Of Studies by Francis Bacon

We read this today in English.  After I figured out what it means, I really liked it.

OF STUDIES by Francis Bacon

      STUDIES serve for delight, for ornament, and for ability. Their chief use for delight, is in privateness and retiring; for ornament, is in discourse; and for ability, is in the judgment, and disposition of business. For expert men can execute, and perhaps judge of particulars, one by one; but the general counsels, and the plots and marshalling of affairs, come best, from those that are learned. To spend too much time in studies is sloth; to use them too much for ornament, is affectation; to make judgment wholly by their rules, is the humor of a scholar. They perfect nature, and are perfected by experience: for natural abilities are like natural plants, that need proyning, by study; and studies themselves, do give forth directions too much at large, except they be bounded in by experience. Crafty men contemn studies, simple men admire them, and wise men use them; for they teach not their own use; but that is a wisdom without them, and above them, won by observation. Read not to contradict and confute; nor to believe and take for granted; nor to find talk and discourse; but to weigh and consider. Some books are to be tasted, others to be swallowed, and some few to be chewed and digested; that is, some books are to be read only in parts; others to be read, but not curiously; and some few to be read wholly, and with diligence and attention. Some books also may be read by deputy, and extracts made of them by others; but that would be only in the less important arguments, and the meaner sort of books, else distilled books are like common distilled waters, flashy things. Reading maketh a full man; conference a ready man; and writing an exact man. And therefore, if a man write little, he had need have a great memory; if he confer little, he had need have a present wit: and if he read little, he had need have much cunning, to seem to know, that he doth not. Histories make men wise; poets witty; the mathematics subtile; natural philosophy deep; moral grave; logic and rhetoric able to contend. Abeunt studia in mores. Nay, there is no stond or impediment in the wit, but may be wrought out by fit studies; like as diseases of the body, may have appropriate exercises. Bowling is good for the stone and reins; shooting for the lungs and breast; gentle walking for the stomach; riding for the head; and the like. So if a man’s wit be wandering, let him study the mathematics; for in demonstrations, if his wit be called away never so little, he must begin again. If his wit be not apt to distinguish or find differences, let him study the Schoolmen; for they are cymini sectores. If he be not apt to beat over matters, and to call up one thing to prove and illustrate another, let him study 197 the lawyers’ cases. So every defect of the mind, may have a special receipt.

Social Security and Immigration-The Lincoln Plan

       Here are some suggestions of mine (with some input from my dad especially with Immigration) on how to solve a couple of America's biggest problems:

Social Security

       This program created by one of our most progressive presidents, FDR, is likely to be the biggest wormhole for our economy.  What I think the U. S. should do to solve Social Security is this.  First, go to a plan, similar to the one proposed by George W. Bush, were Social Security starts being payed into your own personal government account.  This would last for about ten years and part of the social security would still go to the elderly so as not to completely cut them off immediately.  Second, all money taken out of Social Security would go to your own government account for you.  This would go on for another ten years. Third, less and less money would be taken out of income for Social Security and people would be encouraged (not required or forced) to put money into their own private retirement fund. This process would last for about five years.  Last of all, the whole Social Security program will be taken away and people will have to save for their own retirement.  In the end people might not save for retirement, but that is their choice, to work the rest of their lives.  Although it would take years, my idea would get rid of Social Security in a gradual way, rather than completely dropping it altogether.

Immigration

      My plan for immigration would be as follows.  First of all, make the process of obtaining citizenship easier.  Make the cost of citizenship minimal and give no excuse for illegals to say it's too hard to come legally.  On the other hand, tighten border security to maximum capacity. Allow law enforcement to use force to stop illegals from crossing the border.  It sounds almost inhuman, but after a few examples, illegals will be more willing to come legally.  Last of all, increase the penalty for hiring an illegal immigrant to a detrimental height, such as 20,000 per illegal immigrant.  Without a job what would illegals want to come to the U. S. illegally for?


      Well these are just some of my opinions on how to deal with immigration and Social Security.  And as always things sound so good on paper, but a lot of times never really work well.

English Creative Writing Story

Here is a story I wrote for English.  My teacher had us use a story to fulfil the researce benchmark for our state.  Hopefully you'll enjoy:

From Potato Field to Battle Field

The story of the human race is war (Churchill, 102). And now the story of my life had become war, war, and more war. Every single day since January 6th 1942 had been hell, pure hell on earth. Today was no exception.

Driving through the jungles of Okinawa in my Sherman tank was like driving a tin can through an oven. Battles were even worse because of the heat coming from my tank’s 75 mm gun as it fired off rounds at Japanese bunkers (Hickman). Today we were trying to destroy a ring of bunkers, but to get into firing range we had to cross an open area that had been clear-cut by artillery. I could hardly hear my commander over the noise of battle, so I relied heavily on his feet taping my shoulders for direction. Tap left, two taps—stop, three taps—go, tap right and the tank continued on at 24 miles per hour with machine guns blaring all the way (Hickman). Bang, one shell into the hillside…a minute later another. All were sounds I had heard before. Screams of horror and pain rang out all over the place, but no one cared. Along with the ping of bullets ringing in my head, I had become numb when it came to that horrible sound of human screaming.

