America IS Exceptional: Letters to my Kids and Grandkids

By Steven L Hall

The Idea of America led to independent sovereign States, then to a Constitution and a new Union.  The results of this "American Experiment" were exceptional.  Phase One, the first 120 years or so, marked a quantum leap in the standard of living and wealth, the result of a free people living under the Rule of Law. &n

• Language: English
• Publisher: Steven Hall
• Release date: Sep 11, 2015
• ISBN: 9780996788717

Book preview

Introduction

Thank you for taking the time to read this book.  It is not a scholarly work, with footnotes and references and the like; rather, it began as a series of letters and rants sent to my kids and grandkids in hopes that my opinions might cause them to question the common knowledge and challenge the status quo.  And to encourage further investigation.  If I could provoke them to explore and examine, then that would prove much more valuable than any material inheritance that we might chance to leave them.  So each chapter herein is a letter, or parts thereof – essentially now an article or column – expressing my opinions.

I have had the good fortune to experience a wide array adventures.  We have traveled and been involved in various jobs and pursuits.  We have been entrepreneurs and built businesses.  If I have one regret, it is that I did not learn about the founding principles of our Republic much earlier in life; it seems as if we might have helped avert some of the problems we face today.  I can only encourage you not to make the same mistake.

Please forgive my redundancies.  These were written over months and years; some were sent while others remained as drafts, now pulled out and dusted off for inclusion herein, with numerous relevant updates.  I have tried to edit out some of the repetition, as well as salutations and personal dialogue.  Still, some ideas and phrases pop up over and over again.  Hopefully they are the ones that deserve repeating.

I do not pretend that the ideas herein are all original; I replicate part of the introduction to another book and hereby express the same sentiment:

[some of my thoughts] may be unconscious plagiarisms . . . ideas absorbed in my reading so long ago that I’ve made them mine and forgotten the source.  If so, the author would appreciate hearing from readers on this point.  (Be kind.) – Edward Abbey

I ran across some of the quotes years ago and jotted them down, sans sources; others are from internet sites, which at times can be unreliable.  In any case, they make a point and I have tried to give proper credit.  Please let me know of any errors.

About 35 years ago, I became serious about trying to understand economies and governments.  A Degree in Economics and thousands of books, blogs, seminars, and speeches later, I have reached my current level of understanding.  I am grateful to all of those who have helped me learn.  And a special thanks to my wife and life partner, Patricia, who has always supported me in my quest.

My convictions are genuine; still, I could be wrong.  Only you can decide that.  That is, after all, the whole point of this book –  we must each identify our own core beliefs and foundational principles.  And we are free to do so.  But I fear that far too many of us have not even made the effort, which leaves us at the mercy of those who would use and abuse us.  Enslave us.  Or even kill us.

On every topic, there are specialists who have more knowledge and experience than I.  If you have personal interests – perhaps the War on Drugs or Money & Bankers, maybe Politics or the Economy or Genocide – there are excellent books, blogs, and websites on those specific topics.  I have provided a few recommendations in Appendix J.

I admit that I am painting with some broad brushstrokes.  I do not mean to imply everyone or all the time, especially in reference to the politicians.  After all, a society or a nation is not an entity but an aggregation of the acts of its individual members.  Thus the success of any society depends on the principles and choices of each citizen.  Still, we sometimes have to step back and look at the bigger picture in order to judge the general direction that our society is taking . . .

. . . because accepting groupthink is not only dangerous, but can also be fatal to liberty, especially under a government that uses the democratic process.  In 1949, George Orwell released his book 1984.  At the time, it seemed futuristic and far away.  Unimaginable.  Chilling.  Yet, like Dick Tracy’s radio-watch, it has come to pass.  The question now is this:  What is America’s future?  Where do we go from here?

