The Patriotic Letter # 1 - A Warning
A warning to all Americans who read these letters and this documentary is a sweeping change prevails in
our country one which has to be evaluated not only from the present from the past. It is most troubling
for our nation to have evolved to the points of dichotomy in thoughts and arguments which prevail now
throughout the land. It is so critical for us as a people to unite and see the end state if things continue to
sway in the direction of more people out of work and more people on welfare coupled with the growing
debt along with distrust of government. The path of tomorrow is so similar to the time of our
foundations. As shown in the section in this documentary -The Formative Years the track of our history
is evident. But what is not so evident is the struggles of the sides of government referred to as the
Federalist and Anti-Federalist. Please remember the original document framed at the onset of the
Revolutionary War was the Articles of Confederations and these articles focused on States that existed
at that time. “For Federalists, the Constitution was required in order to safeguard the liberty and
independence that the American Revolution had created. While the Federalists definitely had developed
a new political philosophy, they saw their most import role as defending the social gains of the
Revolution.” The Articles were considered a weak document and Federalist sought a stronger central
government. (Source: http://www.ushistory.org/us/16a.asp)
It is of significant importance to refer back to era when the Constitution was being formed to address
the fears then of the Anti-Federalist. “They believed that the greatest threat to the future of the United
States lay in the government's potential to become corrupt and seize more and more power until its
tyrannical rule completely dominated the people. Having just succeeded in rejecting what they saw as
the tyranny of British power, such threats were seen as a very real part of political life.
This range of objections boiled down to a central opposition to the sweeping new powers of the
proposed central government. George Mason, a delegate to the Philadelphia Convention who refused to
support the Constitution, explained, the plan was "totally subversive of every principle which has
hitherto governed us. This power is calculated to annihilate totally the state governments." The rise of
national power at the expense of state power was a common feature of Antifederalist opposition.
The most powerful objection raised by the Antifederalists, however, hinged on the lack of protection for
individual liberties in the Constitution. Most of the state constitutions of the era had built on the
Virginia model that included an explicit protection of individual rights that could not be intruded upon
by the state. This was seen as a central safeguard of people's rights and was considered a major
Revolutionary improvement over the unwritten protections of the British constitution.
Madison was one of the first political theorists to offer a profoundly modern vision of self-interest as an
aspect of human nature that could be employed to make government better, rather than more corrupt.
In this he represents a key figure in the transition from a traditional republican vision of America, to a
modern liberal one where self-interest has a necessary role to play in public life.
http://www.ushistory.org/us/16d.asp
All three branches of the new central government threatened Antifederalists' traditional belief in the
importance of restraining government power. The President's vast new powers, especially a veto that
could overturn decisions of the people's representatives in the legislature, were especially disturbing.
The court system of the national government appeared likely to encroach on local courts.” (Source:
http://www.ushistory.org/us/16b.asp ). One additional point the Anti-Federalist saw in the original
Constitution was the lack of individual protection. The resolution of the concern eventually came in the
form of the Bill Of Rights listed as the first ten Amendments of the Constitution ratified on December 15,
1791, when Virginia became the 10th of 14 states to approve 10 of the 12 amendments, thus giving the
Bill of Rights the two-thirds majority of state ratification necessary to make it legal a process that began
September of 1789. (Source: http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/bill-of-rights-is-finally-ratified )
While our newly formed government overcame the objections and did meet in the middle with a
compromise that produced the Bill of Rights for individuals, the fears of the Anti-federalist are evident
today in the power of the Federal government which has morphed into a government not by the whole
people but a government of control over the people that are elected to support and the States that
joined together to form the Union. It’s the Union that is now at stake once again and this Union will be
dissolved is the threads of the Union are not carefully considered.
Take note of the ruling class of political leadership and those directly associated with the power of
politics because they are hitting hard the working class of America. No matter what is at stake those so
called political leaders will do and say anything to gain an advantage and retain their political prowl in
government. The right to speak is one of their rights and so is it a right of the people of our country until
the people or a person speaks in a manner contrary to their propositions. At that point because of their
political power the people or person is then attacked and the end in some cases is the ultimate sacrifice
paid for America, which quite often goes unabated. There is no patriotism in this, no valor, nothing for
the common good of the society or the people, it is for one reason and one reason only to gain or
maintain self-interest and power over the people who elected them.