My commander tapped my shoulder to stop, so I obeyed. My fellow tank crew members began to unload shells and machine gun bullets at one of the Jap bunkers. When we typically stopped all I did was wait until I felt the tap of the commander’s foot and then I would drive on. Waiting there with nothing to do was torture. Deaf as I was from the canons, I could still hear screams of men dying all around my tank.

Oftentimes I would think back on my life before I was sent to this hell they call war. Now, as I sat in the driver’s seat of my Sherman I recalled the life I had before this one. I could remember the summer days in Idaho picking potatoes and sugar beets. At the time I had hated those days, but now I looked back on them with fondness. There was no shooting, dying, or screaming. There were only those potatoes and beets. Potatoes and beets, boy, did that sound good. Of course while in high school I wouldn’t have wanted to ever see another potato again, but here in the jungle canned food was the only thing to be had. A nice hot potato, it was almost too much to bear, sitting here in this hellish place.

Three taps. I awoke from my dream and faced reality, as I pushed the Sherman closer to the enemy entrenchments. Now it would really get ugly. Our tanks and men were now within one thousand yards of the bunkers.

We had been firing at one particular bunker for the past half hour and it appeared invincible. The fire coming out of that Japanese stronghold was mind blowing. I swiveled my periscope over just as the tank on our left flank was covered with dirt and smoke from a near miss. The explosion caused a tower of debris to shoot up above the tank, perhaps seventy-five feet in the air (Dick, 149). I didn’t receive the order, but I immediately backed up as I saw the closeness of the shells.

Not three minutes had passed before I saw a Japanese shell land right in the place where I had just parked the tank. We could have been dead men. I was not going to be in trouble with the commander for driving without his orders, rather he would most likely thank me for moving. I had just saved the lives of myself and my fellow crew-members. It was time to head back to a safer area for some rest.



In my tent back at camp, after I had eaten a can of beans from my K-rations, I wrote one of my usual daily letters to my younger brother:

Dear Robert,


Today, was hot. Real hot. Regarding your question as to whether you should join the army when you graduate, I will now answer.


First I want you know that this is no bed of Roses. The signs you see may sound and read good but they are nothing like the army. The minute you sign your name to that piece of paper you are no longer your own boss. Anytime someone of a higher rank tells you to do something you have got to do it no matter how it hurts you. So gets on your nerve and sometimes you get so mad that you could knock them all down and give up and quit but you know it won’t do you any good because they can court martial you and if they want then can send you to prison for the rest of your life (A. Sorenson). If at all possible don’t join the military. It controls your life and if you saw half the stuff I see here you would understand.


Anyway, I hope life at home is going well. I wish I could be there just for one meal to taste mothers baked chicken, but I’m here on this mass grave they call an island instead. Write soon.


Your Brother,


Raymond

After finishing my letter I went into my usual restless sleep just waiting to hear the sound of a Japanese night attack. Luckily the night it never came and I made it through to fight another day.

Today our mission was different. Convoy duty. My tank was to be the lead tank of a convoy of fifteen supply trucks. This was stressful driving. As the lead escort, orders were to never stop until reaching the destination. Twenty miles through a mountain pass just to take some Marines a few letters and some smokes? It didn’t make sense to me, but then again I wasn’t the smartest man. Heck, I joined this army voluntarily. How smart was that?

As I drove along the mountain rode I looked for any sign of a Japanese ambush. Then I saw it. There was a large wooden spool blocking the road. I had two options run it over and go on or stop and have some men move it. Since orders were to stop for nothing I figured I’d run it over and continue leading the convoy.

As I drove the tank closer to the spool I began to feel a little nervous. Was this a Japanese trap? I guess I would find out.

About three feet away from the spool I heard an explosion right underneath the tracks of my tank. It was an ambush! The Sherman immediately halted as its tracks were disabled. Then came the unnerving scream of Japanese soldiers, most likely drunk with false courage. This would end up being a fight for survival.

As we couldn’t go on because the tank wouldn’t move, the commander ordered us out to fight before a Japanese soldier had the opportunity to open the hatch and toss down a grenade. I grabbed my .45 ACP M3 submachine gun and took of out the hatch (Military Factory). This type of fighting was the most unnerving. The first thing I saw when I jumped out of the tank was about fifteen Japanese soldiers attacking my tank crew. The commander was in hand to hand combat with one of the soldiers and he ended up winning by stabbing him in the chest with his knife. I lifted the submachine gun and began firing at a rate of 350 rounds per minute at the remaining Japanese soldiers (Military Factory). One went down, shot through the heart, another wounded in the leg.

