In God Washington Trusted

Like many of the founding fathers, George Washington believed in God and acknowledged His hand in saving the Continental army and the revolution. Charles Bracelen Flodd noted that there were at least sixty-seven desperate moments that George Washington admitted would have potentially destroyed the cause had the hand of God not intervened in behalf of their struggle for independence. (Charles Bracelen Flood, Rise and Fight Again, Dodo, Mead & Co., New York, 1976, p. 377.)

The following comes from President Washington's first inaugural address:

"No People can be bound to acknowledge and adore the invisible hand, which conducts the Affairs of men more than the People of the United States. Every step, by which they have advanced to the character of an independent nation, seems to have been distinguished by some token of providential agency." (Fitzpatrick, Writings of George Washington, 30:292.)

Our Republic was Founded on the Religion of America

It is a great misunderstanding by Americans in the 21^st century how greatly important religion was to the Founding generation. Far too often, the purpose and intent of the separation of church and state is taken to mean that religion should be completely removed from public buildings and public life. This is so far from the truth and this practice is leading our constitutional republic down a continual road of destruction.

Our republic was created and expected to only be maintained by a moral and religious citizenry as evident in the words of our founders. Self-government, in the minds of the founding generation, was referred to “republicanism,” and they understood that it could only be maintained by a people free from corruption and selfishness. Benjamin Franklin wrote:

“Only a virtuous people are capable of freedom. As nations become corrupt and vicious, they have more need of masters.” [1]

Can it be any clearer in the following words from the General who led our Continental Army and our first elected President, George Washington?

“Of all the disposition and habits which lead to political prosperity, religion and morality are indispensable supports. In vain would that man claim the tributes of patriotism, who should labor to subvert these great pillars of human happiness, these firmest props of the duties of men and citizens…Let it simply be asked, where is the security for property, for reputation, for life, if the sense of religious obligation desert the oaths which are the instruments of investigation in courts of justice? And let us with caution indulge the supposition that morality can be maintained without religion. Whatever may be conceded to the influence of refined education…reason and experience both forbid us to expect that national morality can prevail in exclusion of religious principle.” [2]

Even John Adams warned that the future of our great republic depended upon the level of virtue and morality retained by the people. He said:

“Our Constitution was made only for a moral and religious people. It is wholly inadequate to the government of any other.” [3]

How then were these great States unified in 1783 expected to maintain a virtuous and moral people without religion? What was the intent and desire behind the phrase “separation of church and state” as conveyed by Thomas Jefferson? 

Our founders clearly intended to create laws that would restrict any interference by a federal government in any religious matters. They set out to ensure that the American people’s right to worship as they pleased was maintained. They did not want the President or any leader to give any preferential treatment to any one church or create a national religion. Such doings in Europe had fostered several problems for years that they had hoped to avoid in America.

It is clear that the founders did not intend to remove religion from the foundations of our republic when Congress wrote and approved in 1787, the very year the Constitution was created, the famous Northwest Ordinance. So important was religion and morality to maintaining our liberty and freedom that these inspired men encouraged that it would be taught in houses of learning. Here is the way they said it:

“Article 3: Religion, morality, and knowledge being necessary to good government and the happiness of mankind, schools and the means of education shall forever be encouraged.” [4]

Let’s look as some definitions of those three components religion, morality, and knowledge as defined by W. Cleon Skousen [5]:

1.       Religion, which might be defined as a “fundamental system of beliefs concerning man’s origin and relationship with his fellowmen.”

2.       Morality, which may be described as “a standard of behavior distinguishing right from wrong.”

3.       Knowledge, which is “an intellectual awareness and understanding of established facts relating to any field of human experience or inquiry (i.e. history, geography, science, etc.)”

It is true that the founders thought is wise to separate the specific religious differences that were being taught by all the various sects, but they highly encouraged that the basic beliefs shared by them all be instructed to our students. This is evident when Thomas Jefferson wrote the Bill for Establishing Elementary Schools in Virginia, when he said:

“No Religious reading, instruction, or exercise shall be prescribed or practiced inconsistent with the tenets of any religious sect or denomination.” [6]

It is obvious that then if religion was to be taught in schools, the principles instructed must be accepted by all faiths. So then what did the founders believe those basic principles were among all faiths? Benjamin Franklin summarized what he thought were the “fundamental points in all sound religion” in a letter to Ezra Stiles, president of Yale University, when he said:

“Here is my creed: I believe in one God, the Creator of the universe. That he governs it by his providence. That he ought to be worshipped. That the most acceptable service we render to him is in doing good to his other children. That the soul of man is immortal, and will be treated with justice in another life respecting its conduct in this. These I take to be the fundamental points in all sound religion.” [7]

