Bill Edwards

Bill Edwards

Want to know more about Bill Edwards? Get their official bio, social pages & articles on WTKS!Full Bio

 

Constitution Day

Richard Woods

Today (as I write this) is Constitution Day. Your homework is to talk with your kids and/or grandkids about it and ask them what they know about it or are learning about it. Ask them if they can recite the Preamble which outlines the document's purpose and guiding principles beginning with, "We the People of the United States..." Ask if they know why it was written and how we're governed by it (or at least we're supposed to be) and ask them why it was needed to replace the Articles of Confederation. Oh, by the way, ask them what those are and the Federalist Papers while you're at it. I hope you spend the next two or three hours engrossed in a meaningful and educational conversation about those things but I'm afraid you're going to get the "deer in the headlines" look and a shrug of the shoulders. This magnificent document replaces Magna Carta as the greatest tome ever penned by human hand. It was written by men who knew the double-edged sword of POWER. Abraham Lincoln said it best, "If you want to reveal a man's true character, give him power." Ronald Reagan years later paraphrased it by saying, "You can judge a person's character by how they treat the waiter." The Constitution was written drawing boundary lines. Just as in a sporting event where lines are drawn on the court or field going outside of them is prohibited or you're penalized. These men knew the danger of putting governing power in the hands of one person like say, King George III or any monarch. In an interview done before the Barry Sotoro (a-k-a Barack Obama) because president he told an interviewer that he was not a fan and found the Constitution "too confining." EXACTLY, Barry! That's the whole point and purpose is to reign in one's ambitions when they become all absorbing as power has a habit of doing. Daniel Webster nailed it perfectly when he said, "Good intentions will always be pleaded for ever assumption of authority. It is hardly too strong to say that the Constitution was made to guard the people against the dangers of good intentions. There are men in all ages who mean to govern well, but they mean to govern. They promise to be good masters, but they mean to be masters." That, ladies and gentlemen is brilliance on steroids.

Case-in-point so put your helmets on, I'm going to tell you a war story. It was my honor to have personally known General Mark Clark (U. S. Army, Ret.) one of the heroes of World War II. I was a kid at the time and really didn't know who much about him but he and my dad were friends somehow. My dad lived in Charleston and General Clark was Commandant of The Citadel for several years. In one of their many conversations Clark talked about his relationship and friendship with Dwight Eisenhower from their war days when "Ike" was the Supreme Allied Commander. When Eisenhower decided to run for president he told Clark that he would do this only once--that is, serve one term and retire. About three years into Ike's first term--once upon a time we didn't have 24/7-365 presidential campaigns--he announce for reelection. Not long afterward General Clark had a meeting with President Eisenhower and his question to the president was, "Ike, I thought you said you were going to serve only one term?" The reply proved the point--and need--for the Constitution, "Mark, once you get your hands on so much power, it's impossible to voluntarily let it go." And I'm sure most of you know the famous quote, "Power corrupts; and absolute power corrupts absolutely." No one is immune.

This incredible document put together by the likes of James Madison, the Father of the Constitution , was brilliant on so many levels it's hard to count. It was designed to be amended as we saw fit down through the decades and centuries. So we have amended it several times to improve and to correct mistakes like slavery. And it means what it says but unfortunately it is being abused and ignored by many of today's political leaders in Washington and elsewhere. And we're collectively letting them get away with it because far too many of us haven't been taught the Constitution or have even read it so how would we know if these guys and gals we've elected "to defend and uphold the Constitution" are doing anything but? So it was quite refreshing for me to hear our Georgia Schools Superintendent Richard Woods tell a crowd that we here in the Peach State have increased our teaching of U. S. History from two years to three and more plans to expand it to another two years in high school. Our schools should be teaching the Constitution so much that by the time our kids graduate it's coming out of their ears. I heard a great interview on Fox and Friends First on the Fox News Channel Tuesday morning (09-17-19) with Heather Childress talking with Dr.Kenneth Hartman, founder of Our Community Salutes (OCS) about teaching the Constitution to young Americans going into the military. A retired Army officer himself, Dr. Hartman explained that when these kids take the oath they agree to "defend the Constitution...." so if they're going to defend this sacred document, you darn well better know what it is you've volunteered to defend. It's a good first step but we need more than just our military personnel and Georgia students.


Sponsored Content

Sponsored Content