The gunner caught a Japanese bayonet to the right of me and without hesitation I shot his attacker. Killing was no big deal when it meant survival. I no longer thought of the Japanese as humans, but mere animals. It made killing them a little easier to do. Deaths were happening so often now that it was impossible to muster much emotion (Hughes, 3).

I continued fighting. The Japanese wouldn’t surrender. Death was all over the place. I turned and shot another Japanese soldier as he ran at me with a knife. Did they ever stop coming? I spun around and noticed a Jap climbing the tank. He began opening the hatch and in his hand I noticed a grenade. If he got into the tank to its 400 hp Continental R 975-C1 engine and blew it up, that would be the end of the Sherman and there would be no way out of the mountains but to walk fifteen miles through enemy held jungle (Hickman). I needed that tank. Tracks could be put back on, but repair a blown up engine? It wouldn’t happen. I needed to stop that Jap. I fired a shot hitting him in the shoulder. He winced in pain, but continued to raise the hatch. I jumped up onto the turret and went after him pulling out my knife. He was inside already and as I jumped down into the Sherman I felt the scream of a bullet fly past my ear. This was battle.

The Jap swung at me with a fist, but I quickly dodged the blow. Then it was my turn. I punched him right in the stomach. He bent over in pain. It was just enough time to kill him with my knife.

As he died he pulled the pin of the grenade in his hand. I quickly grabbed it and through it out the hatch, but it was almost too late. It blew up five feet in the air knocking me unconscious.



I awoke in a medical tent with a strange feeling in my head. I was alive with only a large chunk of flesh missing from my arm. I could feel the wound under its bandages. I looked around the tent and noticed a few other people were there. My commander lay in the cot next to me and I noticed he had lost an arm. He was headed home. We had survived.

Today, I was lucky to get away with what I did, only a large hole in my arm. Others were not so lucky. I had made it and I hoped I could just hold on in this hellish war until I was shipped home to Idaho for a nice home cooked meal.

Works Cited

Churchill, Winston, and James C. Humes. The Wit & Wisdom of Winston Churchill: a Treasury of More than 1,000 Quotations and Anecdotes. New York: HarperCollins, 1994. Print.

Dick, Robert C. Cutthroats: the Adventures of a Sherman Tank Driver in the Pacific. New York: Presidio / Ballentine, 2006. Print.

Hickman, Kennedy. "M4 Sherman - World War II M4 Sherman Tank." Military History - Warfare through the Ages - Battles and Conflicts - Weapons of War - Military Leaders in History. Web. 10 Nov. 2010. <http://militaryhistory.about.com/od/vehiclesarmor/p/M4Sherman.htm>.

Hughes, Dean. Since You Went Away. Salt Lake City, UT: Deseret Book, 2005. Print.

Sorenson, Alfred. Personal Letter. 28 November 1942

Writer, Staff. "M3A1 (Grease Gun) - Submachine Gun - History, Specs and Pictures - Military, Security, Civilian, Law Enforcement and Sporting Small Arms, Weapons and Equipment." Military Factory - Military Weapons: Cataloging Aircraft, Tanks, Vehicles, Artillery, Ships and Guns through History. Web. 10 Nov. 2010. <http://militaryfactory.com/smallarms/detail.asp?smallarms_id=65> .

Question with Boldness

"Fix reason firmly in her seat, and call to her tribunal every fact, every opinion.  Question with boldness even the existence of a God;  because, if there be one, he must more approve of the homage of reason, than that of blindfolded fear." -Thomas Jefferson to nephew Peter Carr

This is one of the coolest quotes I have ever read.  "Question with boldness"--in this instance Jefferson applied it to knowing if there is a God.  I have thought about it many times as I go to school and read the news.  I hope that, unlike many people, I will always question everything and not just take other people's word for it.  Whenever a historic statement is made I do my best to go to the source and find out for myself what was said.  With religion I try to do the same thing and find it in the scriptures. (It makes a lot of people made when so many questions are asked, but it is essential for knowing things for yourself.) It would be great if more people in this world would "Question with boldness".  

Gunning Bedford Jr.-Signer of the Constitution

Gunning Bedford Jr., a descendant of the first settlers of Jamestown, was born in the year 1747 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and he died on March 30, 1812 in Wilmington, Delaware.  Not much is known about Bedford, but he was still a key player in the forming of the Constitution and the United States.

Bedford attended the College of New Jersey (which is now known as Princeton), graduating in 1771.  While at the college, he became acquainted with the most key figure in forming of the Constitution, James Madison.  They were classmates as well as roommates in New Jersey.

