The American experiment in freedom was a unique and exceptional success, at least for its first 150 years, but now startling evidences of America's decline appear on every front.
The family, public education, religion, and our government all seem to be heading at breakneck speed toward catastrophic failure.
We're all watching it happen, and so is the rest of the world, but we're unsure what to do about it.
Many concerned Americans propose we just need to restore the rule of law.
"Just enforce the laws we have", they say.
Others think, as suggested by Mark Levin in his recent excellent book, "Amendments for Liberty", we need to strengthen our laws through Constitutional amendments originated and enacted by the states.
Some are suggesting that a constitutional convention is needed to strengthen our laws.
But are we certain that failure to keep our laws is the real cause of America's slide from exceptionalism, or is lawlessness merely a symptom of the real cause? Is it not possible the root cause is the abandonment of virtue in American culture? Would a wise and virtuous citizenry elect liars and immoral people to be their leaders? Would they long tolerate their unconstitutional laws and executive orders? Conversely, if keeping our laws meant the least virtuous among us (such as those who refuse to work), who now have the greatest claim on the public treasury, would have to give up what they deem their "fair share" of the government's largess, would they quietly acquiesce? Would Greece's recent riotous reactions to attempts at austerity by their government be repeated in America's streets? Attempting to improve our laws as a remedy for our lawlessness is like merely treating the symptoms of cancer.
We feel we've at least done something important, but the patient dies.
What if we made our laws perfect and we enforced our laws perfectly? Would that restore America's former greatness? Our Founders' answer to that question was a resounding, No! "[N]either the wisest constitution nor the wisest laws will secure the liberty and happiness of a people whose manners are universally corrupt.
He therefore is the truest friend to the liberty of his country who tries most to promote its virtue, and who, so far as his power and influence extend, will not suffer a man to be chosen into any office of power and trust who is not a wise and virtuous man.
" - Samuel Adams, Essay published in The Advertiser, 1748.
Baron de Montesquieu, whose writings profoundly influenced the thinking of America's Founders, taught there existed unchanging principles in society and government, and those principles worked best in a republican form of government.
He warned that, once abandoned, those principles must be fully restored or the republic will fall.
"There is no great share of probity [strong moral principles] necessary to support a monarchy or despotic government.
But in a popular state [a republic], one spring is necessary, namely virtue.
Virtue is the essential pillar of a republic.
The surest method to destroy a republic is to diminish virtue among the citizens.
" "When once a republic is corrupted, there is no possibility of remedying any of the growing evils, but by removing the corruption and restoring its lost principles; every other correction is either useless or a new evil.
" - The Spirit of Laws, by Baron de Montesquieu, 1748.
Therefore it's no surprise that America's enemies within are focused on the simultaneous and systematic corruption of America's core institutions, her families, her religion, and her government.
With no effective opposition, they have been eminently successful in displacing virtue as the necessary prop of these vital institutions.
Virtue among the people profoundly shapes (actually controls) the workings of government in a republic for two reasons.
1.
In a representative government, the elected officers write laws that are an expression of the citizen's moral principles.
A virtuous people will not long tolerate corrupt laws that violate the principles necessary for a secure and healthy society, nor will they re-elect representatives that violate their moral principles.
2.
The three timeless institutions, family, religion, and government, form checks-and-balances that will naturally oppose every infringement on their respective roles or responsibilities.
When government, for example, infringes on the roles and responsibilities of religion or family they will vigorously oppose that usurpation (or they should).
In a very real way, we get the government we deserve.
The abandonment of virtue, not lawless and corrupt leaders, is the real cause of America's decline.
Virtue must be taught, learned, modeled, and defended in our core institutions because virtue both forms and protects our freedom.
"[E]very other correction is either useless or a new evil.
" Freedom is fragile and despotism will surely follow its demise.
"Freedom is never more than one generation away from extinction.
We didn't pass it on to our children in the bloodstream.
It must be fought for, protected, and handed on for them to do the same, or one day we will spend our sunset years telling our children and our children's children what it was once like in the United States where men were free.
" - Ronald Reagan, in an address to the annual meeting of the Phoenix Chamber of Commerce, March 30, 1961.