This book is dedicated to my kids and grandkids, but also to everyone who believes in the Idea of America, and who wants to understand it, to defend it, and to keep it alive.  The goals are freedom, peace, and prosperity.  The question – and the challenge – is how we keep moving toward those goals.  Rather than away from them.

1

Core Beliefs

What do I know about people?  This is the first and most important question that each of us must answer:  What do I really believe, in my heart, at my core, about humans?  This then becomes the bedrock for all of our other convicitions, whether social, political, or economic.

If we do not take the time to discover our core belief, then we find ourselves constantly conflicted.  We may like one politician’s policy on an  issue, for example, but if it contradicts our core belief, we find ourselves flip-floppy, unable to make a rational decision, and easily swayed by false promises or knee-jerk emotional reactions.

There are two basic, competing beliefs about the human race.  One is that we are like a hive of bees or a colony of ants – the only purpose of any inhabitant is the continued survival of the community.  The individual has no rights, only the obligation to contribute and serve.  Thus, individuals may be sacrificed whenever it serves the greater good.  If that is your view, then we must agree to disagree.

You may be appalled to learn the answer to this question:  What was the leading cause of death in the 20th Century?  From 1900 to 1999, the age of progress, was it cholera or plague?  Was it heart disease or cancer?  Was it the numerous wars?

In fact, it was none of these.  The leading cause was death by governments.  Or what the late Professor R. J. Rummel called Democide.  Not counting wars, he estimated that over 160 million people were executed, starved, poisoned, and otherwise killed at the hands of governments in the 20th century alone.  That, of course, is the result of believing that humans may be sacrificed for the greater good.  Because that greater good is always defined by other humans, with their inevitable flaws.  [Did America, the peace-keeper, the world cop, defend against these atrocities?  No, in most cases we simply gave lip service or ignored them.  Read A Problem from Hell by Samantha Power.]

The alternative core belief is that each human, every person, is not only unique and worthwhile, but also has, by his or her very nature, individual Rights.  The Right to life, to liberty, and to the opportunity to pursue one’s happiness.  That is what I believe.  That is what our Founders believed.  That is the Idea of America.

By the way, if you believe in God and creation – and we are all free to do so – then realize that God created the colonies of ants and the hives of bees . . . and also created humans.  The question, then, is whether God made us in the mold of hives and colonies, or if instead we were created as independent beings with individual worth.  With free will and the permission to choose.  And with individual Rights.

If you do not believe in God – and we all have the freedom of our beliefs – then you must still identify your personal conviction; are we simply dispensable subjects of the will of the colony (or its Ruler) or do we have worth as individuals?  We cannot be both.

Liberated individuals, free to do as they please so long as they do not hurt anyone or take someone else’s stuff , are happier, more peaceful, and more prosperous.  Thus when we look at a group of free individuals, whether a community or a nation, we find that their entire society is better off.

Individual liberty does not imply that we do not care about one another.  Quite the opposite; recognizing the worth of all humans, and their inherent Rights, is the starting point for caring, sharing, charity, and the betterment of societies.  Because every Right comes with a corresponding Responsibility, like two sides of a coin.  You cannot have one without the other.  Thus it is the recognition and protection of Rights that simultaneously produces the best and most efficient society, so long as the individuals also live up to their attendant obligations.

The Idea of America has produced spectacular results.  But it was, as our Founders expressed, an experiment that they only hoped could survive the test of time.  At the conclusion of the Constitutional Convention, people were anxious about what kind of government the framers had come up with.  When asked, Benjamin Franklin said, A Republic m’am, if you can keep it!

Unfortunately, there is no guarantee that the American experiment can or will endure.  Any government of, by, and for the people requires that its citizens not only participate, but also that they understand the underlying concepts of their political system.  Each citizen must discover and adopt their own guiding principles.  And then act accordingly.

Asking uninformed citizens to vote is a bit like asking a group of first graders to choose their own teacher; one candidate might promise more recess and ice cream while the other insists on hard work and study . . . if the only criteria for decisions is the democratic process – majority rule – then the teacher with the most goodies will always prevail.  Thus the right to vote is accompanied by an obligation to be informed and to vote responsibly.