After graduating from college, Bedford studied law under Joseph Read.  In the later years of the Revolution, he started a law practice in Dover, Delaware.  He also began his political participation as a representative to the Continental Congress between the years of 1783 and 1785.  Bedford also served as the Delaware state Attorney General from 1774-1789.  As one of Delaware's great statesman, he was selected to attend the Annapolis Convention which led to the Constitutional Convention.  He, like many other delegates, did not end up making it to Annapolis.

At the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia, Bedford was a strong advocate of the small states.  He was concerned that small states, such as Delaware, would be pushed around by the larger states.  As a delegate from Delaware, he was instructed to stick with the New Jersey Plan.  He ended up helping hammer out the Great Compromise between the large state plans and the small state plans as he sat on the Committee which drafted the compromise.  William Pierce wrote that Gunning Bedford was, "Bold...[with] a very commanding and striking manner [but] warm and impetuous in his temper and precipitate in his judgement".

 Bedford was a key figure, along with John Dickinson and William Basset, in getting Delaware to be the first state to ratify the Constitution.  Without the help of Gunning Bedford Jr., the United States would not be the great nation it was formed to be.

Thomas Jefferson the Christian

Was Thomas Jefferson a deist? Many historians today would say that, yes our third President and writer of the Declaration of Independence was a deist. Perhaps one of our most well known founding fathers, Jefferson was a man of great talent ranging from the creation of new farming techniques to various inventions, and most notably, his talent as a statesman. Among this man’s talents was not that of being a deist. Through his own words, Thomas Jefferson made it quite clear that he was not a deist. By his words, one can find for themselves the falsie to the claims made by many historians concerning Jefferson’s beliefs.
First, of all what is this belief Jefferson is claimed to be a part of? What is deism and what is a deist? Well, here are the following definitions to aid in understanding this belief:

1. Deism: n. [Fr. Deisme; Sp. Deismo; It. Id.; from L. dues, [God]. The doctrine or creed of a Deist; the belief or system of religious opinions of those who acknowledge the existence of one God, but deny revelation: or deism is the belief in natural religion only, or those truths, in doctrine and practice, which man is to discover by the light of reason, independent and exclusive of any revelation from God. Hence deism implies infidelity or a disbelief in the divine origin of the scriptures.

2. Deist: n. [Fr. Deiste, It. Deista.] One who believes in the existence of a God, but denies revealed religion; one who professes no form of religion, but follows the light of nature and reason, as his only guides in doctrine and practice; a free thinker. (1)

It is not extremely hard to make Thomas Jefferson a deist, because frankly he fits parts of the above definitions. Jefferson was indeed “[o]ne who believed in the existence of a God”, “one who profess[ed] no form of religion”, and he was a “free thinker” (1). Still, Jefferson was not a deist because of the fact that while deists believed that God created the earth and left it to natural laws without any intervention, thus also disclaiming the divinity of Jesus Christ as God’s son and discrediting God’s intervention, through the Atonement of his son, Thomas Jefferson did believe in God’s intervention through Jesus Christ. Jefferson was opposed to the corruptions of the religion of his day, but he himself considered himself to be a Christian, when he said the following in a letter to Benjamin Rush:

My views of [the Christian religion] are the result of a life of inquiry and reflection, and very different from that anti-Christian system imputed to me by those who know nothing of my opinions. To the corruptions of Christianity I am indeed opposed; but not to the genuine precepts of Jesus himself. I am a Christian, in the only sense in which he wished anyone to be—sincerely attached to his doctrines in preference to all others. (2)

Jefferson indeed was a true Christian. As another proof to his belief in Christ, he took the New Testament and copied the words he believed to be the actual words of Christ. These words were copied, in his hand, into a book in several languages to allow Jefferson the fullest understanding of Christ’s words as he could possibly find. In Jefferson’s mind he held the “precepts of Jesus, as delivered by himself, to be the most pure, benevolent, and sublime which have ever been preached to man.” (3) Those words from Jefferson don’t appear to be congruent to a man who’s belief held that God did not intervene in the lives of man.

Jefferson did not seem to be a conforming Christian by historians because he simply felt the doctrines of Christ were corrupted by man. Our third president, however, felt and firmly believed that there would be a restoration of true Christianity. He once said in a letter to Dr. Benjamin Waterhouse that he was happy “in the prospect of a restoration of primitive Christianity.” (4) He noted of both a restoring of truth and the corruptness of the present religions, in his time, when he said:

If freedom of religion guaranteed to us by law in theory can ever rise in practice under the overbearing inquisition of public opinion, truth will prevail over fanaticism, and the genuine doctrines of Jesus, so long perverted by his pseudo-priests, will again be restored to their original purity. This reformation will advance with the other improvements of the human mind, but too late for me to witness it. (5)

Jefferson, if a deist, would never have even wanted a reformation or restoration of true Christianity. The fact that he does, easily denounces any claim to him holding any beliefs others than that of a Christian.

