In Federalist 5, John Jay continues to discuss the need for a United
States vs 13 individual states, or several groups of states.
This time Jay brings us practical lessons from the nation American had just
won it’s freedom from, Great Britain. Here he speaks of the time when a union
was being formed between England and Scotland, and how many issues and
conflicts were solved through this union.
Jay rightfully warns that a divided America would experience these troubles,
and then some. One must remember that trouble was already brewing at the time,
with the several states often arguing amongst themselves over trade, and other
issues. With the British to the north, and the French and Spanish to the south
and west, it would be very easy for foreign interlopers to interfere and
insight trouble between the divided, but sovereign, states.
Just as self important men nowadays think only of their own power, and not
of the nation they pretend to serve, so too did these types exist during our
new nation’s earliest days. Many were advocating a different solution than the
one finally agreed to, hoping to build on their own power base. The more things
change, the more they stay the same.
The Same Subject Continued: Concerning Dangers from Foreign Force and
Influence
For the Independent Journal.
Author: John Jay
To the People of the State of New York:
QUEEN ANNE, in her letter of the 1st
July, 1706, to the Scotch Parliament, makes some observations on the importance
of the UNION then forming between England and Scotland, which merit our
attention. I shall present the public with one or two extracts from it: “An entire and perfect union will be the
solid foundation of lasting peace: It will secure your religion, liberty, and
property; remove the animosities amongst yourselves, and the jealousies and
differences betwixt our two kingdoms. It must increase your strength, riches,
and trade; and by this union the whole island, being joined in affection and
free from all apprehensions of different interest, will be ENABLED TO RESIST
ALL ITS ENEMIES.” “We most
earnestly recommend to you calmness and unanimity in this great and weighty
affair, that the union may be brought to a happy conclusion, being the only
EFFECTUAL way to secure our present and future happiness, and disappoint the
designs of our and your enemies, who will doubtless, on this occasion, USE
THEIR UTMOST ENDEAVORS TO PREVENT OR DELAY THIS UNION.”
It was remarked in the preceding
paper, that weakness and divisions at home would invite dangers from abroad;
and that nothing would tend more to secure us from them than union, strength,
and good government within ourselves. This subject is copious and cannot easily
be exhausted.
The history of Great Britain is the
one with which we are in general the best acquainted, and it gives us many
useful lessons. We may profit by their experience without paying the price
which it cost them. Although it seems obvious to common sense that the people
of such an island should be but one nation, yet we find that they were for ages
divided into three, and that those three were almost constantly embroiled in
quarrels and wars with one another. Notwithstanding their true interest with
respect to the continental nations was really the same, yet by the arts and
policy and practices of those nations, their mutual jealousies were perpetually
kept inflamed, and for a long series of years they were far more inconvenient
and troublesome than they were useful and assisting to each other.
Should the people of America divide
themselves into three or four nations, would not the same thing happen? Would
not similar jealousies arise, and be in like manner cherished? Instead of their
being “joined in affection” and
free from all apprehension of different “interests,”
envy and jealousy would soon extinguish confidence and affection, and the
partial interests of each confederacy, instead of the general interests of all
America, would be the only objects of their policy and pursuits. Hence, like
most other BORDERING nations, they would always be either involved in disputes
and war, or live in the constant apprehension of them.
The most sanguine advocates for three
or four confederacies cannot reasonably suppose that they would long remain
exactly on an equal footing in point of strength, even if it was possible to
form them so at first; but, admitting that to be practicable, yet what human
contrivance can secure the continuance of such equality? Independent of those
local circumstances which tend to beget and increase power in one part and to
impede its progress in another, we must advert to the effects of that superior
policy and good management which would probably distinguish the government of
one above the rest, and by which their relative equality in strength and
consideration would be destroyed. For it cannot be presumed that the same
degree of sound policy, prudence, and foresight would uniformly be observed by
each of these confederacies for a long succession of years.
Whenever, and from whatever causes, it
might happen, and happen it would, that any one of these nations or
confederacies should rise on the scale of political importance much above the
degree of her neighbors, that moment would those neighbors behold her with envy
and with fear. Both those passions would lead them to countenance, if not to
promote, whatever might promise to diminish her importance; and would also
restrain them from measures calculated to advance or even to secure her
prosperity. Much time would not be necessary to enable her to discern these
unfriendly dispositions. She would soon begin, not only to lose confidence in
her neighbors, but also to feel a disposition equally unfavorable to them.
Distrust naturally creates distrust, and by nothing is good-will and kind
conduct more speedily changed than by invidious jealousies and uncandid
imputations, whether expressed or implied.
