Difference between revisions of "Notes:BC1.L&C.Constitution Introduction"

Latest revision as of 16:53, 3 April 2016

Timeline

• 1763 British won war with France

• taxed and regulated colonies more than before.

Principles were articulated in the colonies in a way that created differences and ultimately confrontation with the British.

• Declared independence in 1776
• War of Independence resulted in England recognizing American independence with the Treaty of Paris in 1783
• 1787 wrote a new constitution
• March 1789 the constitution went into effect

election in 1780 demonstrated that the constitution worked - peaceful transition from Federalists (Washington, Adams) to Democratic Republicans (Jefferson, James Madison)

2nd Crisis was Civil War

At time of American Revolution, all the leaders and public opinion saw slavery as an abomination.

30 years later, it became fashionable to

A new view of human being.

Not a product of nature and God's providence - a product of time and circumstance - some inferior and we get to own them

Land to west was being opened up. Would need laws - which would allow slavery or not. Slavery required a lot of laws to support it to enforce it on an unwilling race.

So would have to decide if the new land would have slavery or not. Created a crisis that culminated in the Civil War.

Third Crisis:

The idea that humans are evolving as is society and everything is changing.

We have science that has given us understanding of historical process of progress and that we can administer scientifically to get control of progress.

This is a major claim of the current day.

• And that there are a lot of new rights that supersedes original rights such as freedom of religion. This is completely counter to Declaration of Independence and the Constitution.

Northwest Ordinance: all laws in territories and new states have to conform to the purposed of civil and religious freedom. Purpose of constitution is to defend that kind of regime.

The size of government has change drastically in the last 50 years.

The causes of America

The material cause: The enormous blessing of a great expanse of new land and the people that built a civilization in the wilderness and all the rest.

There is a whole continent and they don't have any idea how big it is.

The people are a special people. Survivors against immense odds. They came with education, religion, books,

The efficient cause: the founders - a group of very smart people

the Farmer Refuted: Even without law, we know the difference between right and wrong and that standard is in nature.

The rest is a rationalization of restricting the individual liberty.

Draw the contrast between liberty and the new "freedoms".

The formal cause of the United States (the form): The Constitution

When the US acts it does so as the 3 branches.

The Constitution is the form of the US.

The final cause: The principles in the Declaration of Independence

The love of the principles expressed in the Declaration

What could have created this country if it had not been the love of the goals of the various people. It was expressed as a profound philosophical statement in the Declaration. It was an act of love.

If you are to govern me, you can only do it with my consent.

Declaration revolutionary or conservative document?

Federalist 49: Its a big country, we'll have to talk to each other - the three branches elected by different constituencies.

it is reason alone that must govern us and passion must be tamed. The process (constitution) will discipline ourselves to use reason.

Reason over passion, classic definition of virtuous soul. It conserves some eternal truths

No one is king by divine right.

Jefferson: Some men are not born with saddles on their backs nor others booted and spurred to ride them by the grace of God.

No one gets to own us. We are responsible for ourselves. Revolutionary.