How hard is it to stand for peace, honour and justice?
As a child living in New York in the 70’s the fact that my country at least seemed to value these ideas gave me strength and sustained me through times when my fellow Americans found it hard to deal with the things that make me different.
The very simple ideas contained in the constitution and the bills of rights stood in my life then, and still stand, as ideals, but more than political ideals more as a map to a better life, to a better existence.
Not just for myself, but for all people.
I think of the ideas in the American constitution, bill of rights and many other documents that mankind has created to make sense of and in some way contain the evil that men do as more than politically relevant, they are ideas that have given me strength when that evil has come knocking, and it comes knocking often
The following words have always made me think about the gravity of my actions as they relate to the world at large, and don’t be fooled they do… as do yours.
“When in the Course of human events, it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another, and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature's God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation.
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, --That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness.”
Unfortunately, like all words, these words are open to interpretation… but the ideas are clear to anyone that cares to see them or live them.
So what is happening to America?
Exactly the things that the words above predict, we have allowed a government to run unchecked and allowed it to hurt the very people it has a mandate to protect.
It would serve us all well to remember a few things:
- You cannot war for peace.
- Honour is not a birthright it is learned.
- Justice must be fought for and applies to everyone.
Whether God exists or not is not something humans need to fight over.
A fight like that only brings more evil into the world, and we don’t want that… Do we?
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