Factions, Political Parties and Americans

"However combinations or associations of the above description [factions or today what we call a political party] may now and then answer popular ends, they are likely, in the course of time and things, to become potent engines, by which cunning, ambitious, and unprincipled men will be enabled to subvert the power of the people, and to usurp for themselves the reins of government; destroying afterwards the very engines, which have lifted them to unjust dominion."

George Washington, Farewell Address 1796

Read that quote by George Washington closely. Now answer me if his concerns are valid compared to today’s political environment?

With a Facebook post I shared on one of Dr. Ben Carson’s group pages dealing with Dr. Carson answering if he was a Republican, I received a very cleaver question regarding the subject. “So would you run on a Democan or Republicrat ticket, or maybe a Redemopendant one?” It led me to graciously answer the thought provoking query, which I expand upon here.

An interesting and clever question Joe. Thanks. Are Americans Engish, Indeses or Chinaxicans? Of course the answer is all of these but none these. It makes the point that we are all an odd mixture and can extend it to our philosophies rooted in our experiences.

What I love about Ben Carson is that he was once a liberal Democrat, changed to a Republican but now realizes neither party fully represents his ideas because each party has such a wide range within the platforms. That is just inherent in our party systems. Today, the two main parties have slid further away from their proverbial centers so it polarizes our politics, revealing the extremes from our foundation. The liberal progressives are the more extreme and off base, far that is from outside of the American form of republic this nation was founded on. But the far right can be as misleading if allowed driving to the excessive.   Ben Carson will say that conservative Republican come closes to his belief but he is willing to keep common sense in the formula so labels himself politically as Independent.

Our founding fathers warned against “factions”, what we call political parties, because they could be so dividing for our republic (if you want to know more about factions, click here). But they also came to comprehend that it was almost unavoidable so continually pointed back to our founding documents to anchor the process. 

This is what Dr. Carson has come to understand and strives to embrace using the common sense approach that our republic works best under; the American republic foundation with Biblical values. The founding fathers used republican thoughts (little r here, not the party) embracing the idea of the common good, which expressed itself within different “factions” (parties today). They wanted what was best for all using Christian values as the gauge. Not so in much in today's environment and actually opposing those values. That is not to mean every American has to be a Christian, but rather the republic uses that value system. That is why modern America is heading in the wrong direction and needs correction.

Dr. Ben Carson could be an ideologue who represents what America is all about and get us back on track if we were to convince to him run for President.

“On a candid examination of history, we shall find that turbulence, violence, and abuse of power, by the majority, trampling on the rights of the minority, have produced factions and commotions which, in republics, have, more frequently than any other.”

James Madison 1788

“Our Constitution was made only for a moral and religious people. It is wholly inadequate to the government of any other.”

John Adams

“The Declaration of Independence laid the cornerstone of human government upon the first precepts of Christianity.” 

John Adams

US Amendments and the Founders Intent

“A well regulated militia being necessary to the security of a free state, the right of the people to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed.”

2^nd Amendment, US Constitution

All the US Amendments are crucial to our Republic and the 2^nd one gives us a focus to understand our founder’s intentions. Let’s take a look at it.

Short, concise and to the point. When written there seemed to be little discussion, probably because the founders lived the reality of the peoples’ fate, if the simple truth of the statement was ignored. Today we feel generally safe from our neighboring countries and we have armed civil servants who can come to our aide when called. We have been lulled into a false sense of security, unlike that of the first generations in this nation. It is easy for us to believe that our founders needed something that we no longer need the same way today.

It would be a huge mistake to suppose such and make that assumption. The founding fathers had plenty to say about the reasons for this amendment, which we can gleam to make a common sense analysis.

"I ask, Sir, what is the militia? It is the whole people. To disarm the people is the best and most effectual way to enslave them."

George Mason - Co-author of the Second Amendment 1788

"Firearms stand next in importance to the constitution itself. They are the American people's liberty teeth and keystone under independence … from the hour the Pilgrims landed to the present day, events, occurrences and tendencies prove that to ensure peace security and happiness, the rifle and pistol are equally indispensable … the very atmosphere of firearms anywhere restrains evil interference — they deserve a place of honor with all that's good."

George Washington

"Those who hammer their guns into plowshares will plow for those who do not."

Thomas Jefferson

It was obvious to these men that the right to bear arms was to protect ourselves from anyone, within or without, who would overreach to take or limit our liberties as defined in the Declaration of Independence and Bill of rights, whether invaded from outside our borders or somehow by the newly tri-partite government with a bi-cameral legislature if it failed us.

As I alluded to above, sometimes we forget our founding fathers took time to consider all these facts and wrote our founding documents, rules and government framework with a vision that includes thoughts for future generations. We can miss it when current events “seem” too elaborate and conclude our current governance is deficient for solutions. But that thinking only leads to arrogant, convoluted, ill-placed conclusions in opposition to the intent of our nation’s founding. Common sense will direct us, teach us and support our founders’ intentions if we apply it.

Dr. Ben Carson is a good example that supports this conclusion. He is recognized as a man with unpretentious common sense. Bought up in the ghettos’ of Detroit definitely gave him a sense to the dangers of violent groups who demonstrated weapons as power to control communities and disregard the liberties of others in contrast to their rights of liberty. I assume he had no other context growing up for the purpose of guns other than the negative example he witnessed. He knew if the wrong people had guns it could be a disaster for the community. Until his famous speak given at a prayer breakfast in front of president Obama in 2013, he had no reason to seriously consider the 2^nd amendment until asked about it by Glen Beck in February 2013. Many radical right wing conservatives hailed his answer inadequate for a presidential run based only on this before Ben considered other opinions about the issue. I understand the concern but have seen Dr. Carson seriously consider other opinions and weighed them against the intentions our founders had for the second amendment. He has recently published some of these thoughts as an opinion piece in the Washington Times, April 22^nd 2014. I’ll let you read it, but Dr. Carson has shown he is capable of understanding others viewpoints and consider them against our founding fathers objectives. This common sense approached is outlined in his book, One Nation, which you need to read. He has decided that the 2^nd amendment, drafted by our founders, is critical to keeping our republic stable and safe.

“The Second Amendment was crafted by wise citizens who recognized how quickly an enemy invasion could occur or how our own government could be deceived into thinking it had the right to dominate the people.”

Dr. Ben Carson, 4/22/2014

For those, who at one time, considered Dr. Ben Carson might fail us on the second amendment, rest assured that he will up hold our constitution wholly and completely (in contrast to our current president) if we convince him to run for president in 2016.

"The great object is that every man be armed." and "Everyone who is able may have a gun."

Patrick Henry