The only way forward
Moving a nation forward requires diligent preparation, strong leadership, effective logistics, and the determined will of the people. Take the Israelites for example. After leaving Egypt they were inclined to either go back to their captivity or get stuck somewhere short of the land God promised them. They were a large nation comprised of diverse tribes and clans traveling in caravans. Movement was difficult so inertia became their standard. After many days in a place called Kadesh, God spoke to them. He said, and I'm quoting from the King James Version because I love the expressive language---
Ye have compassed this mountain long enough: turn you northward.
Deuteronomy 2:3, KJV
God had something planned for Israel, and it wasn't camping around Mount Seir for forty years. There were lessons to be learned and ground to be covered as they aimed for the Land of Promise, still thirty-eight years ahead. Running in circles wasn't the plan.
Suddenly American government resembles the pitiful Israelites compassing the mountain. We are in absolute gridlock. The will of the people is being ignored as professional politicians bargain for our votes with our money. Both political parties have proven inept at legislating what pollsters continue to indicate as the majority desires of the nation. The question is, how do we break the gravity of this circular movement so we can move forward as a people? How indeed?
Several years ago Bob Menges got me interested in reading and studying the Constitution of the United States. What a thrilling document, our founder's vision of a republic whose government would remain in the hands of the people. Even then they sensed a time when the three branches of government would reach stalemate and governance would depend on fiat. Evidently they also anticipated an eventual collision between state and federal law. As a result, they prepared a way past such possibilities. It is Article V, the provision for the states to convene and address issues that the government political machines bypassed. It is the only way forward when the wheels of government have stalled.
My knowledge of the Constitution is elementary, and the fine points of Article V are no exception. While I totally support the premise of the Convention of States Project and believe the Founders to have included it in our governing documents to guide us around large, ineffective government, I can't speak to it's fine points clearly. So, please do me two favors right now. Take five minutes and read Article V by clicking the National Archives site here. Also, take another few minutes to browse the Convention of States Project web site here. If you would like further information about this movement, you can also consult the web site of Bob Menges, the SC Director of the Convention of States project, right here. Bob knows more about the Constitution than anybody I know, and especially Article V. All of these will be minutes well spent.
One more thing. Go to your state government site for the names, phone
numbers, and email addresses of your state representatives and senators. Contact
them as soon as possible. Encourage their support of the Convention of States
Project. Remember, Article V is the framers provision for a time like this, when
government must respond to the will of the people. Therefore, contact them
today. Encourage your friends to do so as well.
Reading the history of our nation has been a hobby for the past fifteen years. I can only conclude that this nation was founded primarily by people with a Christian worldview who envisioned a unique government accountable to the people. Our rule of law and the government that insures it is a brilliant vision of patriots dedicated to liberty and justice for all. Article V seems to be their design to remedy a broken governing system. Support for the Convention of States Project is one of the litmus tests we've included in our selection of a preferred candidate for 2016. You can view Governor Mike Huckabee's 31-second YouTube endorsement of the Convention of States project by clicking here.
This is an important election. At this time, however, convening the states in convention as prescribed by Article V may be even more so. Please give this constitutional process your earnest study and support.