HAPPY INDEPENDENCE DAY

As we approach Independence Day it is time to stop and remember what we declared independence from, especially now as we face its potential return.

The colonies were part of the British Empire and, therefore, ruled by a King, a singular individual with the lone power to levy taxes, create laws, and make decisions as he saw fit. Many characterize the Declaration of Independence as representing our desire to no longer be part of the Empire. But when you analyze writings of the time, you come to realize that it was monarchic rule that we most wanted to get away from.

The Constitution is a remarkable document for many reasons, but its primary distinction was that it defined a system of governance never before seen on Earth. Governance by the people, of the people, and for the people. Representation of all citizens in all decision-making. Yes, the flaw was that it didn’t include ALL men and women, but that’s an issue the world is finally beginning to grapple with in a potential successful way.

The larger problem we all face comes in our process of selecting and electing our next President.

The current president and his attorney general both believe deeply in the unitary executive, the leader of the entire country. The sole decision-maker who is completely unassailable. Sound familiar?

Yes, that was the monarchic system we declared independence from on this day in 1776. The genius of the founding fathers as expressed in the Constitution was that it overcame the cruelty, the unfairness, and the agony of rule by a King, and put real power in the hands of the people.

The challenge we face didn’t start recently. In fact, it can be argued that it began perhaps as much as 100 or more years ago. For some reason, at some point in time, the people felt the need for a leader. Someone who could lead them back to glory. But they wanted that singular hero to exist in a system that was designed to prevent that. Apparently, we still do. That’s what reality TV fans were hoping for in the last election. Someone who was “tough” and “no-nonsense” and would kick the daylights out of their hated Congress, with its 17% popularity rating at the time.

But a singular leader to combat Congress is exactly what we don’t want to have. What we really need is the equivalent of an association executive director. Someone who supervises and presides over the entire genius system of government to make sure that everyone play their part and do their job.

So, this Independence Day, let’s once again declare our desire for the brilliant system of government invented and innovated in the Constitution. A system in which everyone’s hopes and desires are represented by their elected representatives and presided over, supervised by their selected president. Not a power-player leader, but a great organizer who understands what needs to be accomplished and works with our representatives to assure that it gets done.

Look around today’s government. How many “officials” can you identify who are in any way competent for their position? None? That’s how they were selected, to serve at the mercy of the King. That lack of foundational leadership is what causes the collapse we see all around us. We must put THAT, not just the serving president, out of our collective misery.

Let’s declare this “Independence from Incompetence Day” and keep celebrating it until November.