The North is generally the region of strength,
and many local circumstances render it probable that the most Northern of the
proposed confederacies would, at a period not very distant, be unquestionably
more formidable than any of the others. No sooner would this become evident
than the NORTHERN HIVE would excite the same ideas and sensations in the more
southern parts of America which it formerly did in the southern parts of
Europe. Nor does it appear to be a rash conjecture that its young swarms might
often be tempted to gather honey in the more blooming fields and milder air of
their luxurious and more delicate neighbors.
They who well consider the history of
similar divisions and confederacies will find abundant reason to apprehend that
those in contemplation would in no other sense be neighbors than as they would
be borderers; that they would neither love nor trust one another, but on the
contrary would be a prey to discord, jealousy, and mutual injuries; in short,
that they would place us exactly in the situations in which some nations doubtless
wish to see us, viz., FORMIDABLE ONLY TO EACH OTHER.
From these considerations it appears
that those gentlemen are greatly mistaken who suppose that alliances offensive
and defensive might be formed between these confederacies, and would produce
that combination and union of wills of arms and of resources, which would be
necessary to put and keep them in a formidable state of defense against foreign
enemies.
When did the independent states, into
which Britain and Spain were formerly divided, combine in such alliance, or
unite their forces against a foreign enemy? The proposed confederacies will be
DISTINCT NATIONS. Each of them would have its commerce with foreigners to
regulate by distinct treaties; and as their productions and commodities are
different and proper for different markets, so would those treaties be
essentially different. Different commercial concerns must create different
interests, and of course different degrees of political attachment to and
connection with different foreign nations. Hence it might and probably would
happen that the foreign nation with whom the SOUTHERN confederacy might be at
war would be the one with whom the NORTHERN confederacy would be the most
desirous of preserving peace and friendship. An alliance so contrary to their
immediate interest would not therefore be easy to form, nor, if formed, would
it be observed and fulfilled with perfect good faith.
Nay, it is far more probable that in
America, as in Europe, neighboring nations, acting under the impulse of opposite
interests and unfriendly passions, would frequently be found taking different
sides. Considering our distance from Europe, it would be more natural for these
confederacies to apprehend danger from one another than from distant nations,
and therefore that each of them should be more desirous to guard against the
others by the aid of foreign alliances, than to guard against foreign dangers
by alliances between themselves. And here let us not forget how much more easy
it is to receive foreign fleets into our ports, and foreign armies into our
country, than it is to persuade or compel them to depart. How many conquests
did the Romans and others make in the characters of allies, and what
innovations did they under the same character introduce into the governments of
those whom they pretended to protect.
Let candid men judge, then, whether
the division of America into any given number of independent sovereignties
would tend to secure us against the hostilities and improper interference of
foreign nations.
PUBLIUS.
Then, as now, a strong UNITED States, was the best defense from foreign
entanglements of all sorts. Our founders were practical men, and understood
what caused wars, and while they knew some were unavoidable, they hoped to make
those situations rare indeed. They also understood the best route was to remain
united in one common cause.
There are all sorts of lessons to be learned from John Jay’s wisdom, but
this is one of the finest, and one that applies today, just as well as it did
in his day.
While we are indeed at war with radical Islam, with fighting forces in both
Iraq and Afghanistan, we are also at war with radical Marxism that exists
within, and actually controls our federal government, and has elements
scattered throughout the 50 states.
The goal of the radical Marxists, from Barack Obama on down to the lowliest
Marxist-democrat bureaucrat drone, is to divide America, to pit American
against American. Barack Obama, using the vile ideology he learned studying
Karl Marx and Saul Alinsky seeks to divide us all by stoking race wars, class
wars, and gender wars.
If Obama and his evil regime can get the various races at one another’s
throat, while creating massive class envy, by painting the “rich” as
evil, and those not so well off as noble, while turning men against women, and
gays against straights, he and his regime know the people will be too
distracted fighting their own little battles to realize they have lost the war!
It is Obama’s stated intention to destroy America. To tear down the very
fabric of modern civil society and remake it in his own psychotic image.
Unfortunately, the greatest nation the world has ever known, the gold standard
for Freedom and Liberty around the globe, the only nation that has ever
celebrated Individual Freedom and Self Reliance, is about to be no more.
Obama is simply the culmination of a century’s worth of Marxist infiltration
into every area of our lives, our media, our schools. Unfortunately, Obama and
the radical Marxists are winning this war. They have successfully divided us.
At least half the country has been conditioned to hate anyone who makes more
money than they do, rather than to try and move up the ladder of success
themselves.
The Obama regime, and it’s media partners, play the race card at every
opportunity. Not only that, but if someone, say a Black, or Hispanic, happens
to not fall in line with the teachings of Marx and Alinsky, and doesn’t bow to
the almighty Obama, they are branded a “race traitor” by the very people
who purport to be for them.