As is evident, Jefferson was no deist; neither was he anything other that a Christian. He may well have been more of a Christian than the average church-goer in his day. Jefferson is easily dismissed as being a deist through his own words and also through his belief in a restoration of true Christianity.


References


1. Webster, Noah. First Edition of an American Dictionary of the English Language (1828). San Francisco: Foundation for American Christian Education, 1967.


2. Thomas Jefferson to Dr. Benjamin Rush (21 Apr. 1803), Bergh 10:379-80.


3. Thomas Jefferson to Jared Sparks (4 Nov. 1820), Bergh 15: 288.


4. Thomas Jefferson to Dr. Benjamin Waterhouse (19 July 1822), Bergh 15:391


5. Thomas Jefferson to Jared Sparks (4 Nov. 1820), Bergh 15: 288

The Real Thomas Jefferson (American Classic Series)


George Washington's Sacred Fire

Words From a Former Slave

I recently came across some interesting words from Frederick Douglas, a former slave and later the first African-American to hold a position in the white house, that I found very interesting.  You would think, after listening to our president and any liberal for that matter, that the Constitution made it harder to end slavery.  However, the following words from a famous African-American prove otherwise:

"[T]he Constitution is a glorious liberty document.  Read its preamble; consider its purposes.  Is slavery amoung them?  Is it a gateway?  Or is it in the temple?  It is neither.... [I]f the Constitution were intended to be, by its framers and adopters, a slaveholding instrument, why neither slavery, slaveholder, nor slave can anywhere be found in it? ... Now, take the Constitution according to its plain reading and I defy the presentation of a single pro-slavery clause in it.  On the other hand, it will be found to contain principles and purposes entirely hostile to the existence of slavery." -Rev. Frederick Douglass, Setting the Record Straight: American History in Black & White

Were are the people like this today? The typical accusation that a conservitive hates President Obama because he is black doesn't apply to this conservative.  I submit that I would vote for any man, black, white, red, green, indigo (actually I wouldn't vote for smurfs), who has the same views as Rev. Fredrick Douglas.  To bad all we have left of many great men are there words and wisdom.

8/28 vs. 10/2

Pictures seem to tell it all.

10/2

8/28

George Read-Signer of the Constitution

"[H]is legal abilities are said to be very great, but powers of Oratory are fatiguing and tiresome to the last degree." -William Pierce


George Read was born September 18, 1733 in North East, Maryland and he died September 21, 1798 in New Castle, Delaware.  Read was the son of a wealthy landowner who immigrated from Dublin, Ireland.

George Read studied law under John Moland of Philadelphia before marrying Gertrude (Ross) Till, the daughter of George Ross, a signer of the Declaration of Independence.  Read established a law practice in New Castle, Delaware in 1754.  Throughout the colonies he was known as a very good and honest lawyer. 

Read served as Attorney General between 1763 and 1774, by appointment of the Royal Governor of Delaware.  Concerning the Stamp Act Read said, "the colonists will entertain an opinion that they are to become the slaves [of Great Britain and will desire] to live as independently of the mother country as possible."  As a colonist, George Read was very wary of extremism.  On the issue of independence he first disagreed, believing that reconciliation between the mother country was still possible.  By the time the Declaration of Independence was approved on July 4, 1776, however, he approved wholeheartedly with the idea of independence as he signed the Declaration.

Read presided over his states Constitutional Convention in 1776.  He then became the Speaker of the Legislative Council of Delaware which made him the assistant governor.  Between 1777 and 1778, Read served as the President (Governor) of Delaware, after a close escape from the hands of the British in 1777.  He was back in the Legislative Council of Delaware just in time to authorize the ratification of the Articles of Confederation.

At the Constitutional Convention of 1787, George Read served with four other delegates from his small state.  In Philadelphia, Read immediately began a push for a new national government, because as he put it, "to amend the Articles was simply putting old cloth on a new garment."  George Read felt that a national government was needed so badly that he proposed that all the states be abolished and put under a national government.  With no support for that idea, Read became an adamant defender of the rights of the small states.  He did not want his state to be pushed around by states much larger than his.  He believed larger states would "probably combine to swallow up the smaller ones by addition, division or impoverishment."  As a result, George Read was a firm supporter of the New Jersey Plan and he threatened to lead Delaware out of the Convention if the small states didn't receive equal representation.

George Read was a lawyer who, at the Constitutional Convention, made certain that small states, like his, would not be pushed aside by larger ones. 

