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March 1, 2024 Editor, The News-Gazette: We Americans have a problem: some of our constitution’s most important words, so carefully crafted by our Founders, are largely misunderstood.
The constitution is a “contract” between the governed and our “governors.” The constitution “grants” us nothing ... it’s just a piece of paper that outlines what we citizens expect from a government apparatus which we have created in a 14-page document that (so far) ends in Amendment 26. “We, the People” are putting our “government” on notice that we will expect certain rules and procedures to be followed in exchange for our civil obedience to the “rule of law.” Thus, our civil rights are not “granted” by the government: these rights are “retained” by us.
Thomas Hobbes, a 17th century political philosopher, maintained that humans seek the protection and security offered by government in order to escape a “life of man (that) is solitary, poor, nasty, brutish and short.” Although, to be ever free of tyranny, humans choose not to be governed by arbitrary power or the threat and pain of death at the hands of despots, so our constitution contains our “consent” to be governed. It is not an “edict” handed down from on high by our masters, because we have no masters; our government is our servant ... We, the people are its masters.
Elements of our constitution are copied in many other nationstates throughout the world, but its retained civil rights are an essential feature not usually present in most “Rights” systems. Our neighbor Canada’s system, where all civil rights are granted by the government, are also subject to suspension whenever the Canadian government might see fit.
Our ability to understand this difference between “granted rights” and “retained rights” preserves the idea of individual freedom which lies at the heart of our relationship with those persons and institutions of government which we employ to maintain our quest to live inside a peaceful and prosperous civilization. DON HENKE Goshen
