The Codependency of the State

The American war is over; but this far from				that ensure they will never return to their humble
being the case with the American revolution. On				upbringings, if they have ever experienced such a
the contrary, nothing but the first act of the				life in the first place. They will retire when they
drama is closed. It remains yet to establish and				feel like it, with enough wealth and political
perfect our new forms of government, and to				prowess to keep them at arms length from the
prepare the principles, morals, and manners of our				everyday endeavors of the unsavory strain of
citizens for these forms of government after				social strata. The caste of citizens who are
they are established and brought to perfection.				affected most will be invisible to their eyes,
Benjamin Rush, letter to Price, May 25, 1786				non-existent in their world. They will never know
Our founding fathers possessed just a little bit of				life without health care, money, or proper
wisdom between the members of the group.				education. They will not return to crime ridden
When the United States became the United				urban areas to join in the fight for the liberation
States it was done so as a revolutionary act				and mobility of our poorest citizens.
against tyranny and oppression. The newly				In this sense, politicians - and certainly our
formed government was designed to remove the				government - have removed themselves and
constraining and domineering ties of the Monarchy.				nearly the entirety of the process from the
Liberty, freedom, and most important of all,				outstretched arms of the very people they are
representation were the key words of the infant				charged to represent. Democracy has slid into
country. Democracy was nothing new. The				aristocracy, liberty into daisy covered chains of
Greeks upheld highly moral and liberating ideals				dependency. For at one time the governing body
which we have modeled our own government on.				of our country depended on the people it
Democracy had a tempestuous ride throughout				represented as much, if not more, than the
history, coming and going like an idea that comes				people depended on the government. Now the
to one in the middle of the night. It was, in most				people depend on the government, and the
cases, fleeting. Constantly being replaced by				government acts of its own accord, separately
Feudalism, or Monarchy, or barbarianism and				indeed almost in disdain for the people. It is for
Tyranny. It was in the newly formed United				this reason that democracy no longer functions as
States, however - that the notion was solidified.				a democracy.
The democracy here has outlasted all but the				Is life so dear or peace so sweet as to be
strongest of her predecessors.				purchased at the price of chains and slavery?
The question however, is one of great import. Is				Forbid it, Almighty God. I know not what course
our form of democracy now obsolete? Like many				others may take, but as for me, give me liberty
before, democracy has fallen to the wills of				or give me death!
dictators and slave makers. The economic				Patrick Henry, speech in the Virginia Convention,
growth, upward mobility, and active participation in				March 23, 1775
the government has been the stalwart mark of a				Codependency of State? Daisy covered chains of
democratic society, and the reason for it's				dependance? When the disillusionment of a society
success. No democracy however, has withstood				sinks in to make it reality with no sign of a viable
the economic growth, upward mobility, and the				alternative, our freedoms, our choices, our rights
boundless growth of population that we				have become ensnared in a web of false
experience today, including our own which has				promises. This state of being comes, usually
evolved into the most current form of corruption				willingly, at the cost of freedom and liberty.
and negligence.				Society can and will adhere to a government that
The argument that needs to be addressed is the				is separated from the populace, so long as they
ideology of an antiquated government. Politics, or				feel secure and comfortable. Security and
politic made its first appearance in the thoughts				comfort come by way of laws and legislation.
and concerns of Plato, poli being of a civic or				When a society allows a government to dictate
citizen nature, the whole of it being a diplomatic				mores beyond the very basic tenants of human
way of handling civic concerns and necessities.				rights, it begins a slow downward spiral into
The root origin implies that the governance of civil				dependancy on the state for moral validation,
rights, liberties or concerns should be done so with				based on the premise of safety. As with many
the utmost of dignity and civility. So too, did the				things in life, the more we allow an outside force
emergence of politics in the new American				to influence our thoughts and opinions, and thus
government.				presumably control us over time, the less we
If men of wisdom and knowledge, of moderation				seem to be able to work out societal issues on
and temperance, of patience, fortitude and				our own. On a federal level our government was
perseverance, of sobriety and true republican				set up to help aid the state governments, but not
simplicity of manners, of zeal for the honour of				much else. The regulations, laws, dictates,
the Supreme Being and the welfare of the				etceteras were for the most part set up to
commonwealth; if men possessed of these other				regulate the government, not the citizens. It
excellent qualities are chosen to fill the seats of				outlined what the government could do, and what
government, we may expect that our affairs will				the rights of the citizens were, rather than what
rest on a solid and permanent foundation.				the citizens couldn't do. The individual states
Samuel Adams, letter to Elbridge Gerry,				focused on that aspect, seeing as the states
November 27, 1780				knew better what the needs and requirements of
In the years to follow the revolution the founders				their constituents were.
of this new government saw fit to adapt certain				As our government decided to begin mandating
laws, regulations and rights almost wholly				laws on a federal level, presumably when our
concerned with those governing rather than those				country began to grow at enormous rates, we
being governed. They simply did not posses the				began to give away our freedoms. Laws tell
foresight however, to envision the country that				citizens what they cannot legally do, but do little
we have become. Therein lies the whole of the				to guide citizens as to what they are legally
problem. When first brought to light, in foreign				allowed to do. Therefore, when individuals
history and in America the design of democracy				interpret laws they inevitably come to the
worked fairly well because communities were				conclusion that if there isn't a law against an
much smaller, the world much larger, and the				action, it must be alright to do. Of course, we all
country itself operated on an incredibly smaller				know that just because one can do something, it
scale. Citizens, (with respect to the understanding				doesn't mean one should. Thus the need for more
that not all civil liberties were, at that point,				laws, more legislation, and more restrictions on
granted to all individuals) were able to speak to				freedom. The increase of laws also increase the
their representatives, as the representatives lived				thought process that if it isn't illegal, it's acceptable.
in the very communities they represented. As a				And so on and so forth until we eventually find
matter of fact, there were communities in				ourselves in a totalitarian state of being, where
general, which is not so in the same context				nothing can be done without the approval of the
today.				State.
Nothing so strongly impels a man to regard the				Citizens can and do become dependent, to the
interest of his constituents, as the certainty of				point of being codependent on the rulings of its
returning to the general mass of the people, from				government, rather than their own common
whence he was taken, where he must participate				sense and moral judgment. The longer this
in their burdens.				proceeds, the worse it gets. At which point, and I
George Mason, speech in the Virginia Ratifying				believe that we are almost there, the general
Convention, June 14, 177				population becomes morally, ethically, and
Truer words have not rung in the hearts of				intellectually lazy. Henceforth the passage into a
modern politicians for far too long a period. The				slavery of sorts. This is the reason in my opinion,
new strand of politics has disintegrated into the				that the founding fathers sought to control the
meaningless, wasteful, yet all encompassing chess				government, and not its people.
game that inevitably determines the outcome of				The elite also become dependent on this style of
the human condition. Our representatives no				governance. If they could not enforce or keep it
longer reside among the communities they				this way, they could not maintain their social
supposedly represent. They no longer struggle for				positions.
betterment as their constituents do. They live like				How have we come this far and not realized the
the aristocracy of old, securing their power and				potential for an American downfall?
wealth through vast elite networks ripe with				I will answer that question in a future installment
corruption. They have become "Career Politicians"				of the posts that are fast becoming the premise
a relatively new breed of democratic leadership				for a book.

Democracy

The Codependency of the State