Constitution Day

"On every question of construction, [let us] carry ourselves back to the time when the Constitution was adopted, recollect the spirit manifested in the debates, and instead of trying what meaning may be squeezed out of the text, or invented against it, conform to the probable one in which it was passed." -Thomas Jefferson

The Constitution of the United States is the longest lasting constitution in world history. Countries, like France, have had many constitutions in the same time that we have had ours.  Why?  The U. S. Constitution is the only document of its kind which establishes liberties and a republican government with balance and order.  No other country has ever been as prosperous and well of than the United States.  America is the example, that until recent years, has been viewed by countries around the world as a "city on a hill".  What has happened to America? Do we know what the Constitution stands for?  I would submit the Americans don't know this law which governs our land.  Knowing the principles of republican government found in the constitution is essential for a free people.  I don't know if Americans know there Constitution.  They must not, because if they did they would not vote for the leaders the way they do.  Here is a video showing the backstabbing of our Constitution by our leaders:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=36PFlvh97Lc

"[E]very citizen of a republic. . . .must watch for the state as if its liberties depended upon his vigilance alone."  -Benjamin Rush

"[P]ublic character... is no evidence of true greatness, for a public character is often an artificial one." -M. L. Weems, The Life of George Washington, 1800

Gouverneur Morris- Writer and Signer of the Constitution

"In adopting a republican form of government, I not only took it as a man does his wife, for better for worse, but what few men do with their wives, I took it knowing all its bad qualities."

Those words were penned by the main author of the Constitution, Gouverneur Morris.  He was born January 31, 1752 in Morrisania, New York and he died November 6, 1816 in the same place.

Gouverneur Morris was a member of the prominent, even aristocratic, Morris family of New York.  Morris was the only son of his father's second marriage.  He enrolled at King's College (present Columbia University) at the age of twelve.  He graduated from King's College in 1768 after which he went on to study law under William Smith.  Because of Smith, Morris was introduced to John Jay and Alexander Hamilton who became his friends in the Patriot cause. 

Gouverneur Morris was elected to the New York Provincial Congress in 1775.  He was known for his bluntness and sarcasm in dealing with other legislators.  As the Revolutionary War began, Morris joined the militia and started two complete regiments.  He didn't have to serve because of his legislative duties and a disability he had, but he felt it was his duty to serve in the cause for independence.  In 1777 he served as a member of the New York Committee of Safety.  He also served in Continental Congress and, after visiting Valley Forge, he became the Continental Army's spokesperson in congress.  In 1779, Morris moved to Pennsylvania after he felt he was being treated poorly by New York.  He worked in Pennsylvania as a lawyer and merchant until being called to public service once again.  He worked as a financial assistant to Robert Morris (no relation) and in 1782 he developed the idea of decimal coinage and he invented the term "cent".

It came as a great surprise to Gouverneur Morris when Pennsylvania asked him to be a delegate to the Constitutional Convention.  He considered himself "in some degree as a representative of the whole human race". He had a completely different demeanor at the convention as he helped smooth over issues that would have divided delegates.  Like Thomas Jefferson was with the Declaration of Independence so was Gouverneur Morris with the Constitution.  Morris drafted almost the whole Constitution and the words "We the People of the United States, in order to form a more perfect Union" were his.  Morris said that "in every society the members have a right to the utmost liberty that can be enjoyed consistent with the general safety".  Morris defended:  freedom of religion,  opposed slavery, held that the right of property was a foundation for society, and agreed with the idea of government having power only by the consent of the governed.  William Pierce wrote the following about Gouverneur Morris:

"One of the geniuses in whom every species of talents combine...No man has more wit... than Mr. Morris" 

Gouverneur Morris was a very important man in forming our country.  Morris, as a founder, contributed greatly to the Constitutional Convention as he was the main draftsman of the Constitution of the United States.

James Wilson-Signer of the Constitution

Considered to be the first Constitutional Lawyer, James Wilson was born September 14, 1742 in Carskerdo, Scotland and he died August 21, 1798 in Edenton, North Carolina.  Wilson was a Scottish Immigrant who came to America in 1765.

James Wilson studied law under John Dickinson, a fellow signer of the Constitution, and he started a law practice in Reading, Pennsylvania.  He was the Chairman of the Carlisle Committee of Correspondence, a pro-patriot organization, in 1774.  Wilson wrote Considerations on the Nature and the Extent of the Legislative Authority of the British Parliament. This work of his gained him a reputation as a great patriot leader.  He served in Continental Congress between 1774 and 1777.  James Wilson also signed the Declaration of Independence in 1776.  He was appointed Colonel in the Cumberland County Associators, but he never saw military action.  After a controversy in which he voted against having a unicameral legislature, which he believed would cause mob rule, he moved to Maryland and lived there from 1777-1778.  When he returned to Pennsylvania in 1779, he and a few other state legislatures were attacked by a mob at his home.  In this attack casualties occurred on both sides and Wilson's home was aptly named "Fort Wilson".  Wilson became the Advocate General in America for France and he served from 1779-1783. As General, he advised France on American Law among other things dealing with French/American relations.  At the same time, he served as the Director of the Bank of North America, which had recently been created by Robert Morris.  Wilson was again elected as a delegate to the Continental Congress in 1782 as well as between 1785 and 1787.

