Letter to the Editor: The End of Rights?

Letter to the Editor: The End of Rights?

We will soon reach the 222nd anniversary when the 10 Bill of Rights were added as amendments to the US Constitution. That Constitution was ratified only with the assurance to a majority of States that the Bill of Rights would be added. The fear was that a central Federalist government would take too much liberty away from both States and “We the People”. Thomas Jefferson once said: “The natural progress of things is for liberty to yield and government to gain ground.” Does BIG central government today really act in favor of “we the people”?

The Federalists used trickery to replace the Articles of Confederation which held the 13 colonies together as the United States, replacing it with the Constitution. Many opposed the Constitution and a later author was correct in stating “The Constitution has either authorized such a government as we have had, or has been powerless to prevent it.” [Lysander Spooner; “No Treason” -1870.

The states submitted over 200 possible amendments which James Madison whittled down to 17; The Senate accepted 17 which again in a conference committee became 12. Finally on December 15th 1791 the States ratified 10 which became the first amendments to our Constitution. In many ways those first 10 were watered down and easily challenged the liberties of the people. As central government increased its powers, those ten protected liberty. Kenneth Royce writing in “Hologram of Liberty” [The Constitution’s Shocking Alliance With Big Government”] refers to the Bill of Rights as “serving as a speed bumps on the road to Tyranny” where BIG government takes over the lives and liberties of the people. He then writes: “Not that I’m totally ungrateful. Speed bumps are better than nothing I guess.”

Now 222 years later that Bill of Rights continues to be watered down by government legislation and legal decisions that test their meaning. All 10 of our rights are regularly challenged and changed. Remember, people of the US, it is those rights that guarantee some likeness to being a free people, responsible to ourselves and not to a government entity. Today so many of our nation’s people cry out against BIG Government action and intervention unaware that more and more of their listed Constitutional liberties are being removed. Take time this day of history and read again what is supposed to be the liberty you should have that is being taken away…and surrender nothing more.

John Simpson
Lyman NH 03585