Civicwiki:Mission

The government of the United States of America has been stable and continuous for almost 230 years. As a constitutional republic of 230 years it is old by historical standards.
No other modern government has existed that long or produced such dramatic success for its citizens, and for that matter, for the world. Our founders would be surprised that their work has lasted so long.

The longevity of our government removes today’s youth 8 or 9 generations from its origins. Not surprisingly, fewer of us today understand or have a sense of our political heritage or the source or our success. We are prosperous and comfortable. Like a fish unaware of salt water, our long-running success has become an uninteresting condition of life. But our continued success is never guaranteed. We are increasingly out of touch with the ideas and human spirit on which that success was built. They must be understood and refreshed if we are to stay ahead of the historical odds.

The Mission

CW's mission is to provide a forum for fact-based civil discourse, free of demagoguery. And by doing so, to equip voters to make better informed choices.
CW's mission is also to refresh and explain the ideas and the heritage behind American success.
See also about Civicwiki.

The original motivation for Civicwiki was the current state of political discourse and the deep social division that has caused.

CW presents the narrative in several parts

1. Historical influences that set the stage for an independent America. Including:

-- The concepts of rights and freedom developed in England and exported to the colonies.

-- The development of colonies in America.

2. The founding of the United States. Including:

-- The principles presented in the Declaration of Independence

-- The principles behind the Articles of Confederation

-- Principles contained in The Constitution of the United States

and the debate over ratification as recorded in The Federalist Papers and the Anti-Federalist Papers.

3. Economic freedom. Including:

-- The nature of wealth and poverty, and

4. The big issues that are important to us today.

The best tutorial for how the story is organized is to click on and read the introductory pages for each article category listed on the left sidebar or the upper right of the main page.

At the beginning, a relatively few CW pages are written; most are blank. We must depend on our readers to help us write the pages and maintain content quality. So, CW needs the help of writers and editors. Perhaps you would like to participate.

A personal statement about the mission

The sponsors of Civicwiki have assumed this mission out of our love of a few things.

We love the idea and the beauty of those simple few inalienable rights. We can debate the existence of other rights, but life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness are fundamental. They can be explained, but not denied. They are a product of nature - or if you prefer, a gift from God. Without them, we are to be ruled by whomever possesses the might to bend us to their will.

We love the idea of living in a country where these rights are guaranteed, and where that ideal is more closely approximated than anywhere else.

We were fortunate to have been born in America. We hold the immigrants who chose to come to America out of that same kind of love in high regard.

Because of our love of the freedom and protection we enjoy in America, we feel driven to do what we can to preserve them. We hope that this does not strike anyone as old fashioned. If it ever becomes out of date, then freedom becomes out of date. We do not think that will happen because we believe that the human desire for freedom is eternal.