Some people treat their cars well, while others just get what they can out of them, drive them until they drop.  They don’t clean them, change the oil, have them serviced . . . eventually the car just rusts out, falls apart, and stops running; it becomes worthless, to be crushed at the junk yard.  Compare that to a fire truck, where the firefighters keep it polished and in top condition, ready to do its job – and do it well – at a moment’s notice.  If that maintenance is not done, then the fire truck will likely fail when the inevitable crisis strikes.

As Americans, we have way too much deferred maintenance in terms of our civic responsibilities.  We are largely uninformed about principles, politics, economics, and responsibilities.  That makes us easy targets for manipulation by those who would violate our Rights for their own personal agendas.  We thus become prey, rather than protected, when our lives and liberties are threatened.  The democratic process can become rusted, covered with barnacles, broken, and even dangerous, unable to respond except with temporary bandaids that simply add more fuel to the fires over the long run.  The simple truth is that our American Republic could fail.

We will have to make sacrifices if the American experiment is to survive, let alone prosper.  We may need to let go of some of our long-held biases, and be willing to admit it when we realize that we have been wrong.  We must understand that propaganda can quickly become common knowledge; that words and ideas are all-too-often spun and twisted to produce a perception that disguises the truth; and that most anything – even the most evil and immoral actions – can be rationalized . . . spelled this way:  rational lies.

I know that I cannot change anyone; people must change themselves.  My hope is that you would at least consider my ideas and opinions.  I persist in my optimistic belief that the American experiment does not have to fail.  Freedom, liberty, life, love, happiness, prosperity, and peace . . . these can be best accomplished by the recognition of individual Rights, the Rule of Law, and the informed participation of the citizens.

It is a journey, not a destination.  An ongoing and evolving process.  What is vital, then, is that we each identify our core belief and then assess the direction that America is taking – are we on the path toward our ideals, or are we moving away from them?  Sure, it takes work and commitment and sacrifice; nothing is free.  Is the Idea of America worth the effort?  I think it is . . . do you?

2

Phase One - America Blossoms

The upstart English citizens of the North American colonies, subjects of the world’s largest Empire at the time, had the audacity to revolt against the King and declare themselves independent.  With their sense of rugged self-reliance, and with their understanding of the shortcomings and dangers of various forms of government, they adopted a set of principles and then formed a Constitutional Republic to loosely unite the various sovereign States.  These were our framers and founders, experimenting with a form of government that they hoped would work.  The results were stellar.

Within a short time, we became the American Dream, the land of opportunity, the symbol of freedom and liberty, attracting people from all over the world.  Hard working, innovative people made our entire country wealthy and raised our standards of living beyond anything the world had ever witnessed.

Americans are generous people.  Americans lead in innovation and discovery.  Americans developed their own music, including blues, folk, jazz, county, and rock n’ roll.  Americans are industrious and entrepreneurial.  Americans are wealthy; even our poor would rank as middle class compared with the rest of the globe.  Americans abolished the practice of slavery that they had inherited.

I do not have to expand on this idea.  American Exceptionalism is promoted all around us; whole books are written on the topic.  We can be, and should be, very proud of what America became.

The Idea of America took root and blossomed incredibly quickly by historical standards.  The are two fundamental keys to that spectacular growth: (a) first, the recognition of the unalienable Rights of every citizen; and then, (b) the adoption of a Rule of Law (as opposed to the Laws of a Ruler).  Our new form of government, combined with a fresh set of eager citizens and extensive natural resources, unleashed the potential of an entire nation.

The Founders, and the Americans who built our country, expected little of their government.  They not only took advantage of the opportunities, but also took responsibility for their lives.