James Wilson, as a delegate from Pennsylvania, was a valuable asset to the Constitutional Convention.  William Pierce wrote:

"Mr. Wilson ranks among the foremost in legal and political knowledge.  He has joined to a fine genius all that can set him off and show him to advantage.  He is well acquainted with man, and understands all the passions that influence him...No man is more clear, copious, and comprehensive than Mr. Wilson."

Wilson, a very accomplished lawyer, argued for representation based on a free population.  He also worked with James Madison in promoting the ideal of Popular Sovereignty.  Wilson opposed those delegates at the convention who sought for special privileges given to the rich and well born.  He considered the idea of election by the people as "not only the cornerstone, but the foundation of the fabric".  In speaking of his fellow delegates and himself he wrote:

"We kept steadily in our View that which appears to us the greatest Interest of every true American, the consolidation of our Union . . . . And thus the Constitution which we now present is the result of a Spirit of Amity, and of that mutual Deference and Concession which the Peculiarity of our political Situation rendered indispensible."

James Wilson was indeed a great founder and through his skills as a legislator and lawyer he was a major part in the forming of the Greatest Law of Our Country, The Constitution.

Jared Ingersoll-Signer of the Constitution

Born October 27, 1749 in New Haven, Connecticut and dieing October 13, 1822 in Philadelphia, Jared Ingersoll was one of Americas patriots.  He had a loyalist father who was a British official.  At one point his father was even tarred and feather by patriots for his loyalty to the crown.  Ingersoll did not, however, share his fathers beliefs.

Ingersoll graduated from Yale College in 1766.  He then went on to study law and later he became a lawyer in 1773.  Because of his father and his desire to please him, Ingersoll left the colonies to London between 1773 and 1776.  After renouncing his families political views, Ingersoll returned to Philadelphia where he started a respectable law practice in 1778.  Ingersoll served in the Continental Congress between 1780 and 1781.

At the Constitutional Convention Ingersoll represented Pennsylvania with seven other delegates.  He didn't approve of the weakness of the Articles of Confederation and so he pushed for a reform of those articles.  After a while, Ingersoll and many others realized the need for a completely new system of federal government.  Ingersoll, although being a prominent attorney, seldom participated in debate at the Constitutional Convention.  However, he was in attendance to all meetings.  Jared Ingersoll is one of those founders who little is know about, but he definatly was part of the forming of our great nation.

AP US Government Assignment

Best System-Locke


John Locke’s form of government would both be legitimate as well as beneficial to the masses through its use of a select group of representatives. Much like how the United States government in the late seventeen-hundreds functioned, Locke proposed that an elite class would represent the masses in their best interests. This, in my opinion, was a very good system at the time that it was used. By having the educated represent the people as a whole, Locke’s form of government, would in perfection, provide for the voice of the people. Those, in any society, who don’t know about the issues facing them, are more likely to make poor decisions and in the early days of America, where this type of representation took place, not everyone had the chance at an education. Only those individuals who had wealth could afford to learn about issues and rules dealing with governments. Today Locke’s ideas could work effectively because we would have leaders who understand government rather than those who have no clue as to how our country should work. John Locke’s from of government, a true republic, would be the best of the four political theories we have discussed in class based on my current knowledge.


Locke vs. Rousseau

John Locke, an English enlightenment figure, and Jean Jacques Rousseau, a French philosopher, have ideas that have similarities as well as differences. With Locke and Rousseau the underlying ideas for their forms of government are similar in the fact that the power is meant to go to the people. However, in a republic, like with Locke, the people vote for others to represent them while with Rousseau’s true democracy the people vote on every issue and are in essence part of legislature. With Locke, government ideally runs better because of the fact that it doesn’t become a popularity contest on every issue. Also because everyone can vote on every issue, a pure democracy has no stability as it is more a government of whim than principals. In a pure democracy, government is not stable and can change depending on immediate feelings rather than previously established laws. In contrast of a republic a democracy turns political decisions into more of an American Idol contest. Locke and Rousseau both had political ideas that reflected a need for the people to be in charge, but they differ in their methods.

The Blaze

Wow, this is cool.  If something doesn't work fix it yourself.  That's what Glenn Beck decided to do about the news two months ago.  He hired journalists and writers and the site is up and running. Here is the link: http://www.theblaze.com/

Thomas FitzSimons-Signer of the Constitution

Born sometime during 1741 in Ireland and dying August 26, 1811 in Phillidelphia Thomas FitzSimons, an Irish Catholic, was a delegate from the colony of Pennsylvania.  He immigrated in the mid-1750's and in 1763 he went into business with his new brother-in-law, George Meade (Grandfather of the Civil War general).

