Hi,
I read two books recommended by a friend written by George Friedman: "The Next Century" and "The Next Decade".
I found them very helpful putting together facts from America's past and obtained a thoughtful look into Friedman's view of possible future American political agendas. They may be helpful in your outlook on the current political dialogue and economically as a view of America's possible future including wars. Friedman has a company, "Stratfor", that analyses the kind of information he presents and I have no quarrel with his logic or point of view.
However, when he says that he hopes that our REPUBLIC can survive the idea that AMERICA has become an EMPIRE, I would have liked his advice to the PRESIDENTS he says will be our most important asset. He had a lot of advice for the present and future Presidents on how to maintain and retain our power base and keep countries across the world in a balanced state but when it came to PRESERVING THE REPUBLIC, his advice to Presidents was minimal and therein lies the rub.
It appears to me that the same techniques that Presidents must use for maintaining an empire including the oft repeated balance are required even more greatly at home when dealing with America's citizens and maintaining a REPUBLIC.
What no one ever seems to mention any longer in the media about our country is the fact that we got where we are and became an empire because of the type of nation and government that America has enjoyed. Much of what has been ACCOMPLISHED was due to the kinds of FREEDOMS that were granted by our CONSTITUTION and fathered by our laws. THOSE WHO DISAGREE MIGHT SAY "IN SPITE OF OURSELVES" but I find 200 YEARS OF MAKING ALL THE RIGHT MISTAKES HARD TO ACCEPT. I think we can safely say that our CONSTITUTION AS WELL AS OUR DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE has seen AMERICA through some pretty heavy weather with some pretty correct moves.
The reason AMERICA works might be as SIMPLE and COMPLEX as FREEDOM itself. Our founding documents allow a constant and required LEGAL change in AMERICA slowly but surely. THAT IS KEY-SLOWLY BUT SURELY!!!!!!!!!!!!! Those documents administered as laws by the three divisions of Government, THE LEGISLATIVE, THE EXECUTIVE, AND THE JUDICIAL, HOPE TO GUARANTEE LIFE, LIBERTY AND the pursuit of JUSTICE for CITIZENS and were written so as to be ADAPTABLE to all the changes and terrors that Americans could throw at it. AND IT HAS DONE ITS JOB.
Not always as fast as many would like. Not always as well as many would have hoped. And not always as impervious to the destruction of American Freedom as many would have desired. BUT IT HAS SURVIVED BECAUSE IT ALLOWS THE FREEDOM TO CHANGE!!!!!!!!! And because we have had some powerful PRESIDENTS WHO HAVE GUARANTEED THAT SURVIVAL.
A President, these days, has to wear MANY HATS AND UNFORTUNATELY SOME DON'T FIT AS WELL AS OTHERS!!!!!!!!!!!! But WEAR THEM HE MUST because it is his job to REPRESENT ALL THE PEOPLE NOT JUST A SELECT FEW. And that requires a WILLINGNESS to balance his personal beliefs against those DIAMETRICALLY OPPOSED. It is NEVER EASY!!!!!!!!!
As an aside think about your own opinions and how strongly you may feel FOR EXAMPLE about the way your neighbor makes NOISE LATE AT NIGHT. YOU GET ALL FIRED UP and it is hard to reconcile your belief "THAT HE OUGHTA SHUT UP" with his belief "THAT HE HAS A RIGHT TO YELL" in his own house!!!!!!!! How do you balance those strong emotions and attitudes so that you both are in a more balanced position and NO ONE GETS SHOT!!!!!!!!!
We read a lot about those who get SHOT and realize that BALANCE IS NOT ALWAYS ACHIEVED EVEN BY THE MOST DIPLOMATIC but one of the great things about AMERICAN FREEDOM and our reliance on our BELIEFS is that most of us try to AMELIORATE A SITUATION. The real point is that WE TRY AND WE DO SUCCEED A GOOD BIT OF THE TIME.
The foregoing example is on an individual level in very simplistic terms and does not compare to the COMPLEX ISSUES and DIFFERENCES that surround a PRESIDENT and CONGRESS. The laws that survive these COMPLEX ISSUES relie on our Judiciary and our CONSTITUTION to balance them and our Justice Department to adjudicate them and SO OFTEN AMERICA DOES IT RIGHT!!!!!!!!!OMG, WHAT A GREAT SET OF DOCUMENTS!!!!!!!!!!
DON'T LET ANYONE radically CHANGE or ELIMINATE THE DOCUMENTS!!!!!! CHANGE THE LAWS NOT THE DOCUMENTS AS SOME RADICALS ARE NOW TRYING TO CONVINCE CITIZENS TO DO! THE CONSTITUTION AND THE DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE ARE NOT PERFECT BUT what the hell is????????????
Friedman says he hopes AMERICA can preserve the Republic for his children and grand children but doesn't seem to offer much information on how we must go about accomplishing that. After all, it's not his expertise and specialty.
Whose is it???????? THE CONSTITUTION AND THE DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE and an AMERICA governed by a wise and balanced PRESIDENT, CONGRESS, AND JUDICIARY.
FREEDOM ROCKS!!!!!!!!! And AMERICA has preserved it much longer than most countries by relying on the MORAL FOUNDATIONS of this nation. NO, WE DIDN'T ALWAYS DO THE RIGHT THING and we have regrets but hey-- you got a PERSONAL LIFE WITH NO REGRETS????????? my sincere CONGRATULATIONS. The rest of us are human and make mistakes and forget the moral guidelines sometimes. STUFF HAPPENS!!!!!!! GET OVER IT!!!!!!!!
AND GIVE OUR NATION A BREAK THIS FOURTH OF JULY!!!!!!!!!!!! IT'S BECOME AN EMPIRE BECAUSE IT STOOD ON THE FIRM GROUND OF FREEDOM FOR ALL MEN!!!!!!!!!
Yes, ALL!!!!!! RACIALLY, IT WAS SLOW BUT WE FOUND OUR WAY.
So, pat the CONSTITUTION gently; smooth the DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE lightly; and BE PROUD OF HOW FAR WE HAVE COME. Look toward a bright future that THOSE DOCUMENTS AND WHAT THEY STAND FOR will take us through. BE VIGILANT and they will stand up to all the tough times ahead!!!!!!!!!!! NOT EVEN bad Congresses, bad Presidents, or bad Judiciary will accomplish anything but wrong turns in the road that can be corrected since our CONSTITUTION AND DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE stand firm.
HAPPY JULY 4Th. HERE'S TO THE FUTURE AND GENERATING FREEDOM FOR OTHER COUNTRIES BY EXAMPLE.
CHEERS, CONNIE
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