By J. Russell Capps
Christian Action League
“Time” magazine’s July 4th cover claimed that the Constitution is irrelevant. That’s frightening. It’s so typical of how the liberal media is doing everything possible to join the efforts of those who want to destroy America’s foundations.
Time lists as it’s reasons, for the irresponsible claim, a dozen products of modern society inconceivable to the framers, including antibiotics, “sexting”, and Medicare. Time simply chooses to ignore a few things the framers did know something about: Religious Freedom, Education, Tyranny, Friendship, Happiness, Sovereignty of the People, Virtue.
The Constitution does not allow us to do whatever we want to do. In the words of James Madison, the Constitution was framed out of the belief that “it is the reason, alone, of the public, that ought to control and regulate the government. The passions ought to be controlled and regulated by the government.”
The genius of the Constitution lies in its having a definite meaning on the fundamentals— that every individual has rights, that the people are sovereign and that the governmental powers must remain separated – while leaving latitude to local government, or the people themselves, on issues not specifically addressed in the Constitution.
No constitution in history has proven itself more deeply committed to the principles of liberty, equality, and self-government than the American Constitution, and no nation has been more richly blessed in return. The basic truth within our Constitution is that the government cannot have limitless power, for the simple reason that government is made up of people. A Constitution with meaning honored and obeyed becomes a guardian of all people as it sustains a government that is strong within its defined powers but limited in order to protect the liberty and equality of its people. A Constitution with no definite meaning gives free reign to the passions of people within and without the government. Therein lies the problem with the do-gooders of the likes of Time magazine who want no limits, but would change the meaning of our precious Constitution to satisfy their own whims, and passions.
It is important that the clear voice of President Calvin Coolidge be heard, who on the 150th anniversary of July 4th, 1776 made this profound statement:
“It is often asserted that the world has made a great deal of progress since 1776, that we have had new thoughts and new experiences which have given us great advance over the people of that day, and that we may therefore very well discard their conclusions for something more modern. But that reasoning cannot be applied to this great charter. If all men are created equal, that is final. If they are endowed with inalienable rights, that is final. If governments derive their powers from the consent of the governed, that is final. No advance, no progress can be made beyond these propositions. If anyone wishes to defy their truth or their soundness, the only direction in which he can proceed historically is not forward, but backward toward the time when there was no equality, no rights of the individual, no rule of the people. Those who wish to proceed in that direction cannot lay claim to progress. They are reactionary. Their ideas are not more modern, but more ancient, than those of the Revolutionary fathers.”
Wake up Time, and all who follow your direction. You are not as smart as you think you are!
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J Russell Capps is a member of the Christian Action League Board of Directors. Capps was a Republican member of the North Carolina General Assembly from 1994 to 2006. Capps represented the state’s 50th House District until the General Assembly redrew legislative districts. Capps then represented the 41st House District, which includes portions of the town of Apex, town of Cary, city of Raleigh, and the entire city of Morrisville. The portion of Research Triangle Park (RTP) within Wake county as well as Raleigh Durham International Airport (RDU) are also in the district. A retiree from Raleigh, North Carolina, Capps served six terms.