Richard D. Baris - Our Virtuous Republic: The Forgotten Clause In The America Social Contract

Our Virtuous Republic

The Forgotten Clause in the American Social Contract

Richard D. Baris

Copyright 2012 Richard D. Baris

Kindle Edition

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This publication is in copyright. No reproduction of any part may take place without the written permission of Richard D. Baris.

Dedication

The efforts made in working on this book would never have made it onto paper if it werent for the support of my father, uncle, my mother-in-law, and most of all my wife. There is a certain solace that one seeks out in times of doubt and despair, which can only be found within the strength of their family. The unconditional love and support they offered to me in one such time reminded me of something I had long forgotten. The virtuous obligation of one to their family, community, the desire of a son to instill pride in their parents, and the duty of a man to be deserving of their wifes love; these are the strongest of human motivations, and the only source of honest success. In addition to my children, this book is for all of you. I hope you all consider it a validation and manifestation of your wisdomfor believing in me. I love you all.

- Rich

Contents

Preface

As an adolescent, and even a young adult, my father used to tell me that I would not be the first person in history to successfully uproot the natural order, or something of that nature. However, it was not until I was in adulthood with life experience did I come to understand what he meant by order. As an unruly youth, which in many ways I still am, I assumed he was referring to government order, the schools, or the police. Despite the warnings nothing seemed to stop me from trying, and nothing seemed to be of consequence from my efforts. However, my father was not referencing a superficial order, and indeed, there were consequences to come. Yet, we learn the most valuable lessons in truth from consequence, it reveals to us what does exist but cannot be seen. I was fortunate to suffer in a sense, as I never would have learned certain truths without painful experience.

Past indiscretions had threatened to condemn me to a life of two different manmade prisons. First, in the traditional sense of incarceration, and second, to the structural prison that progressive government has created disguised as public service. I observed that returning to the traditional principles of self-reliance, personal responsibility, duty and faith, equipped me with the tools I needed to regain control of my own destiny. America has been and must remain, a country of citizens who plot a course to achieve their dreams, and are willing to work hard to realize those dreams. Pursuing higher education in my late twenties provided me a unique perspective for which my younger classmates were not privy. My approach to academics was one from a real world mindset. Thus, when undergraduate studies requires and over emphasis on Marx while Weber is met with silence in the same manner as a bad joke, it is obvious where the majority of our problems are coming from. However, that is only half of the story.

Our society must have opportunity that maximizes mobility for all, and I do mean all, who are invested and believe in their dream. No longer can our society turn away those who earn and deserve a second chance, while promoting idleness that inevitably leads to mischief and reliance. There is an overwhelming sentiment among the American people that the system is rigged against us. Much of this is of course due to the divisive rhetoric of our leaders hoping to appeal to these public perceptions. Political expediency has taken precedent over the difficult decisions we expect leaders to have the courage to make. Sometimes real leadership requires you admit you dont have all of the answers. Let us begin this discussion of problems, which only We the People have the power to solve.

C hapter 1: The Forgotten Clause

Only a virtuous people are capable of freedom. As nations become corrupt and vicious, they have more need of masters.

Benjamin Franklin

I ntroduction

This book is not meant for historians. As did the father of our Constitution, James Madison, I revere history and recognize that it offers a rare opportunity to understand human behavior. Political, economical, and socio-cultural studies help us to discover the truth of human nature because it manifests in the form of historical reoccurrences. In human civilization, certain behavioral patterns are constant regardless of region, race, or era. The aim of this book is not to provide Americans with a history lesson, but to use history to reintroduce Americans to themselves. Unfortunately, in our society there are those who believe history proves a most useful tool when manipulated to support a false narrative, or rather an alternate reality. They have charged entire education and media institutions with the responsibility to keep the truth of our history where they believe it belongs in the past.

This book is not meant for political scholars. The domination of academic institutions by the progressive left too often prevents an honest discussion of political issues. It is counterproductive to argue against out of context positions from within a cage of political correctness, which of course was purposefully constructed to control the debate. Many modern scholars are resolved to have their profession be that of myth-maker. They have distorted the beliefs, intentions and characters, of many prominent historical figures in our shared American past. These institutions have betrayed the very public that entrusted them with the sacred duty to educate our children. Nevertheless, I intend to use the same scholastic method that breathes life into their abstract and impractical arguments to debunk them as the bias they are. Incompetent and under qualified politicians repeatedly adopt proposals predicated upon their ideas, which ultimately prove to be policies unfit for real world implementation. These failures, at best, are a waste money and at worst, do more damage to society than if there had been no action taken at all. Either way, our society is no better for their efforts.

This book is meant for the American people; by which, I refer not only to those who may currently share my political persuasion, but also to the union worker or teacher; the young women whose decision may or may not have given her the highest of blessings, but also natures greatest responsibility; the unemployed father receiving assistance to feed his family, or the single-mother who is feeling isolated and alone; the immigrant who feels unfamiliar and displaced; and of course, all others who strive to possess that rare commodity we call truth. Truth, itself, has become a commodity in our society, as the efforts of a few to conceal truth have proven quite effective. It is often said that patience is a virtue. The act of patience itself, however, is not always motivated by virtuous intentions. To the credit of the competent action and strong resolve of the artificial aristocracy, the people of America have lost their national identity. We suffer from a national collective amnesia as a result of deliberate measures taken by patient despots. In a free society, citizens must become masters of their own historical record. Every generation that passes ignorant of this task grows closer to the dangers of despotism. The Great Communicator, President Ronald Reagan, is widely remembered for his speech in which he said:

Freedom is never more than one generation away from extinction. We didnt pass it on to our children in the bloodstream. It must be fought for, protected, and handed on for them to do the same, or one day we will spend our sunset years telling our children and our children's children what it was once like in the United States where men were free.

The paramount problem with conservatives and the country as a whole, is that we have forgotten how to fight for, protect, and hand freedom off to our children. Issues and ideas are now almost exclusively fought on policy platforms, which of course is the realm of government, and politicians have a monopoly on these matters. Historical truths get lost in the government debate trap, and in what many Americans believe to be our sunset years we debate absolute truth against relativism. It is my deepest desire to remind the American people that there is in fact an absolute truth, and they have no need to consult the pretentious wisdom of our leadership any longer. They are not what they purport to be, that is, our salvation in time of need and crisis. Government has no intention to rescue us, nor would they even know how, from the many malevolent forces that scheme against the people. In fact, they are those forces and tirelessly work to conceal their intentions. Time and time again, we have allowed out of our own convenience to let them convince us that their station can provide us with the solutions our society needs. We the People possess all that is needed to restore and preserve our way of life for our children and our childrens children.