A Phenomenal Book

I just finished the book, "The 5000 Year Leap" by Cleon Skousen and just want to talk about it briefly here on my blog to get the word out about it. It's a book about the 28 principles on which the founding fathers based the constitution and their hope for America as a republic. I know it sounds a bit on the boring side for those who prefer novels and fiction, but it's actually formatted in a manner that is easy to digest and understand. The chapters are short with lots of quotes from the founding fathers.

Just to give you an idea, here are the principles: (After a few, it might start looking like "blah, blah, blah" but each one really is important!)

1. The only reliable basis for sound government and just human relations is natural law.

2. A free people cannot survive under a republican constitution unless they remain virtuous and morally strong.

3. The most promising method of securing a virtuous and morally stable people is to elect virtuous leaders.

4. Without religion the government of a free people cannot be maintained.

5. All things were created by God, therfore upon Him all mankind are equally dependent, and to Him they are equally responsible.

6. All men are created equal.

7. The proper role of government is to protect equal rights, not provide equal things.

8. Men are endowed by their creator with certain unalienable rights.

9. To protect man's rights, God has revealed certain principles of divine law.

10. The God-given right to govern is vested in the sovereign authority of the whole people.

11. The majority of the people may alter or abolish a government which has become tyrannical.

12. The United States of America shall be a republic.

13. The constitution should be structured to permanently protect the people from the human frailties of their rulers.

14. Life and liberty are secure only so long as the right to property is secure.

15. The highest level of prosperity occurs when there is a free-market economy and a minimum of government regulations.

16. The government should be separated into three branches - legislative, executive, and judicial.

17. A system of checks and balances should be adopted to prevent the abuse of power.

18. The unalienable rights of the people are most likely to be preserved if the principles of government are set forth in a written constitution.

19. Only limited and carefully defined powers should be delegated to government, all others being retained in the people.

20. Efficiency and dispatch require government to operate according to the will of the majority, but constitutional provisions must be made to protect the rights of the minority.

21. Strong local self-government is the keystone to preserving human freedom.

22. A free people should be governed by law and not by the whims of men.

23. A free society cannot survive as a republic without a broad program of general education.

24. A free people will not survive unless they stay strong.

25. Peace, commerce, and honest friendship with all nations - entangling alliances with none.

26. The core unit which determines the strength of any society is the family; therefore, the government should foster and protect its integrity.

27. The burden of debt is as destructive to freedom as subjugation by conquest.

28. The United States has a manifest destiny to be an example and a blessing to the entire human race.

So, there are the principles. Many of them are pretty bold and in today's political climate, likely considered outdated, obsolete, and politically incorrect. I recognize that, but I don't apologize for it. I want to be the kind of person that stands up for these principles. I strive to build my home around them and teach my children about their importance. As I read the book, I was filled with feelings of hope and pride in our blessed nation. But along with it, I also felt a sense of grief and loss as I perceive that the voices from the supposed "mainstream" of our society mock these principles. It's also difficult to see what damage has been done by branches of our government stepping outside these boundaries and implementing unconstitutional policies. I'm not blaming left, right, republican or democrat, because it's happened on all sides. And I agree with Skousen as he credits Milton Friedman for having "demonstrated that every one of these adventures in non-Constitutional activities proved counter-productive, some of them tragically so."

Anyway, I rarely speak out politically in a public forum, but I guess I just did a little bit today. I loved this book and I think you should read it!