January 1, 2018

Phil Beaver seeks to collaborate on the-objective-truth, which can only be discovered. The comment box below invites readers to write.

Note 1:  I often dash words in phrases in order to express and preserve an idea. For example, frank-objectivity represents the idea of candidly expressing the-objective-truth despite possible error.
 Note 2: It is important to note "civic" refers to citizens who collaborate for the people more than for the city.

A personal paraphrase of the June 21, 1788 preamble:  We the civic citizens of nine of the thirteen United States commit-to and trust-in the purpose and goals stated herein --- integrity, justice, collaboration, defense, prosperity, liberty, and perpetuity --- and to cultivate limited services by the USA. Composing their own paraphrase, citizens may consider the actual preamble and perceive whether they are willing or dissident toward its principles.   

Our Views (theadvocate.com/baton_rouge/opinion/our_views/article_a3472382-e401-11e7-8b44-6bf4053c88b7.html)

Readers who like to understand American history that avoids conflicting scholarly opinion about it may study the documents. For example, the colonial charters, the declarations from the First Continental Congress, the Articles of Confederation, the fact of surrender (to France and the states) at Yorktown, the Treaty of Paris, and the draft constitution for the USA.

Then, applying experiences and observations through 2018, the person may form an autodidactic summary. Mine goes like this:

The indigenous people on this continent had no sense of property ownership or competitive theisms. The Europeans who agreed under colonizers to cross the Atlantic to settle this country were escaping religious persecution and classism established by the clergy-baron-partnerships (for example, Magna Carta in England and the Vatican’s doctrine of discovery). European commoners knew nothing about survival in an unsettled land, but learned from the people who had inhabited the land for millennia.

By about 1720, loyal European subjects who were also settlers realized they were being made slaves to England and to supervision of the African slave labor being placed here. They requested self-rule rather than imposition of laws from across the Atlantic. Unheard, they changed their style from colonists to statesmen. They began writing state constitutions and later declared independence from England. With France’s help, they won England’s treaty as thirteen free and independent states (even though eight were slave states). Some inhabitants were dissident, and some dissidents returned to Europe, some taking slaves with them. The people who remained were divided: patriots, passives, resentful loyalists, and slaves. After four years, patriots realized they could not survive as free and independent states and called a convention to strengthen the Articles of Confederation.

The result was a draft constitution dated September 17, 1787, which was not signed by the dissident 1/3 of the convention’s delegates (Rhode Island sent none). Accordingly, some states held ratification conventions, and on June 21, the ninth required state had ratified, establishing the USA. The nation had not existed beforehand. The four dissident states remained free and independent, but one more had joined before the USA began operations on March 4, 1789. Thus, the First Congress took actions that represented only ten of the thirteen states.

Among the First Congress’s early actions was awarding themselves divine legislative status by hiring Protestant chaplains. They restored the clergy-legislature-partnership according to English custom but under American theism. The USA’s journey stayed on this erroneous path ever since, but restoration to the American discovery now seems underway.

Through the documents, we perceive that the 1787 signers of the draft constitution perceived American freedom-from coercion and force with liberty-to pursue personal happiness rather than someone else’s ideal or doctrine.  With these first principles, we have experienced the possibility for private liberty with civic morality in various public meetings at EBRP libraries.

Humankind does not yet know what the American discovery is. However, it may be close to this: In only the human species, each individual has both the potential physical power and potential psychological power to accept the authority to establish responsible freedom in communications and behavior. That is, when two individuals converse and act, whether in public or in private, each has the authority to collaborate for mutual justice. In other words, both parties neither impose nor brook force or coercion. How and why this human, individual authority came to be is not essential to the brief lifetime each human may enjoy. Only fidelity to the personal authority is critical. However, it is important for clergy-politician-partnerships to avoid attempting to limit or usurp an individual’s authority to collaborate for responsible freedom at any point in their lifetime.

A free an irresponsible press represses their writers’ opportunities to collaborate to discover responsible freedom during their personal lifetimes. We hope 2018 is the year of reform to a free and responsible press, at least in Baton Rouge.

Today’s thought, G.E. Dean (Psalms 33:4 CJB)

“For the word of ADONAI is true, and all his work is trustworthy.”

Dean says, “We can always count on God to do the right thing. Have faith in God.”

David and Dean each claims that he speaks for either Adonai, the Lord, or God. The mystery is not trivial, and it is not unfortunate that each person has the authority to resolve the mystery using responsible freedom.

    

Letters

State services are going to be pushed back to the states (Knight, Dec 27) (theadvocate.com/baton_rouge/opinion/letters/article_bbdd6cca-e6cd-11e7-b719-e73caac85d4f.html)

To Michael D. Day:

Another guy did the same thing in 2011, and Cy Rawls came to your defense: ://theadvocate.com/.../article_159a82ad-46c0-5f7f-8c7c....

“Eight years” ago reminded me of journalist Bill Bankston (d. 2015). Thank you.

Phil Beaver does not “know” the-indisputable-facts, or actual-reality. He trusts and is committed to the-objective-truth of which most is undiscovered and some is understood. He is agent for A Civic People of the United States, a Louisiana, education non-profit corporation. See online at promotethepreamble.blogspot.com.