Of course the gender wars have been carried out for decades with disastrous
results, not only to relationships between men and women, but for the family
unit as a whole, the destruction of which being a stated goal of Marxist
ideology.Marxism teaches the State in the family.
Just as John Jay warned the American people in his day of the danger of a
divided America, we need to stop and realize what the divisions, encouraged by
the radical left, have done to us.
There’s a reason why the bible warns of envy. I don’t care who you are, you
will always find someone smarter, stronger, better looking, and making more
money. It’s time for ALL Americans to realize the beauty of America, The
guarantees afforded to all by our Constitution, is the promise we all have an
equal chance. We do not have the promise of equal results however. The results
you achieve out of life are based on the effort that you, and you alone, put
in.
But Gary…that isn’t FAIR! Life isn’t fair, get over it. Buy a helmet! Some
people have it easier than others, so what? The American story is filled with
tales of people who came from nothing, sometimes less than nothing, who would
reach the very pinnacle of society. They have faced unspeakable hardships, and
yet, excelled to the highest levels possible. We have to remind people that you
are only limited by the effort you wish to expend.
If we don’t do that, the Obama regime will succeed in remaking society to a
point when no matter how much effort you put out, you will never succeed, as
success will be outlawed and in it’s place will be nothing but mediocrity for
all.
We must stop the racial nonsense. We must not allow those whose living is
predicating on the continuous racial strife to remain.. They must be expelled
from society, thrown out of the country, if that’s what it takes. We simply
can’t afford to indulge the race baiters any longer. We have two problems, the
good old fashioned raced baiting by the usual suspects, and multi-culturalism.
Much of the first issue can be traced back to the previous ailment, stoked
by class warfare and the myth that the world somehow owes some people
something. It’s that simple. The other is more synthetic, than organic.
Somewhere during the course of time, we stopped being Americans. All of a
sudden, people who couldn’t find Africa on a map, and whose families have been
Americans for generations, became “African-Americans.” Even worse, this
label was soon applied to any black person, no matter where their ancestors may
have come from. We have “Mexican-Americans” “Native-Americans”
and so on.
Frankly, and this will get some letters, the “Native-American” label
particularly strikes me as wrong. I realize this is used to describe “Indians”
the folks who were here before the Europeans showed up. I’m part Cherokee
myself, but the thing is, ANYONE born in America is a “Native-American”
Here’s the thing, whether by birth, or through naturalization, we are all
simply Americans. The hyphen is quite distasteful, as it is used. This
multi-culturalism is yet another way to further divide us and make us weaker.
This is not to say we shouldn’t celebrate the diversity of our people. Quite
the contrary, the rich traditions that not only the natives, Indians, have, but
traditions from people from all over the world have brought with them, are what
has helped make America great. The thing is, while we mustn’t allow anyone to
lose their tradition and personal identity, we must remember why America is
called “the world’s great melting pot.” People come here from all over
the world, with the desire to become Americans! We must encourage these people
to assimilate, to learn our national customs and traditions, and to participate
as an American. No hyphen required.
We must also develop the notion that we are all one race, the human race,
and move on. As long as we allow the radical left to divide us, they can and
will conquer us all. We all will be equal for sure then. Equally enslaved and
equally miserable.
As for gender, well, men and women have tried to figure one another out
since the beginning of time. Somehow I doubt they ever will. I do think we can
all agree that men and women should treat each other with respect, and in the
workforce be paid an equal day’s wage for an equal day’s work. Past that, there
are fundamental differences between men and women, and yes, that can lead to
great frustration at times, but it’s part of the mystery of life that makes it
worth living.
As a deeply divided nation, Obama and his minions are beating us. We are
easy prey for whatever they wish to impose on us. In order to survive, we must
find a way to come together and unite on the things that make us all the same,
and work on the things that make us different. If not, we as a nation, and a
people, will perish from the earth.
As always, please visit Constituting
America for further discussion, and more thoughts on the Constitution
and the Federalist Papers.
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About Gary P.
Gary P is editor and publisher of A Time For Choosing as well as a
contributor to Red State, Digital Journal, The Sarah Palin Web Brigade,
The Sarah Palin Information Blog, and other conservative sites. A Time For Choosing is a website based on solid Ronald Reagan/Sarah
Palin conservatism. We give no apologies, and accept no substitutes.This website is named after Ronald Reagan’s iconic 1964 speech at
the Republican National Convention of the same name. Although, A Time
For Choosing is the speech’s official title, it is so iconic, so well
known, and so highly quoted, it is simply known as “The Speech.”It’s time for all Americans to choose the nation they wish to live
in. do they want to continue to live in a free nation and retain their
God given liberties, or do they want to allow someone to take it all
away?Do Americans want a nation where they can live their lives as they
see fit, or do they want a totalitarian, oppressive government?It is a time for choosing.
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