Four Pillars to Restore a Consitutional Republic

In the latest issue of Imprimis, Hillsdale College’s newsletter , Larry P. Arnn was interviewed regarding his passion for the Founding documents and the the principles espoused within.  He recommends the following four pillars for guiding a country back to the core ideas behind a constitutional republic.

The Four Pillars

Pillar 1: Protecting the equal and inalienable rights of individuals is the government’s primary responsibility.

Pillar 2: Economic liberty is inversely proportional to government intrusion in the lives of citizens.

Pillar 3: To accomplish its primary duty of protecting individual liberty, the government must uphold national security.

Pillar 4: The restoration of a high stand of public morality is essential to the revival of constitutionalism.

The fourth pillar rings resonates with me because morality is key if we want to maintain our freedom. Many times we complain about the state meddling with every details of our lives.  This happens when the state takes on responsibilities that belong to us, the people.  I will fully admit that the state is very greedy when it comes to taking on more duties and it holds onto to these duties just like Ebeneezer Scrooge grasps shillings.  However, we can never ignore the importance of self-governance, where we continue to abide by the “Laws of Nature and of Nature’s God” (Dec. of Independence, Paragraph 1.)  If we continue to do our part as moral citizens, the government will have no excuse to cast the chains of bureaucracy around us. As continue in our pursuit of liberty, let us never forget the timeless words of Alexander de Tocqueville

Despotism may govern without faith, but liberty cannot. How is it possible that society should escape destruction if the moral tie is not strengthened in proportion as the political tie is relaxed? And what can be done with a people who are their own masters if they are not submissive to the Deity?