There are five fundamental points that Franklin makes, that is consistent with the writings of the other founders, that should be taught in our schools to raise a people with virtue and morals that will support and maintain a republican form of government. The founders sometimes referred to these beliefs as the “religion of America.” They thought that these five fundamentals should be taught with morality and knowledge to maintain a “good government and the happiness of mankind.” They are as Skousen points out [8]:

1.       There exists a Creator who made all things and mankind should recognize and worship him.

2.       The Creator has revealed a moral code of behavior for happy living which distinguishes right from wrong.

3.       The Creator holds mankind responsible for the way they treat each other.

4.       All mankind live beyond this life.

5.       In the next life mankind are judged for their conduct in this one.

This republic was founded by virtuous, moral, religious men. The republic that they designed and left in our care can only be maintained by a virtuous, moral, and religious people. Is it no wonder then, as we have continued to strip the fundamental religion out of our public buildings and schools that our republic has deteriorated? Is it no wonder then that our land has raised up corrupt and immoral leaders?

If we are to restore our republic and the liberty that our founding generation bled and died for, then we need to once again become a religious and moral people. It is time that we demand that the “religion of America” be brought back to our schools and public houses.

Works Cited

[1] Smyth, Writings of Benjamin Franklin, 9:569.

[2] Padover, The Washington Papers, p. 318-319.

[3] Quoted in John R. Howe, Jr., The Changing Political Thought of John Adams, Princeton University Press, Princeton, N.J., 1966, p. 189.

[4] George B. de Huszer, Henry W. Littlefield, and Arthur W. Littlefield, editors, Basic American Documents, Littlefield, Adams & Co., Ames, Iowa, 1953, p. 66.

[5] W. Cleon Skousen, The Five Thousand Year Leap: 28 Great Ideas That Changed the World, American Documents Publishing, L.L.C., Franklin, Tennessee, 1981, p. 60.

[6] J. Randolph, ed., Early History of the University of Virginia, 1856, p. 96-97.

[7] Smyth, Writings of Benjamin Franklin, 10:84.

[8] W. Cleon Skousen, The Five Thousand Year Leap: 28 Great Ideas That Changed the World, American Documents Publishing, L.L.C., Franklin, Tennessee, 1981, p. 61.

Lincoln Needs Some Extra Cash: Federal Income Tax

 On August 5, 1861, President Abraham Lincoln imposed the first federal income tax on American citizens when he signed the Revenue Act. The Northern states were strapped for cash and Lincoln needed more money to continue their war against the Southern states. This was Lincoln and Congress’s solution to their money woes by imposing a 3 percent tax on all incomes over $800 ($16,000 by today’s standards). The new income tax went into effect the following year.

Before the income tax, the federal government earned its revenues on import taxes called “tariffs.” The first thing Lincoln and the Republican Party did after his inauguration was to pass the Morrill Tariff Act in 1861, which raised the tax on specific manufactured goods from 30 to 250 percent. The agrarian states in the south and western farmers in the North relied heavily on manufactured goods and felt that this new tax was an abuse of the federal government’s powers. As we know, in response to this abuse the South went so far as to secede from the union of states.

The North lost revenues when the South they seceded, which accounted for around 80 percent of the federal revenues. We then can understand why the North would start a war to force the South back into the union. This fact is also evident in Lincoln’s response to the question of why the North should not let the south go:

“Let the South Go? Let the South go! Where then shall we get our revenues!” (Semmes, 1987)

This begs the question, what were the thoughts and opinions of our citizens in the individual states prior to the new income tax? The New York Herald published the following on September 1, 1862 (the day the income tax came into effect):

“To-day begins a new era of this country. Beyond a few local and state taxes, which were felt by none but owners of real estate, this country has never been taxed before. We have jogged along quietly and comfortably, and have amused ourselves greatly by laughing at the over taxed people of England, where a man is taxed from the cradle to the grave; where light, heat and water are taxed, and where not only every rich man, but even the poorest peasant, is obliged to pay largely to the privilege of bad government….” (Crocker III, 2008)

It would appear that the states in the union prior to income tax were far greater off than the states today with all the fraud, waste, and abuse in our federal government. In fact, we now appear to be on par with the poor English people as described by the New York Herald.

Why would so many people in the Union accept such a change in taxes? The Herald did go on to praise the newly proposed income tax:

“The effect of the tax will be to deepen public sentiment. The people will be less ready to excuse the mistakes of our government and our generals…The war will be better conducted, for every man, having to pay his money towards carrying on the war, will insist and assist that it shall be properly prosecuted and speedily and gloriously conducted.”

