elected (and many appointed officials) as well as all military employees must affirm by oath their support for and willingness to protect and defend the Constitution of the United States. This is true even if they are serving on the local or state level.

There are many other great concepts presented, but the document lays out the foundation of greatness for a nation and its people. Next time we will consider how it protects our freedoms through the Bill of Rights.

The Bill of Rights

Most people think the Bill of Rights (the first 10 Amendments to the Constitution) are part of the original document. They actually were added briefly after the Constitution was written and ratified by the states and after serious debate about the wording and content of each Amendment. There were originally 20 Amendments, but only 12 survived the debate in the House and Senate and were sent to the states for approval. Of those 12, only 10 were ratified by the necessary two thirds of the states. One of the remaining two was eventually ratified some 200 years later as the 27^th Amendment. Where the body of the Constitution created a framework of government responsive to the people and mostly under their control, the Bill of Rights was added to guarantee the “unalienable” rights that the government was formed to protect and defend for each citizen. Each of the items presented in this group of guarantees is worthy of an article by itself, so this article will portray the basic concepts that are addressed and how those concepts make us more free, more prosperous and a more happy people when they are protected and honored.

Protecting the freedom of thought, opinion and communication – The 1^st Amendment specifically addresses freedom of religion, speech, the press (printing or broadcasting what you think), assembly and disagreeing with the government (redress of grievances). While this covers a lot of ground, the common theme is that it is none of the governments business what you believe, think or say unless you do damage to others, and then only if that damage is based on provably false statements. Throughout this document, it becomes evident that the founders agreed with the motto, “Your right to swing your fist ends where my nose begins.” They wished to grant the greatest freedom possible in keeping with the peace and well-being of the citizens.

Protecting the right to defend our selves, families and property – Specifically addressed by the 2^nd through the 8^th Amendments, we have the right to rebut accusations, not be intimidated by others or by the government, not to give testimony against ourselves or our spouses and be reasonably well treated while under accusation unless and until convicted of an offense. We are also protected from “cruel and unusual” punishment

Protecting our right of privacy and to not be put upon or abused by the government – The 4^th Amendment is the gold standard here as it states clearly that the government cannot collect, look at or use our personal information (persons, houses, papers, and effects) without warrant issued by a judge and that the warrants cannot be issued except by probably cause “supported by Oath or affirmation”. In my opinion, the current collecting and sifting of our communications and movements by the NSA is a clear violation of this right. Amendment 3 also addresses this issue.

Protecting our right to defend ourselves against accusations or charges – Amendments 4, 5, 6, 7 and 8 make it clear that no punishment can be affixed to us unless the government can prove beyond reasonable doubt and without resorting to dishonest or coercive actions that we are guilty of a crime.

Protecting us from out-of-control government and tyranny – Amendments 9 and 10 make it clear that these are only a few of our unalienable rights and that it is the duty of the government to recognize all of those rights and not assume it has the right to define them to enhance their own power. All of the Amendments in the Bill of Rights address this issue, but perhaps the most critical is the 2^nd Amendment which allows citizens the right to keep and bear arms – not just to hunt and target shoot, but to defend themselves from all enemies, foreign and domestic – including their own government if, in the words of Thomas Jefferson and the Declaration, it “becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it.” An unarmed populace cannot defend “the security of a free state”. We need to understand and defend these freedoms as the founders did.

The “New” Amendments

The Amendments to the Constitution after the 1^st ten (the Bill of Rights) are a mixed bag of good and bad ideas, clarifications or definitions, and attempts to overcome the protections that the Constitutionoriginally guaranteed the citizens of the United States. Only two additional Amendments were ratified before the end of the Civil War in 1865 and only three more from that period until 1913 when the first of a number of questionable Amendments were created. In all during that 100 years we have created and ratified 12 more Amendments, some of which have either been bad ideas or unnecessary. I abide by and respect the law created by these 12, but disagree with and am working to rescind a few of them, just as we rescinded the 18^th when we realized it was a bad idea.

Good ideas and clarifications - #11 clarified the role of the judiciary in lawsuits, #12 defined and clarified the process of electing the president and vice president, #13 outlawed slavery, #14 clarified equal rights and protections and applied them to all citizens, defined requirements for the election of members of Congress, and identified what is and is not a valid debt of the government. #15 extended the vote to all male citizens and #19 extended it to women, while #26 extended it to all citizens over age 18. #24 restricts the government from stopping anyone from voting because of failure to pay a poll tax or any other tax.  #20, #22 and #25 identify the terms of office for elected Federal officials and the way successors to the President should be chosen in case of death or inability to continue.

