THE WHITE HOUSE,
WASHINGTON, D.C.

January 16, 1907

To the HON. Hilary A. Herbert, Chairman,

Chief Justice Seth Shepherd, General Marcus J. Wright,

Judge Charles B. Howry, Mr. William A. Gordon,

Mr. Thomas Nelson Page, President Edwin Alderman,

Mr. Joseph Wilmer, and others of the Committee of Arrangement for the Celebration of the Hundredth Anniversary of the Birth of General Robert E. Lee.

Gentlemen:

I regret that it is not in my power to be with you at your celebration. I join with you in honoring the life and career of that great soldier and high-minded citizen whose fame is now a matter of pride to all our countrymen. Terrible though the destruction of the Civil War was, awful though it was that such a conflict should occur between brothers, it is yet a matter for gratitude on the part of all Americans that this, alone among contests of like magnitude, should have left to both sides as a priceless heritage the memory of the mighty men and the glorious deeds that the iron days brought forth. The courage and steadfast endurance, the lofty fealty to the right as it was given to each man to see the right, whether he wore the gray or whether he wore the blue, now make the memories of the valiant feats, alike of those who served under Grant and of those who served under Lee, precious to all good Americans. General Lee has left us the memory, not merely of his extraordinary skill as a general, his dauntless courage and high leadership in campaign and battle, but also of that serene greatness of soul characteristic of those who most readily recognize the obligations of civic duty. Continue reading →

I heartily accept the motto, “That government is best which governs least”; and I should like to see it acted up to more rapidly and systematically. Carried out, it finally amounts to this, which also I believe – “That  government is best which governs not at all”; and when men are prepared for it, that will be the kind of government which the will have. Government is at best but an expedient; but most governments are usually, and all governments are sometimes, inexpedient.

The objections which have been brought against a standing army, and they are many and weighty, and deserve to prevail, may also at last be brought against a standing government. The standing army is only an arm of the standing government. The government itself, which is only the mode which the people have chosen to execute their will, is equally liable to be abused and perverted before the people can act through it.

Continue reading →

Up until recently I had never given much thought to the subject of economics. I never took an economics class in school and my understanding of the subject could be best explained by, “Don’t spend more than you earn.” However, the more I’ve learned about our system of government, and the men who created it, the more I’ve realized that I’ll never understand the extent of what they did unless I gain some insight into money; how it is created, how it is controlled, and how people profit from its exchange.

If I were to ask you to find a single word to describe government, what would that word be? For the longest time if someone had asked me that I’d have said something like tyrannical, or oppressive. Now that I’ve undertaken an effort to learn more about economics I’m inclined to change my opinion; replacing tyrannical with parasitical – our government is a parasite that sucks both the liberty and wealth from those it governs. Continue reading →

I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America, and to the Republic for which it stands, one Nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.

At the close of the Constitutional Convention of 1787, Franklin was queried as he left Independence Hall on the final day of deliberation. In the notes of Dr. James McHenry, one of Maryland’s delegates to the Convention, a lady asked Dr. Franklin “Well Doctor what have we got, a republic or a monarchy.” Franklin replied, “A republic . . . if you can keep it.”

Our Constitution created a limited representative republic. A republic is different from a democracy. In a democracy, the majority can directly make laws, while in a republic, elected representatives make laws. Basically, in a pure democracy, the majority has unlimited power, whereas in a republic, a written constitution limits the majority and provides safeguards for the individual and minorities. Continue reading →

A Spotlight on a Primary Source by George III

King George III

On March 22, 1765, the British Parliament passed the “Stamp Act” to help pay for British troops stationed in the colonies during the Seven Years’ War. The act required the colonists to pay a tax, represented by a stamp, on various forms of papers, documents, and playing cards. It was a direct tax imposed by the British government, without the approval of the colonial legislatures and was payable in hard-to-obtain British sterling, rather than colonial currency. Further, those accused of violating the Stamp Act could be prosecuted in Vice-Admiralty Courts, which had no juries and could be held anywhere in the British Empire. Continue reading →

Every four years, we are reminded that the president of the United States must be a “natural born citizen.” But what does this even mean? Does it apply to everyone born in America, and is there a difference between a “native born” (one naturalized at birth by statute) and a “natural born” (one who does not require any naturalization) citizen?

That’s the thing: It’s never really been decided who is and is not a natural born citizen of the United States. In fact, there’s not even universal agreement that anyone born within the borders of the United States is a natural born citizen. Unsurprisingly, there is an ideological divide in the United States between those who believe anyone born here is a citizen and those who disagree. Continue reading →

On March 19, 1828, John Quincy Adams signed legislation that would come to be known as the Tariff of Abominations. The law was one of the early dominoes that fell and eventually pushed our nation toward Civil War.

