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Leadership? If Only Washington was President
If George Washington was President of the United States today, in 2016, would we have problems with anarchy in the streets, and the lack of leadership in domestic conflicts? In 1782/1783, the American Revolution was drawing to a close, and … Continue reading
Posted in American History, Biography, Government
Tagged Biography, George Washington, history, Leadership, Presidency
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The “Best Administered” Government
The Constitution developed a system of government, federalism, that ideally is the best form of government, a combination of republicanism and democracy that balances power between the legislative, executive, and judicial. Federalism means that the Constitution is based on a … Continue reading
What does the Pledge of Allegiance Mean?
In America, the education of citizens in government begins at a young age at public school, sports events, church meetings, and other public assemblies. At such places and events people of all ages look to the flag, a piece of … Continue reading
Posted in American History, Government
Tagged Citizens, Constitution, Government, Pledge of Allegiance, United States of America
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Crevecoeur’s Vision of America
The French writer and philosopher Hector St. John de Crevecoeur, wondered in Letters from an American Farmer, written in 1782, “What, then, is the American, this new man?” Crevecoeur, a European writing for Europeans, believed that the immigrants who crossed … Continue reading
Thomas Jefferson and the Idea of Revolution
Thomas Jefferson had a lifelong dream when he died on Independence Day, 1826. The epitaph that he composed to mark his passing highlighted the three great achievements of his life: creating the Declaration of Independence, penning the Statute of Religious … Continue reading
Posted in American History, Biography, Government
Tagged Independence, Revolution, Thomas Jefferson
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George Washington: The First (and Best?) President
In Philadelphia, the summer of 1787, the members of the Constitutional Convention, following the lead of James Madison and Alexander Hamilton, decided that the office of a single executive, with his power checked and balanced by the Congress and Courts, … Continue reading
Images of Lincoln
When I was a teenager–not very thoughtful and focused mostly on baseball and basketball–my grandfather, a retired custodian whom I would have never thought would read such books, gave me a three-volume biography of Abraham Lincoln by Carl Sandburg. The … Continue reading
Posted in American History, Biography, books, Government
Tagged Abraham Lincoln, Carl Sanderg, Civil War, Slavery
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Moral Expediency and the Atomic Bomb
The Manhattan Project that resulted in the development of the Atomic Bomb was one of the most creative moments in world history. American scientists accomplished what only a few years before was considered unthinkable–exploiting the power of the atom in … Continue reading
Posted in American History, Government
Tagged Atomic Bomb, Harry Truman, J. Robert Oppenheimer, Manhattan Project, Morality
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Whose Democracy Is It, Anyway?
Is America under the Constitution a democracy? The Constitution was written over the course of a summer in 1787 (in Philadelphia: the Constitutional Convention). The 55 or so men who wrote the Constitution did not have mandated authority from the … Continue reading
Posted in American History, Government
Tagged Constitution, Democracy, Government, James Madison
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Liberty or Order?
The title of this essay, Liberty or Order?, has been a headline in the news recently. Indeed, it is one of the longest running headlines in the American news media. The first newspapers in America, printed in the early 1700s, … Continue reading
The American Plutarch 