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In Federalist No. 51, James Madison advocated a system of checks and
balances to confound and constrain governmental tyranny. He wrote, "If men
were angels, no government would be necessary. If angels were to govern
men, neither external nor internal controls on government would be
necessary." As we know, we are not angels, and neither are those who govern
us.
In grade school we are taught that the legislature checks the executive
branch by confirming presidential appointments, overriding presidential
vetoes, and by possessing the power of impeachment, while the executive may
veto congressional bills. We then learn that the judiciary can check the
legislature by declaring its laws unconstitutional, while the legislature
confirms its appointments. Perfectly balanced, our republican system of
government is well designed to "check ambition against ambition," or so our
modern masters tell us. We are rushed through twelve years of education
believing that our government checks itself, as if no external "checks and
balances" are necessary. To the extent that external controls are
mentioned, they only include voting and writing your congressman. No, there
are may more means to check these masters. Perhaps our present tyranny
mirrors the fact that we have forgotten the roles the people and the States
play in our governance. We must relearn these roles, for they help to form
the slipknot in the tyrant’s noose. Madison argued that "dependence on the
people, is no doubt, the primary control on the government." It is the
external constraint by the people, not the internal checks alone, that keep
tyranny at bay.
The first, and most important of these external controls is an individual’s
right to keep and bear arms. Called our "first freedom," the right to keep
and bear arms is the ultimate check upon those who govern us. In 1789
Reverend Nicholas Collin remarked, "While the people have property, arms in
their hands, and only a spark of noble spirit, the most corrupt Congress
must be mad to form any project of tyranny." Unfortunately, our liberties
are ultimately guaranteed by one thing-the use of force. This is why the
founders argued that the right to keep and bear arms should never be
infringed.
A second external control is freedom of religion. In II Corinthians 3:17 it
states, "Where the spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty." Or put more
succinctly by the Militia of Montana, "In our homeland, God, guts, and
guns, keep us free." Our religion has more to do with our liberties than
most think.
A third external control is freedom of speech, and of the press. It is the
hope of the tyrant to gag the mouths of patriots for they sow the seeds of
rebellion that yield trees of liberty.
A fourth external control is the right of free and peaceable assembly. This
includes the right of individuals to form organizations dedicated to
preserving their liberties. Citizen militias are constitutional.
A fifth, but not well-known external control, has its origins in the Tenth
Amendment and states’ rights. This is the right of secession. As the
original thirteen colonies broke free from a tyrannical Britain, it is the
right of states belonging to a voluntary union to free themselves from
tyrannical oppression. If our nation is to be great it requires the whole
of the fifty states. Liberty from centralized tyranny guarantees our
greatness as well as our Union.
Another, a sixth not so well-known control is the right to trial, judged by
a jury comprised of your peers. The tyrant’s laws cannot be enforced
without the help of the people. Today a judge will tell jurors to simply
judge the facts of the case, not necessarily the law itself. Our first
Chief Justice, John Jay remarked, "The jury has the right to judge both the
law as well as the fact in controversy." The laws as well as the accused
deserve equal consideration in the face of injustice.
These six controls upon government have largely been forgotten by the
people charged to invoke them. If the internal checks and balances were
adequate to prevent tyranny, why do we see its frightful face today?
Madison knew that they would not be enough. In fact, he believed that the
internal constraints would supplement, NOT REPLACE the people as the
primary control upon government. Our present tyranny is not the result of
the system; it is the result of our complacency and our complete lack of
vigilance.
We must ask ourselves, why is it the external constraints that have come
under assault by our present-day masters and not the internal ones? Why has
both the First and Second Amendments come under fire? Why are we told not
judge the law as well as the facts? Why have state’s rights been eroded?
Because one seeks to eliminate those constraints most threatening to one’s
interests. The tyrant’s concern is with the masses, not his agents-the
external, not the internal. The tyrant’s task is to place the people on a
short leash, giving the appearance of freedom without giving up control.
Liberty eats away at that leash and the tyrant knows it.
Today, we are without vigilance and seem to be without that noble spark.
Today we find our Republic largely becoming a figment of our collective
imaginations along with our liberties. We give up our guns in the name of
safety; we give up our right to free speech in the name of political
correctness; we applaud when the Ten Commandments and manger scenes are
stricken from public view; we refuse to support those groups that organize
in defense of our liberties; we refuse to serve on jury duty because it
poses an inconvenience; and we transfer power from the states to the
central government because, "the government can do it better." In a free
land, the government fears the people. Today we are nothing but the
master’s dog. We are not slaves and yet we humbly submit. It is we that
should hold the leash, or better yet, the tyrant’s noose. The external
controls mentioned here help to form the slipknot. When he embarks upon
tyranny the noose slips tighter around his neck. He must choose to rule
honorably or perish; either way he does so at our hands.
Once again the tired old cliché must be inserted here, "the price of
liberty is eternal vigilance." A cliché perhaps, but no truer words have
ever been spoken. Look around, how much of the present situation rests upon
our shoulders?
Brian Berryhill is a regular contributor to Ether Zone and a graduate
student studying international relations and public policy at Purue
University in West Lafayette, Indiana
Brian can be reached at maximus47906@yahoo.com
Published in the August 1, 2000 issue of Ether Zone Online
Copyright © 2001 Ether Zone Online. (http://etherzone.com).
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