Happy New Year, Faithful Subscribers, and welcome back to Daily Conquest.
Photo by Caleb Fisher on Unsplash
“The end of government being the good of mankind, points out its great duties: It is above all things to provide for the security, the quiet, and happy enjoyment of life, liberty, and property. There is no one act which a government can have a right to make, that does not tend to the advancement of the security, tranquility and prosperity of the people.” — James Otis
Last time, on the eve of the 2022 mid-term elections, we considered the “end of democracy” that Democrats in particular, and many in the media, were hyperventilating about at the time. I’m happy to report that democracy in America has not ended and that the republic still stands. Whew, that was a close one! 🙄
That America is still here should surprise no one. Overheated political rhetoric is par for the course these days, and dire predictions of imminent doom if the other side wins are so common that you are always safe in discounting them.
The real end of democracy
As we also discussed last time, the United States of America is a republic. By design, our system of government incorporates both democratic and non-democratic aspects, striking a balance intended to secure the benefits of popular participation in selecting our leaders while mitigating the harmful aspects of a pure democracy.
One of those evils is that if the majority rules absolutely — well, Lord Acton told us long ago what absolute power does.1 The temptation of a democratic majority to oppress, despoil, and otherwise mistreat the minority is hard for human nature to resist.
Thus, we have a limited government of delegated powers — so that the majority can’t do whatever it wants without restraint.
We have a Bill of Rights that forbids the government to infringe on the rights and liberties of the people.
We have courts that can interpret, limit and if necessary, strike down, laws and acts of government that violate the Constitution. And so on.
Nevertheless, democracy remains at the heart of our system. Our most important government officials are elected by the people, either directly or indirectly. Appointed officials accountable to those elected, and through them to the people. Even federal judges and the members of the Supreme Court, who are appointed for life, can be removed from office through the impeachment process.
It is through elections that we consent to the government we have and from which it derives its power and legitimacy, within the bounds of the Constitution. That is the true “end” (in the sense of goal or purpose) of democracy in America.
You must remember this
In fits and starts, our first few editions of Daily Conquest have looked at the Preamble to the Constitution and the self-evident truths and inalienable rights set out in the Declaration of Independence, with a particular focus on the famous trio of life and liberty and the pursuit of happiness.
If you remember nothing else from those discussions, remember these two things:
Our rights don’t come from the government, but from our Creator (or Nature, if you prefer)
Government exists to secure our rights.
That’s it. That’s the reason. That’s why we have government. That’s why we agree to abide by laws, follow regulations, pay taxes, and undergo all the other inconveniences that come from having a government.
It’s all because we rely on our government to secure our rights. Life, liberty, pursuit of happiness, and all the rest. Rather than doing this ourselves, we have collectively outsourced much of the work to our governments (local, state, and federal).
Or, more accurately, we the people have delegated that mission to the government.
But the rights are ours — we have them whether or no there is a government and regardless of what any government says.
And the ultimate power, the ultimate sovereignty always rests with us — We the People.
Those who fill the offices of government on our behalf sometimes forget this.
They begin to believe that the purpose government is to perfect society, to transform human nature, to reeducate people who have the wrong ideas and beliefs, or to impose some vision of utopia on the rest of us whether we want it or not.
Sometimes officers of government believe its purpose is to enrich themselves, their families, and their cronies. Some believe government’s power is entrusted to them so that they can harm their personal enemies, real or imagined.
Others come to see the supreme goal of government to be the expansion of its own power and reach and control over our lives.
Whenever those in government forget its true end, they need to be reminded.
Look in the mirror
Sometimes we the people also forget the true purpose of government. We expect it to solve all our problems, shield us from the consequences of our own decisions, compel others to act and believe as we want them to, punish classes of people we don't like, insulate us from all risk, responsibility, or discomfort, and otherwise satisfy our wants and needs at the expense of others.
We too need to remind ourselves and each other that government serves us best when it sticks to its core mission of securing our rights.
Service please!
Does the government do other things?
Sure. So long as you have a government, might as well put it to use, right?
We ask government to build roads, manage traffic, educate our children, prevent or respond to outbreaks of disease, forecast the weather, deliver the mail, pick up the garbage, and much more.
We tend to think of these and many other tasks as proper government functions. And perhaps they are.
Most of these services could be provided by businesses or voluntary organizations, but we find it convenient to have government do it — perhaps better than private actors could, perhaps not.
But providing services of convenience is not the fundamental end of government.
Go back to the Preamble: We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defence, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.
The closer our government sticks to these missions — and the less we ask it to go beyond them — the happier we all will be.
It’s worth a look
Taking a fresh look at our nation’s founding documents from time to time is a good way to remind ourselves of our rights and responsibilities as citizens, and what we should expect from our public servants. We will continue to do that at Daily Conquest as we move on to other topics.
I hope these first few editions have been informative, interesting, and perhaps entertaining. I encourage you to reread the Declaration of Independence yourself if it’s been a while — it’s a short document. Or browse through the Constitution and the Bill of Rights. If you do, and if you find something there that you’d like Daily Conquest to cover, please let me know in the comments or by replying to the email if you’re already a Faithful Subscriber.
If you enjoyed this edition, please click the heart icon at the top. And please forward or share the link with someone who might be interested by using the button below.
We’ll meet again soon. Until then — Conquer the Day!
“Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely” — Lord Acton
I presume most readers have heard this quote, even if you have no idea who Lord Acton was. But there is always someone encountering it for the first time. So here it is.