Watercolor of the U.S. Capitol (1828), by John Rubens Smith

The legislation came at the end of Adams’s single term in office. He’d been elected in somewhat unusual circumstances. The Electoral College vote did not produce a majority winner; thus, the election was pushed into a secondary procedure known as the House contingent election. Adams was selected by congressmen! His opponent, Andrew Jackson, was livid. Continue reading →

Relates to the Affairs Between the The Confederate and United States

Wait, but doesn’t the righteous cause myth say the war was somehow “about slavery!” Doesn’t the righteous cause myth say the tariff had nothing to do with secession and war??? Doesn’t the righteous cause myth state that all this talk about tariff concerns were just a post war embellishment to cover up slavery as the cause of secession???

The Confederate Committee on Foreign Affairs regarding the cause of secession: “The tariff alone, would have been ample cause for a separation of the Southern from the Northern.” This speech was presented at Montgomery, Alabama on May 1, 1861. ~ Rod B. O’Barr
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When we think about racial inequality, do we blame everyone in the country, or do we research the truth?

The Democratic Party enjoys votes from the black community, the very people it tried to keep enslaved for most all of its entire history. Opposition to school choice by Democrats has kept blacks in failing schools.

Over the past few years Americans have been hearing about possibly having to pay for slavery reparations to the descendants of slaves that have long since passed. Recently to the tune of 6.2 quadrillion dollars. This article will show why said reparations will be widely voted against. Continue reading →

The Confederacy has been the excuse for some of today’s rioting, property destruction and grossly uninformed statements. Among the latter is the testimony before the House Armed Services Committee by the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Mark Milley in favor of renaming Confederate-named military bases. He said: “The Confederacy, the American Civil War, was fought, and it was an act of rebellion. It was an act of treason, at the time, against the Union, against the Stars and Stripes, against the U.S. Constitution.”

There are a few facts about our founding that should be acknowledged. Let’s start at the beginning, namely the American War of Independence (1775-1783), a war between Great Britain and its 13 colonies, which declared independence in July 1776. The peace agreement that ended the war is known as the Treaty of Paris signed by Benjamin Franklin, John Adams, John Jay and Henry Laurens and by British Commissioner Richard Oswald, on Sept. 3, 1783. Article I of the Treaty held that “New Hampshire, Massachusetts Bay, Rhode Island and Providence Plantations, Connecticut, New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina and Georgia, to be free sovereign and Independent States.” Continue reading →

If this economic climate feels familiar to you, that’s because we have been here before…

The examination the historical red flags that preceded crises dating back to the Roman Empire.

You’ve got to stand back and not bury your head in inconsequential detail if you want to understand history. Land and poverty are always key.

Pax Romana
The Roman Empire was destroyed by having spread its powerful and expensive military too thinly to support counter-productive property bubbles at home. Debt was partly serviced by military plunder of the resources from conquered nations. Although the empire battled on–so to speak–for another three centuries following the death of Pliny the Elder at the eruption of Vesuvius in 79 AD, he had understood the damage land speculation was doing to the nation. It had destroyed it: “Latifundia perdidere Italiam“. The building of great estates came at an enormous cost to an impoverished middle class and to the agricultural poor, the latter who flooded into Rome for succour. In rent-seeking economies, it seems farmers will always do it hard whilst the city flourishes. Continue reading →

Look back on our struggle for freedom,
Trace our present day’s strength to its source;
And you’ll find that our pathway to glory
Is strewn with the bones of a horse. ~ AUTHOR UNKNOWN

NOTE: THIS POST MAY BE DIFFICULT TO READ FOR SOME

The Union Cavalry numbers during the first two years of the Civil War did not exceed 60,000 men. But yet 284,000 horses perished in the service of the Cavalry, few of them in battle. In the winter of 1863-1864 alone in the Union forces in Tennessee, 30,000 horses were lost. Why? Inadequate veterinary care. It wasn’t just “inadequate.” It was breathtakingly, completely absent.

When the war started, there was not one single veterinarian in service anywhere in the Army. The quartermaster had the responsibilities of procurement, distribution, and supplying feed and care. And, each company usually had a farrier, but his responsibility ended after a horse was shod. Continue reading →

It’s time to find this kind of courage again. We are AMERICANS!! We will fight for our homeland!! Tyranny and armed mobs will not rule us!! God bless America!!!