It would appear that, like with many things, the people have been duped by the media. This is not a new phenomenon, but something that has been going on for many years. There is no evidence that income taxes have “deepen public sentiment” one bit in America. It is also difficult for the tax payer today to even know where their money is being spent to “insist and assist that it shall be properly prosecuted.”  

I say it is time that we stop paying for Mr. Lincoln’s war and put the federal government back on the short leash they had before 1862. It is clear that they have proven irresponsible with our hard earned money. It is time that we stop paying into the incompetent big government system. 

Works Cited

Crocker III, H. W. (2008). The Politically Incorrect Guide to the Civil War. Washington D.C.: Regnery Publishing, Inc.

Semmes, R. (1987). Memoirs of Service Afloat. Secaucus, NJ: The Blue and Gray Press.

 

How much do you remember?

It is the day to "Remember 9/11" again. America does remember this day pretty well, but what of other days? 

Immediately after the attack on the two towers, American flags were seen everywhere. Flags were proudly waving outside houses, businesses, off freeway over passes, on vehicles etc. 

Then the Lakers went to the playoffs. I remember seeing those American flags quickly disappear not long after the attacks.

So, how well do we remember? Why do we remember? Are we prompted to remember when it serves a purpose? What are those purposes? Why does the government like to remember 9/11, but doesn't want to answer for the attack on Benghazi?

So how well do we remember? Let's take a stroll down memory lane...

Remember Impressment! 

Remember when the British government was taking our men and "press ganging" them into the service of the Royal Navy against their wills to fight in their imperialistic wars? Oh it began as early as the 1660s, but it was one of the main reasons President James Madison declared war on them in 1812. Do you remember that atrocity? 

Remember the Whiskey Rebellion!

Remember the Whiskey Rebellion in 1791 when farmers rebelled against a new tax impossed on the whiskey they made from their leftover grain and corn? It was a tax designed by the treasury secretary Alexander Hamilton to increase the power of the central government. 

500 armed men attacked the home of tax inspector General John Neville. A militia of 13,000 men were sent to suppress the insurgency. The rebels disbanded. Despite 20 arrests, all were either acquitted or pardoned. In the end, there were approximately 16 deaths related to this event. 

Remember the Barbary Pirates!

Remember when the Barbary corsairs and crews from Algiers, Tunis, Tripoli, and Morocco were capturing our merchant ships, enslaving American sailors, and were demanding tributes and ransoms so that we could be afforded safe passage through the Mediterranean? Well, the Barbary Wars led to our current policy of not negotiating with terrorists, so you should.

 

 Remember the Chesapeake-Leopard Affair!

Remember when the British vessel, HMS Leopard attacked the USS Chesapeake off the coast of Virginia on 22 June 1807? This British ship attacked and boarded our ship in search of deserters from the Royal Navy. They killed four of our sailors, wounded 17 and captured four men. Again, another reason we went to war with them in 1812.

Remember the Nat Turner Rebellion!

Remember when Nat Turner, a slave, led more than 70 enslaved and free blacks in an attack to "kill all the white people" in Southampton County, Virginia during the month of August, 1831? Nat Turner was taught to read and instructed in the principles of the Bible. He became a preacher for his people and used the word of God to kill anywhere from 55 to 65 white men, women, and children. 

Remember the Alamo!

Remember when Mexican troops under President General Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna launched an assault on the Alamo Mission near San Antonio de Bexar in 1836 on a 13-day siege that ended in the deaths and wounding of around 600 Americans?

Remember the 1838 Mormon War!

Remember when war was declared on Mormons by the Governor and citizens of the state of Missouri in 1838? At least 21 Mormons were killed by the Missourians at such places as Haun's Mill and an unknown number of non-combatants died due to exposure and hardship as a result of being expelled from their homes in Missouri. With Governor Lilburn Bogg's extermination order, nearly an estimated ten thousand Mormons were forced to leave the state and settled in what would become Nauvoo, Illinois. 

Remember John Brown's Raid on Harpers Ferry!

  

 Remember when John Brown attempted to start an armed slave revolt in 1859 by seizing a United States arsenal at Harpers Ferry, Virginia? His attack resulted in the death and wounding of one U.S. Marine. Additionally, he was responsible for the death of six civilians and the wounding of nine others. John Brown told the court that not only was he willing to give his life to free the slaves, he was willing to give the lives of millions to free the slaves. 

