Namedropping the Founders.

[Nyquil Man]

It's becoming a stock line at town hall meetings: the obligatory reference to "bringing the country back to what the Founders intended," as if this actually means something significant.

Of course, it doesn't. It implies a mind reading ability that would make Miss Cleo blanch. It is, at best, a rhetorical device, the polar opposite of comparing a politician to Hitler. If calling someone a Nazi immediately frames them as a figure of pure evil, namedropping "the Founders" instantly imbues the speaker with a pure layer of patriotism and heroism.

This tendency to romanticize historical figures is neither novel nor particularly valuable, for it robs history of life and color. The true story of the Constitution, a story of secret meetings, compromise, bickering, deal brokering, and back scratching, is far more fascinating than any schoolbook image of 55 prophets being handed, like Moses on Sinai, the laws of a nation.

Let's not ignore what the Founders did. They created a nation where none had truly existed before and they did so with a form of government that was essentially untested up until that time. That is an accomplishment no one should deny them. It was also a gamble. If it had failed, it would have failed dramatically; on several occasions (Civil War, anyone? Great Depression? Slavery?) it has come perilously close to dramatic failure.

That to-the-brink-and-back element of the American story is just as important as anything the Founders did. This is the story of leaders, like Lincoln and FDR, who stretched the Constitution - and, at times, violated it - in order to maintain the nation it had created. It's the story of fighters, like Anthony, Douglass, King, and millions of others, who faced violence and imprisonment - often at the hands of people sworn to uphold the Constitution - in order to gain rights the Founders never saw fit to grant.

History is valuable. It teaches us lessons we can apply in our own lives. But what the town hall crowd embraces is a history written in crayon, valuable to none but themselves.

[bluestateguy]

1. These fools probably think that we broke from Britain because it was "socialist"

and that the American Revolution was all about fighting for capitalism and big corporations.

Morons.

[Hugabear]

2. Ah yes...when only land-owning white males could vote...

...and slaves were counted as 2/3rdsd of a person. When US Senators were appointed, not elected. When Under a system that would have given us Vice President McCain last year.

Yes, let's bring back those good old days.

Of course, there was no standing army back then, so that part wasn't so bad... :)

[jdross5]

3. Great Post!

I love your post. I am fan of history, and soon to be history teacher in our high schools. I agree with your statement.

So these people that want to bring the country back to what the founders intended would be a government based in 1780s. The constitution is a living and growing document. Our country has evolved in to a more sophisticated society (well for some people). Why would our society want to back track to the late eighteenth century. I'm sure when our founders were creating our government they debated for days about health insurance! Some people at these town hall meetings are just plan stupid.

Stupid people at town hall meetings should have paid attention at school, because what is coming out of your mouth is just plain stupid!

[XemaSab]

5. When the constitution was written

Weren't they still bleeding people? :scared:

[jdross5]

7. Old medicine v. modern medicine

Yup, George Washington died due to this medical procedure. But I guess some people think this is what our founding father wanted for our country. Screw modern medicine and technology, lets go back to blood sucking leeches to cure all medical ailments...

[Luminous Animal]

4. Dismissing the town hall crowd is ignorant.

It is obvious that they are far more important to the oligarchy than they are to themselves. It doesn't matter if they embrace a history written with a stick in the sand. What matters is who controls the narrative and right now, the crayon wielders control the narrative.

[dorkulon]

6. What was the founders' intent when they said "all men are created equal?"

Did they mean all races? Did they mean women? No. No, they didn't. Fuck their original intent.

[TheKentuckian]

8. Strict Constitutionalist are out to lunch

According to them we can't even have the fucking Air Force and cannot adapt past the 18th century in any real way. They can't even accept a point of view that allows one to put modern situations through the filter, it's just that shit ain't spelled out so fuck it, if the founders wanted the government to have airplanes then they would have said so 150 years before they were invented.

I might well interpret it somewhat tightly but it is stupid to remove the document from all context.

[H2O Man]

9. The Constitution

is a living document. It's power is that it can be applied to current situations. That, as the Bill of Rights indicates, requires some degree of change .... not of basic principles, but of our application of them.

The town hall clowns prefer to take the life out of the Constitution.