kirk2spock
Rookie
- Nov 14, 2010
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The American Colonies were established by England with the goal of expanding the realm of the British Empire and increasing its wealth. The New World was teaming with untapped resources and proved to be a rich ground upon which agriculture and industry could be formed for the benefit of the Empire. The Colonies were established to obtain this wealth and send it back to England to be used by her citizens.
For nearly 150 years this continued until the Colonies threw off the tyrannical rule of the English king and Parliament in order to establish a new government for themselves. They based this government on the freedoms inherent to all men life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. The chief role of this government was to protect these freedoms for the common individual and establish a system whereby wrongs against these freedoms could be redressed. The Constitution lays down the goals of this government establishing justice, insuring domestic tranquility, providing for the common defense, promoting the general welfare, and securing the blessings of liberty for present and future generations. This was the ultimate extent of the government and its sphere of authority. It was a limited, small government that left to the individual many responsibilities and choices about how to best pursue their own happiness.
For a while the government was able to do just this. But in looking at the modern American government one can see that the form of government established by the forefathers no longer exists in the modern world. The present government has extended its influence far beyond what the Constitution originally proposed as the obligations of the government into the Leviathan it is today. Our modern American government is not what the American forefathers designed it to be. This begs the question, when in American history did the American government cease to be the government laid down by the forefathers? What caused this change that pushed our government in the direction it is currently moving in away from individual responsibility and control toward more government control over individuals? Is liberty today the same as it was 200 years ago?
For nearly 150 years this continued until the Colonies threw off the tyrannical rule of the English king and Parliament in order to establish a new government for themselves. They based this government on the freedoms inherent to all men life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. The chief role of this government was to protect these freedoms for the common individual and establish a system whereby wrongs against these freedoms could be redressed. The Constitution lays down the goals of this government establishing justice, insuring domestic tranquility, providing for the common defense, promoting the general welfare, and securing the blessings of liberty for present and future generations. This was the ultimate extent of the government and its sphere of authority. It was a limited, small government that left to the individual many responsibilities and choices about how to best pursue their own happiness.
For a while the government was able to do just this. But in looking at the modern American government one can see that the form of government established by the forefathers no longer exists in the modern world. The present government has extended its influence far beyond what the Constitution originally proposed as the obligations of the government into the Leviathan it is today. Our modern American government is not what the American forefathers designed it to be. This begs the question, when in American history did the American government cease to be the government laid down by the forefathers? What caused this change that pushed our government in the direction it is currently moving in away from individual responsibility and control toward more government control over individuals? Is liberty today the same as it was 200 years ago?