Side note, before the War Between the States, at least a dozen nations peacefully emancipated their slaves. The British went as far as to raise money to purchase the slaves freedom from their masters. Clearly, there was no need for such violence or bloodshed, if the war was truly only about freeing slaves. 

Remember the Maine! 

Remember when the USS Maine was lost in Havana Harbor on the evening of 15 February 1898? She was sent to protect U.S. interests during the Cuban revolt against Spain and exploded suddenly without warning and sank, killing nearly three quarters of her crew. The cause still remains the subject of speculation, but "remember the Maine, to Hell with Spain!"

 Remember the Los Angeles Times Bombing!

Remember when a union member belonging to the International Association of Bridge and Structural Iron Works detonated a bomb at the Los Angeles Times on October 1, 1910, which resulted in the deaths of 21 people and the wounding of over a 100? 

Remember the Battle of Columbus!

Remember when Pancho Villa led his Division of the North on an assault of the boarder town of Columbus, New Mexico on March 9, 1916 that resulted in the deaths and wounding of over 80 American lives?

 

Remember the Black Tom Bombing!

Remember the act of sabotage by German agents to prevent ammunition supplies from being used by the Allies in World War I  in Jersey City, New Jersey on July 30, 1916? Seven people were killed.

Remember the Attack on Orleans!

  

Remember when a German U-boat opened fire on the town of Orleans, Massachusetts and several merchant vessels nearby on July 21, 1918?  The submarine was responsible for the sinking of one tugboat and four barges. 

Remember the Wall Street Bombing!

  

 

Remember the Wall Street bombing that occurred on September 16, 1920? The blast killed 38 and seriously wounded 143 people. The bombing was never solved. 

 Remember the Bath School Disaster!

Remember when Andrew Kehoe violently attacked children, his wife, fire-bombed his farm and set off a major explosion in the Bath Consolidated School before killing himself in Bath Township, Michigan on May 18, 1927? He killed 38 school children and six adults and injured at least 58 other people.

Remember the 7th! 

Remember when the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941?

 Remember the United States Capitol Shooting (1954)!

 Remember when four Puerto Rican nationalists fired 30 rounds from the Ladies' Gallery of the House of Representatives chamber in the United States Capitol on March 1, 1954? 

 Remember the 16th Street Baptist Church Bombing!

Remember when a racially motivated terrorist bombing was carried out on the 16th Street Baptist Church in Birmingham, Alabama that killed four girls on September 15, 1963?

Remember the Pueblo!

Remember when North Korean forces attacked and captured the USS Pueblo in international waters on January 23 1968, which resulted in several deaths and injuries of American sailors? The surviving crew were taken prisoner and held for 11 months. On December 23, 1968, 82 American sailors were released.

Remember EC-121M!

Remember when a North Korean MiG-17 shot down a U.S. Navy EC-121M Warning Star on a reconnaissance mission in international waters on April 15, 1969 killing all 31 Americans on board?

Remember the Kent State Shootings!

Remember when the Ohio National Guard fired 67 rounds into a group of unarmed college students exercising their first amendment right protesting the war on May 4, 1970, which resulted in the death of four students and the injury of nine others?

Remember the 1983 U.S. Embassy Bombing!

 

Remember the suicide bombing of the U.S. embassy in Beirut, Lebanon that killed 63 people on April 18, 1983?  

 Remember the Beirut Barracks Bombings!

Remember when the Multinational Force in Lebanon attacked the Beirut Barracks with two truck bombs housing U.S. and French military forces resulting in the deaths of 299 service men?

Remember the Oklahoma City Bombing!

Remember when Timothy McVeigh attacked the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in downtown Oklahoma City on April 19, 1995? The bombing claimed 168 lives and injured more than 680 people.

Remember the CIA Headquarters Shootings!

Remember when Mir Qazi, a man "angry with the policy of the U.S. government in the Middle East, particularly toward the Palestinian people," attacked CIA employees outside CIA headquarters in Langley, Virginia on January 25, 1993? He killed two and injured three others. 

 

 Remember the 1993 World Trade Center Bombing!

Remember when a truck bomb detonated below the North Tower of the World Trade Center in New York, NY on February 26, 1993? Ramzi Yousef and co-conspirators killed six and injured 1,042 people.

  Remember the Cole!

 

Remember the al-Qaeda attack on the USS Cole in the Yeman port of Aden on October 12, 2000 that resulted in the death of 17 sailors and the injuring of 39 others?

This is just a few days and events that should be remembered by Americans. How many did you know about or remember? So, when we remember the events that took place 12 years ago, let's not forget the other important events. Or...we just might see them repeated.