Amazingly, in this first phase of the American story, we were a nation where there was no permanent standing army; no foreign military bases; no foreign aid; no Pentagon; and no NSA or CIA.  We had no income tax; no IRS; no Federal Reserve; no fiat money; no legal tender; no minimum wage; and relatively free markets.  We had no drug laws or DEA.  And very few Federal Agencies.  We had no farm subsidies; no Social Security; and no Medicare or Medicaid.  Yet we still became that beacon on the hill, the emblem of freedom, the ideal that people around the world longed for.

In short, the new Federal Government was small and un-intrusive.  By design.  The individual States retained most of the authority.  Our relations with other nations were generally peaceful; our first President warned us about meddling in their affairs and we generally followed that advice.  We did, of course, rely upon trade with other countries as key to our prosperity.

We recently had an opportunity to tour Lake Geneva in Wisconsin, near Milwaukee.  In the late 1800’s and early 1900’s, it became a vacation destination for successful folks in the Chicago area.  The wealth generated in that era was simply incredible.

This American adventure was not without bumps, mistakes, and challenges, of course.  No one said that building a new nation is easy.  Especially a free nation, let alone one that might be sustainable.  But we must remember that  the success of America marked a remarkable quantum shift in the progression of human history.

I believe that the implementation of the Rule of Law through a Constitutional Republic is the best way to govern a country.  America generated many wonderful outcomes that tend to support that belief.  The American experiment was, indeed, exceptional.

3

Phase Two - Still Exceptional, but . . .

The word exceptional has different connotations.  It is commonly used as better or superior.   But it can also mean outside the norm, such as below average or worse . . . for example, as in exceptionally arrogant.

American is still a young nation.  Depending on whether you mark our starting point at the Declaration of Independence in 1776, or the ratification of the Constitution in 1788, we are either 227 years old, or 239.  I divide that history roughly in half – the first phase up until about 1900, and then the second phase beginning with the dawning of the 20th century, from around 1900 to present.

There are a multitude of ways that our young nation was exceptional and superior in Phase One.  America became a beacon to the world, the symbol of hope, and the land of opportunity.

But beginning around 1900, with the newfound prosperity of the industrial revolution, we began to develop an attitude something like a cocky teenager, convinced of our invincibility and knowing it all.  Many Americans also became enamored with progressivism.

Newton said that for every action there is an equal and opposite reaction.  The reaction to America’s success in many parts of the world was a move to opposite forms of governance – socialism, communism, and fascism – rather than individual liberty and freedom.

Some say this was jealousy of what we had done.  After all, it was easy to criticize our inevitable shortcomings rather than try to duplicate our accomplishments.  But the more likely reason for their adoption of these progressive types of governance is that the leaders simply thought differently; they actually believed that humans were simply dispensable components of colonies and hives.  And the power-hungry were determined to Rule over theirs.

In any case, the progressive movement not only took hold in many nations, but also found admirers here in America.  So began numerous departures from our founding principles, each one setting a precedent for the next, slowly but steadily turning into what became an outright revolution against the Idea of America.

Thus Phase Two, the second half of the American Experiment, carried us headlong to our present circumstances . . . where so much of our American Exceptionalism is negative rather than positive.  For example, today:

–  America has the largest military ever known.  We maintain a military presence in some 130 of the world’s 200 countries.  We spend more money on our military than the next 8 nations combined.  America’s foreign policy is no longer to simply accommodate free trade and defend American lives; rather, America has become the world’s Meddler in Chief, trying to influence the affairs of other nations to our own advantage.  And using domination, arms, money, and force – often covertly – to defend our interests rather than our lives.

–  America has the largest debt the world has even witnessed.  Our national debt is now over 18 Trillion dollars, and growing.  That does not even account for the unfunded promises that we have made, in Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid benefits for example; those obligations are growing while the funding for them is shrinking.

–  America has the most complex and convoluted Tax Code ever devised.  The folks who founded our country were against taxing incomes directly; that is why the Constitution prohibited it.  But