Green and Problems of Democracy

By Rich Kozlovich

As I link articles dealing with the Endangered Species Act and the actions of the Environmental Protection Agency I find that I am startled at how green issues violate every aspect of what Americanism really is, and how so many fail to grasp this. They violate the Constitution, and they violate the principles outlined in the Declaration of Independence.  I find that it is difficult to explain how dangerously "green" violates our rights if people don't really understand those rights and the foundation thinking that brought them into being. 

In my July 3rd Observations From the Back Row I posted a link to the Declaration of Independence asking if we had actually read it in its entirety. It’s no secret that the vast majority hasn’t; and fewer have read the U.S. Constitution. How many fewer have even heard of the Articles of Confederation or the Federalist Papers let alone read this material. I commented that it disturbs me that schools clearly aren’t teaching history any longer….yet I never read any of that when I was in school and I graduated in 1964, from a state that required a passing grade in a civics course they called Problems of Democracy in order to graduate.

We are, compared to the people of the 1700’s, somewhat illiterate per ratio to the amount of information available. They had little information, the population wasn’t entirely literate and the information wasn’t easliy available to everyone and books were expensive….yet they read what they could get their hands on. We, on the other hand, have access to vast quantities of information via the internet that was never as readily available before.

One writer’s commentary would lead to more commentaries and subsequently generate more interest in issues and topics that you would have had to go to the library to research.  Now you could research it from your desk and if you found the topic really interesting you could order books right online.  After all, articles don't give you all you need, they merely point the way to find the right books.   Yet what do we find? Tens of millions sitting and watching a trial that was being broadcast 24/7 about a mother that allegedly killed her own daughter, wasting intellectual energy and dulling the mind.

Then again, watching Fox's concept of good broadcasting and “fair and balanced” is difficult, and they are probably the better of all the network news stations. That should disturb everyone. All these reality shows diminish humanity.  They are degrading to the people on the shows and the people who watch them. As for their news shows; I consider O’Reilly a big phony, and the worst thing that could have happened to Hannity was that Cone left the show. As a result Hannity is now too cute by half. The panels on all the shows are lame, and Chris Wallace is a waste of time. There is no real in depth coverage on anything. When they interview someone who actually knows something they talk over them so much they don’t really have time to lay foundation for what has to be said, nor is sufficient time allotted to do justice to any topic even if they weren’t interrupted.

Beck did worthwhile indepth foundational work and his historical references were great, but he was amazingly irritating and ...well.... dificult to watch. I couldn't take him after a while. He turned out to be a flash in the pan, which my friend Alan Caruba predicted.

There is no one doing the business of examining these issues properly other than John Stossel, which is worth the time. He actually says what needs to be said and provides the background information to substantiate it. All the rest obfuscate, side step, and avoid offending to the degree that telling the entire truth should offend. And yet the left is outraged at the tiny amount of truth they do offer, which goes to show just how much patty cake goes on between them and the main stream media. It has been so many years since I watched the main news shows that I can’t remember how long it has been. I stopped long before the internet. In fact, I would bet that it has been at least 25 years since I watched 60 Minutes.

So what you might ask? When I was publishing my old Green Notes Newsletter each week I ran a section called Logical Fallacy of the Week, which I intend to re-run. So, I have decided to offer my own Problem on Democracy each week. I intend to start with the Declaration of Independence and work my way through the foundational works I have mentioned. Hopefully I will have the time to do so each week, but it will be an ongoing process.

The question I wish to leave you with in the meantime is; why isn’t this all taught extensively in school? After all, if people don’t understand the foundational rationale for the structure of their society how can they make rational decisions as to what really is Constitutional. Most importantly, why and how the Constitution and the Amendments came into being? Were these men who did all of this work really brilliant? Is the Constitution nothing more than a “dusty old document” as one Supreme Court Justice described it?

I will tell you this; starting in the late 1800’s the goal of education was to make sure that the “apple fell as far away for the tree as possible”; not reading, not writing and not arithmetic. Think about that until next week.

“The halls of the Interior Department are filled with environmental extremists. They will find any type of habitat or creature they can to make a case to stop job creation and use of federal land.”

Rep. Devin Nunes (R.-Calif.)

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