One nation, under stress, with liberty...

Eleven score and twelve years ago our fathers brought forth on this continent a new nation, conceived in liberty, and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal. A nation constructed with a government of the people, by the people, and for the people. With apologies to Mr. Lincoln, I think I have found the problem. It’s the people.
Our forefathers must be approaching an r.p.m. within their respective tombs which would make a Formula One race car jealous. Formula One engines can reach 19,000 revolutions per minute, so it wouldn’t surprise me if Mr. Jefferson down in Monticello needs an oil change.
Before people start lighting up the Globe Exchange with cries that I am “anti-American” I very much appreciate living in this country and I could only be happier if I had Exxon stock. The precepts this country was founded on are still admirable and worth protecting. This country is still the top dog in many ways and home for the things which are most important – freedom of religion, freedom of the press, freedom of speech, and freedom of choice in so many aspects of our day-to-day lives. (Do I want to spend my last four bucks on a gallon of gas or a gallon of milk?)
This country is in the middle of its 56th bloodless coup. It is the 56th time we have gone to the polls to decide who will run the joint. Unlike many countries the United States does not rely on strong arm tactics or mindless thuggery to enforce the will of one party. Oh, sure, the advertising and media can be terribly pushy and about as accurate as an inebriated darts player. Also, we’ve had mindless voters, and witless candidates, do great harm. However, a quick glance at Mr. Mugabe and his “run-off” election which actually revolved around “running off” the electorate with guns, clubs, and a level of unpleasantness approaching Stalinesque proportions lets us know things are better here than lots of other spots.
My problem is I have never subscribed to the “it could be worse” line of defense. This brings me back to our spinning founding fathers. They wrote marvelous pieces of work with the Declaration of Independence and the United States Constitution. They set the stage for a nation of freedoms, a nation of choices, and a nation for white men. I’m sorry but that is what they had in mind. Not to fault them. It was the way things were. The true brilliance of the framers of the Constitution is they allowed for change. They knew the world would not remain the same so the rules which governed this great land should be flexible. The impetus for much of the grave spinning has to be so many people ascribe completely wrong interpretations of the documents because they do not see what James Madison and company knew: things change, these rules may not always be just right.
The Constitution took effect march 4th, 1789. Just two years later the Bill of Rights was ratified showing a willingness to fiddle. Over the years we have given more people the freedoms and powers reserved for white guys in the late 1700’s. We have amended the Constitution as well as thought better of it and changed it back. (The 18th Amendment or the 21st Amendment was done while somebody was drunk.) It is a living thing which has occasionally had a pillow placed over its mouth and nose for a prolonged period of time, but has always managed to fight back.
Here are some suggestions for tinkering with the Constitution.
Amendment XXVIII: The rights of citizens to whine and complain about the government shall be abridged if said citizen did not vote in the election pertaining to the matter he/she is kvetching about. (One of the few things normal run of the mill people can do to effect change is vote.)
Amendment XXIX: The citizenry of the United States shall have it strongly re-iterated that earlier in the Constitution it states they have the right to pursue happiness. Happiness is not guaranteed and if you are unhappy you do not have the right to screw things up for others.
Amendment Catch XXII: Any person showing a deep desire to be President of the United States is showing, by said desire, he/she is not qualified to be President because no one in their right mind would want to go through all the junk it takes to get elected unless there were some selfish ulterior motives meaning the good of the nation was not the motivation meaning he/she should not be President. Therefore, officially declaring for the Presidency disqualifies one from running.