So You Say You Want a Revolution?
Under Construction!
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The fundamental ordering of a good society has occupied thinkers for as long as there has been human society. I cannot claim any original thought here. My opinions on the proper function of government and civil society were formed in my youth and have evolved as my education and understanding have evolved.
I will come right out and say that I consider myself a Liberal. I am a member of the Democratic Party and the ACLU. I believe that my country has become too large to govern effectively without devolution of some sort. I have been accused of being both a communist and a monarchist. Just more proof that people don't pay attention.
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Thomas Jefferson |
What is the Proper Role of Government?
Abraham Lincoln answered this question most succinctly
when he said: "The
legitimate object of government is to do for a community of
people whatever they need to have done, but can not do at all,
or can not so well do, for themselves–in their separate, and
individual capacities."
In other words,
the job of government is to do what individuals cannot do for
themselves. There are those who say that our government should
not be in the business of X or Y. I say that it is valuable to
our country to have these discussions, but ultimately the
government is in the business of whatever the people say is
the business of government.
One job, however, is specifically written into our
nation's founding document, the Declaration of
Independence: "We hold these truths to be self-evident,
that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their
Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are
Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. —That to secure
these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving
their just powers from the consent of the governed..."
Good stuff, that. If once accepts this basic premise of
purpose (and there are many who will not), then all one must
do is devise a government that supports this mission. This is
easier said than done, obviously. One only has to look around
at the numerous and spectacular failures of government
guarranteed rights throughout history.
The most spectacular evolutionary success in
this arena is the British government, and the most spectacular
revolutionary success is the Constitution of the
United State of America. There is no success that cannot be
improved upon, however, and I disagree with many of the
reformers of both systems.
Rather than discuss reform of existing systems of
government in detail, however, I propose to discuss organizing
principles and derive from this an "ideal" structure for
government. Or at least a government that I find ideal.
Organizing Principles: Liberty, Equality, Diversity, Democracy
Government ought to do four things:
- Defend the liberty of its citizens
As Jefferson said in the Declaration , this is the primary reason governments are instituted. We can argue about exactly what those rights are, but I think that the French Declaration of the Rights of Man and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights are pretty good places to start.
- Promote equality of opportunity for its citizens
Jefferson wanted an aristocracy of merit, not of birth and I agree. The noble lie is told throughout the United States that "anyone can grow up to be President". Until this statement is actually true, America will not have fulfilled the promise of its creed. It requires universal quality public education, health care, and employment at the least.
- Promote diversity in its public institutions
This is a logical outgrowth of equality of opportunity to me, but also a simple Darwinian fact: the population that survives and thrives is the population that is the most diverse. New voices promote new thinking and provide our society a not-so-gentle push to be ever more inclusive.
- Be, in Lincoln's words, a government "of the people, by the people, for the people"
Government closer to the governed is more responsive to the needs of the governed, and government of the governed is the most responsive. No, democracy isn't perfect, but it is capable of perfecting itself.
Like Gaul, classical governments are divided into three parts: the Legislative, Executive, and Judicial authorities.
Legislative Authority
"In republican government, the legislative authority
necessarily predominates." (The Federalist Number 51,
Publius [James Madison], 1788)
Legislators make laws. In the United States, the sorts of
laws they can make are strictly controlled, though this
Constitutional control has slackened to the point of near
non-existence. Taking the principle that the government
closest to the people is the most responsive, you'd want each
legislator to represent as small a number of people as
practical.
The larger the number of people each Legislator
represents, the more out of touch he or she is with those
people, and the more influence Big Money can have.
In the United Kingdom, each MP represents about 90,000
people. By contrast, in the US, each Congressman represents
more than 650,000 people. For the US to have the same level of
representation as the UK Parliament, there would have to be
more than 3000 Congressmen.
This is probably not practical.
Was it always this bad? Clearly not. In 1800, there were
59 Congressmen for a census population of 5,236,631, or one
representative for every 88,756 people, roughly the same as
that of the UK Parliament today.
What is the solution? Assuming that we don't want a
3000-member House of Representatives, the only other solution
is to have a smaller country to begin with.
Executive Authority
"The direction of war implies the direction of the common
strength; and the power of directing and employing the common
strength, forms a usual and essential part in the definition
of the executive authority." (The Federalist Number
74, Alexander Hamilton, 1788)
Chief Executives, or Magistrates, enforce the laws passed
by the Legislature. The genius of the American Constitution is
that the President is also subject to the law, and is
removable for violating it.
Where the Constitution falls down, in my opinion, is in
making the Head of State (HS) the same
person as the Head of Government (HG). The HS
should provide, like the British Monarch, for the continuity
of the State, even when the government is in flux or embroiled
in scandal. The HG is the person who, like the British Prime
Minister, actually provides direction to the
government.
In my opinion, these functions should be separated on the
British (Parliamentary) model.
Judicial Authority and Review
"No legislative act…contrary to the Constitution, can be
valid....[the Constitution] belongs to [the courts] to ascertain
its meaning." (The Federalist Number 78,
Alexander Hamilton, 1788)
The Courts apply the law and, ultimately, interpret it.
Although I have disagreed with many Supreme Court decisions,
ultimately I believe it to be a well designed institution.
My major quibble with the organization of the
justice system in this country is the lack of a Circuit Court
for the Pacific Northwest. The application of justice
is haphazard at best.
Above all, the Courts must not be beholden to political
interests. Justices need to be bigger than their Parties. I've
no idea how to enforce this, particularly.
Federalism?
"It is one of the happy incidents of the federal system
that a single courageous State may, if its citizens choose,
serve as a laboratory; and try novel social and economic
experiments without risk to the rest of the country."
(Dissenting opinion: New State Ice Co. v.
Liebmann, Louis D. Brandeis, 1932)
Political Parties
"The question of whether one or several political parties
are in power, and how these parties define and label
themselves, is of far less importance than the question of
whether or not it is possible to live like a human being."
(The Power of the Powerless, Václav Havel, 1986)
Continuity and
Revolution
"This country, with
its institutions, belongs to the people who inhabit it.
Whenever they shall grow weary of the existing Government,
they can exercise their constitutional right of
amending it or their revolutionary right to dismember
or overthrow it." (First Inaugural Address, Abraham
Lincoln, 1861)
"The tree of liberty
must be refreshed from time to time with the blood of patriots
and tyrants. It is it's natural manure." (Letter to
William Stephens Smith, Thomas Jefferson,
1787) "An hereditary throne
is the surest device which has ever been imagined or invented
for the perpetuation of civil order and for that first
necessity of civilized society—continuity of government."
(Speech delivered at Birmingham in aid of the formation of
workingmen's clubs, Randolph Henry Spencer, Lord
Churchill, 1884)
Borrow and Spend Economics Explained
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