As you can see, most of these amendments were designed to make the government work better, correct problems that were politically unfixable at the time the Constitution was written (slavery, etc.) or expand the number and type of people allowed to vote. In general these are all good ideas with the possible exception of allowing people to vote and decide the direction of our country that have not studied the candidates and issues and become educated as to the history, freedoms and responsibilities of an informed electorate.

Two amendments, #18 and #21, cancel each other out as we outlawed alcohol and then realized the concept was a failure and simply created a criminal element instead of stopping people from consuming it. #23 allows the people residing in the District of Columbia to have representation in Congress and in the choosing of our President, but without the full benefits or responsibilities of being a separate state. The 27^th Amendment disallows any pay increases to take effect during the current election cycle, thus decreasing the incentive for Congressmen to vote themselves pay increases. It seems to have not had the desired effect, since they are continuing to increase pay, even though they already receive much more than the normal citizens and “retirement” pay that is by far above what most of us receive.

The worst amendments are #16 and #17. They were both passed in the same year, 1913, and were part of a systematic effort to fundamentally change our system of government. In my opinion, those changes were much for the worse and have precipitated many of the problems we now face. For more info, read the book “1913” by Oliver DeMille and Orrin Woodward. #16 created the IRS and allowed for an individual income tax. Up until that point, all efforts to tax the income of individuals were struck down by the Supreme Court as unconstitutional. The government could not control or penalize your income, as long as that income was legally created. This was the basis of the success and prosperity of the citizens of the US, especially in comparison to the general citizenry of any other country. The 17^th Amendment took the rights and protections of the individual states away and gave election of Senators to the general public. This sounds like a good idea until you realize that the Senators were a check and balance on the excessive promises of the generally elected House of Representatives. With that check and balance removed we now have out of control debt and laws that pander to special interests and the “gimme” mentality instead of looking at the long term effects of spending without restraint for unnecessary or unwise programs and redundancies.

All in all, most of the Amendments are good or at least non-destructive. A few, however, have set in motion things we really don’t want and should be rescinded.

Life, Liberty and the Pursuit

The Declaration of Independence is one of the greatest achievements of man in history. It is great not only because it gave birth to a nation, but because it created a framework of liberty and a clear statement as to why liberty and freedom are necessary to the greatness of humankind. It also creates an understanding of the proper role of government and lays the foundation upon which the Constitution was built.

Here are just a few of the great truths that continue to gain honor today because Thomas Jefferson and our founders were so educated, insightful, articulate and inspired.

Mankind has unalienable rights – granted by their creator and not by government. Governments do not create these rights nor do they have the right to take them away from law abiding citizens. These rights include (but are not limited to) life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. You may notice that happiness is not a right granted by government or God, but the ability to pursue happiness is. One other unalienable right that was mentioned in the first draft was “Property”. While Jefferson and others felt that ownership and personal control of property that had been created or legally purchased was one of these rights, it was argued that some might think that governments would need to be in the business of “providing” property to citizens which was diametrically opposed to the right they did believe in – the pursuit of happiness which included the creation, ownership and control of property without government interference as long as the rights of others are not impinged upon.

Governments receive their power to govern (just powers) from the consent of the governed. In other words, the people have the right of self-government and only the powers that they, the people, collectively agree to allow the government to exercise are permissible to that government. The government is rightly there to serve the people, not the other way around.

It is the purpose and duty of government to protect the safety and the rights of the governed.

When government becomes abusive of these rights, that government should then be changed or abolished. Abolishing or separating from a government, especially by violence, should never be done lightly or without extensive evidence of the “absolute despotism” of the offending government.

These founders (56 in all representing all the colonies) pledged their lives, fortunes and sacred honor to these principles of freedom. It is evidenced by the mention of deity four times in this document, that these great leaders and courageous statesmen agreed in general that God is involved and properly referred to in the affairs of men and states.

These concepts are the basis upon which our understanding of the Principles of Freedom have come about and they are the basis of what we need to do today to maintain and recover those freedoms and that liberty for which they and many others in our history have paid so great a price. We should examine our own level of commitment and understanding to see if we are creating for our children and their children a world of freedom or allowing that world to slip into servitude, debt and sorrow.