Congress for Dummies
Well, there is a Congress for Dummies, and buried within it, an explanation about the origins of the U.S. Constitution, I’m sure. Well, I could call this long-awaited column The Constitution for Dummies but that would be biting off of that successful franchise. So I will call it The Constitution: Explained.
Unless one is fresh from a school course in US history, or are budding lawyers, or, for that matter are lawyers, you will be familiar with the amendments and articles of The Constitution. Even if you are a neophyte to the complex so-called “lawyerspeak” you know that The constitution gives the Freedom of Press, Speech and Religion, and some of you understand further about ‘taking the fifth’ ‘the right of private property,’ but I don’t want to get ahead of myself.
This work will be serialize for easier digestion of the facts. Remember: the more you know about this, the less the government can attempt to impede upon them (believe me, they’ve tried!). You can catch the fatcats in the act!
First, we will start with the preamble to The Constitution, which basically states the intention of the entire document:
We the People of the United States, in order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general Welfare and insure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this CONSTITUTION for the United States of America.
gals and guys, this is YOUR document. Don’t groan at the legal-ese and pomposity, savor EVERY WORD. Now more than ever, now that the amendments guarantee EVERYBODY’S freedom and not just prim and proper giggly aristocrats with powdered wigs. NO ONE had made a proposition for a government this radical before. Rome had a Senate, but they were rank imperialists. This was freedom of choice and a government BY the people and FOR the people. Of course the possession of a lot of money corrupts the tenants of this document, but sullies not the pure spirit of freedom that the U.S. and every democracy afterwards possesses.
Tomorrow: Section 1; the birth of Congress (awww, it’s a bicameral legislature! And looks just like its daddy!)