"The moment the idea is admitted into society that property in not as sacred as the law of God, and that there is not a force of law and public justice to protect it, anarchy and tyranny commence. If 'Thou shalt not covet' and 'Thou shalt not steal' were not commandments from Heaven, they must be made inviolable precepts in every society before it can be civilized or made free." -- John Adams, A Defence of the Constitution of the United States Against the Attacks of M. Turgot (1787)
Life, liberty, and Property were the original three rights listed in the Declaration of Independence, a trinity of rights taken directly from John Locke's writings. Property was replaced with the words "Pursuit of Happiness." A Pursuit of Happiness is a pursuit of success, or a pursuit of wealth. The word "Pursuit" added a distinct element to the list of three rights that reminds us that these were men that believed in self-reliance, personal responsibility, and sacred honor.
The pursuit of happiness includes the acquisition of property. Property owners, during the years of early America, were often those that had achieved a certain level of success, and these were the people that tended to be well informed in politics. The framers of the Constitution were problem solvers, and therefore they pursued the creation of the Constitution, because the Articles of Confederation fell short in providing an opportunity to pursue happiness in their society.
One of the purposes of the writing of the Constitution, and the formation of a new federal government, was, as the Preamble explains, to "secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity." Happiness would reflect a "more perfect union" where State Sovereignty was protected, and a central government handled all of the external issues. Happiness would be present in a country that endeavors to "establish justice," where justice is based on due process, innocence before guilt, and a speedy trial by jury. Happiness would be present in a nation where there is "domestic tranquility," where the nation is protected by a government tasked with the "common defense," and a nation where there is a condition of "general welfare" throughout the nation. The pursuit of happiness is a political endeavor, the pursuit of a system that provides liberty so that one may pursue property, success, wealth, and provide a nation of liberty for one's posterity.
In today's society we lack civic wisdom. The uninformed have entered the political arena, not only stopping the advancement of political improvement, but literally reversing the trend, directing our nation back towards a time of being ruled over by tyrants that have no intention of respecting life, liberty, and property.
The pursuit, however, is not abandoned.
John Locke, in his 1690 essay "Concerning Human Understanding," wrote:
The necessity of pursuing happiness [is] the foundation of liberty. As therefore the highest perfection of intellectual nature lies in a careful and constant pursuit of true and solid happiness; so the care of ourselves, that we mistake not imaginary for real happiness, is the necessary
The Pursuit of Happiness is the foundation of liberty because it frees us from tyranny. A Pursuit of Happiness is a pursuit of property, success and wealth, which means that we are self-reliant and personally responsible. . . making us anything but dependent upon a government in pursuit of our dependency, those these alone is not the complete sum of The Pursuit of Happiness.
The Pursuit of Happiness goes beyond property, success and wealth. What good are all of those things if not achieved in an honorable manner? The final words of the Declaration of Independence is "sacred Honor." Is not that also an important part of the Pursuit of Happiness?
Aristotle wrote, “the happy man lives well and does well; for we have practically defined happiness as a sort of good life and good action.”
The founders considered liberty to be a thing only obtainable by an educated people, and a good and moral people. Benjamin Franklin wrote, "Only a virtuous people are capable of freedom. As nations become corrupt and vicious, they have more need of masters."
James Madison reminds us that, "Only a well-instructed people alone can be permanently a free people."
John Adams said, "Our Constitution was made only for a moral and religious people. It is wholly inadequate to the government of any other."
When Alexis de Tocqueville visited the United States from France in the 1830s, he observed that American politicians prayed, and the churches preached about politics, but neither controlled the other. America's goodness, he observed, contributed to America's greatness.
Sacred Honor is a key component in the Pursuit of Happiness. Property, success and wealth can be the result of that pursuit. A nation that has a limited government that does not interfere with that pursuit of happiness is an important part of enabling life and liberty. All of that is possible because we have a God-given right to "pursue" happiness, meaning, to have the opportunity to pursue the things that contribute to our acquisition of property, success and wealth. . . in an honorable manner.
Thomas Jefferson admired Epicurus, an ancient Greek philosopher who believed to attain the happy, tranquil life, one must be absent of pain, and live a self-sufficient life surrounded by friends. Jefferson made a summary of the key points of Epicurean doctrine as he viewed it.
Moral: Happiness the aim of life.
Virtue: The foundation of happiness.
Utility: The test of virtue.
With the individual pursuit of happiness, when a part of a whole succeeds, the community benefits from it. This is why the founders created the United States Constitution as being a system that limits the authorities of government, and encourages individualism. Our country is an individual-centric society. A nation that uses communitarian means to achieve happiness, where the community comes before the individual, eventually destroys the happiness of the community. But a nation that provides opportunity for individuals to pursue happiness (in an honorable manner) ultimately ends up with a strong, honorable community of successful, happy property owners, supported by many individual people, thriving and prospering in liberty, and happiness.
An honorable Pursuit of Happiness is not possible without the presence of sacred honor, and sacred honor is not possible without virtue and morality as guiding principles of the culture. Without divine Providence in our culture, we are incapable of the sacred honor necessary to pursue happiness that leads to a virtuous society prospering in economics, and liberty. Culture drives politics, and therefore the pursuit of happiness must include a virtuous culture if we are to maintain a system that allows for the pursuit of happiness.
-- Political Pistachio Conservative News and Commentary
No comments:
Post a Comment