As a business man, FitzSimons began to dislike the British oppression after the Stamp Act was implemented.  In 1771 he became the leader of a political fraternity known as the Friendly Sons of Saint Patrick.  FitzSimons was part of the Revolutionary War as he formed and led a company in the Pennsylvania 3rd Battalion.  His company fought in the battle for New York, protected the coast of New Jersey, and they were with Washington when Princeton was taken back from the redcoats.  After retiring from the Army, he served on a Pennsylvanian board that oversaw the Pennsylvania Navy.  FitzSimons then served as the director of the Bank of North America from its beginning, 1781, until 1803.  He attended Continental Congress in 1782.

At the Constitutional Convention in 1787, he often spoke on the issues of commerce and finance and how they pertained to government.  FitzSimons viewed government as a logical extension of the relationship that existed among families, ethnic communities, and business groups.  He led the fight in Pennsylvania for the ratifying of the Constitution.  As one of the signers, Thomas FitzSimons as an Irish Immigrant brought his business and military knowlege to the table in the forming of our great nation.

Restoring Honor Rally

Today at the steps of the Lincoln Memorial, Glenn Beck held an event that I would really have loved to be at.  They had a rally were all of the proceeds, 5.5 million dollars, went to the Special Operations Warrior fund.  There were an estimated 300,000 people there.  I think it was really cool the way they did it.  It was not political, but there were religious leaders, prayers, and songs.  Martin Luther King Jr.'s niece, Alveda King, was in attendance as well as Sarah Palin. The message was: turn to God and turn back to America's founding principles.  What a great message for our country today.  I think Glenn Beck is really on the right track about our countries need for God.  It sounds like the event was absolutely amazing. Too bad it was so far away and held in a place were there were so many people.

George Clymer-Signer of the Constitution

George Clymer was born on March 16, 1739 in Philadelphia and he died January 23, 1813.  Clymer was orphaned shortly after his birth.  As such he was adopted by his uncle, William Coleman, who was a wealthy merchant and a friend of Benjamin Franklin.  He worked for his uncle as a clerk and he eventually made his way up to being his uncle's partner in the merchant firm.

In 1765 Clymer married Elizabeth Meredith, a member of a very prominent family.  Through his marriage George Clymer was able to met George Washington and other prominent Patriots.  In 1773 he led a committee of Pennsylvanians that forced the resignations of Parliament's appointed Tea Act enforcers.  He served as the Continental Congress' Treasurer from 1775 to 1776.  Clymer then became a representative in the Continental Congress for Pennsylvania were he served from 1776 to 1777 and from 1780 to 1782.  He remained with Robert Morris and George Walton in Philadelphia to run congressional affairs even after the British began to occupy the city.  Clymer worked with Morris in the organization of resupplying General Washington's Continental troops. 

At the Constitutional Convention, George Clymer was a soft-spoken man who agreed with the Federalists that a strong national government needed to be created.  His worked mainly on committee's that figured out military, commercial, and financial powers given to the new government.  George Clymer is not a founder that stands out for his bold speach or military service, but he served his own great purpose in the forming of our Constitution.

What about the Recession?

Has anyone noticed that there seems to be a lot more news stories about: immigration, gay-rights, and a mosque at Ground Zero than our steadily sinking ship, the economy?  To me it seems almost like America's attention has turned to social issues which portray conservatives as hateful, racist bigots and our attention has left our economic situation.  (By the way congress is still creating new laws that put our country into greater dept.)  I would think the economy would be the most pressing issue seeing as we still haven't recovered from this recession.  Does it seem like our attention is being diverted? To me it does.

Robert Morris-Signer of the Constitution

"The United States may command everything I have, except my integrity [i.e., commercial credit], and the loss of that would effectually disable me from serving them more."

Those words came from Robert Morris of Pennsylvania, the man who has become known to as the "financier of the Revolution".  Morris was born on January 31, 1734 in Liverpool, England and he died on May 8, 1806 in Philadelphia.

Robert Morris immigrated to Maryland in 1747 were he later worked in the tobacco export business.  He moved to Philadelphia and partnered with Charles Willing (and yes, Charles was willing) in a business firm that became one of America's leading importing/exporting businesses.  Because of this, Morris was quite well of in matters of money.  Robert Morris held a position on a local committee of businessmen who opposed the Stamp Act.

In the Pennsylvanian congress, Morris sat on the Committee of Correspondence and the Council of Safety, which organized the arming of the state.  He served in Continental Congress from 1775 through 1778.  In congress he served on the Secret Committee for Obtaining Munitions.  Most influentially, however, was his role on the Finance Committee were he secured much needed loans from wealthy businessmen for the cause of the United States.  Morris almost single handedly obtained provisions and supplies for the Continental Army, which was in dire need of anything they could get.  He also contributed much of his own wealth to the cause of Independence.  Robert Morris was one of two people to have signed The Declaration of Independence, The Articles of Confederation, and the Constitution (Roger Sherman was the other).

At the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia, Robert Morris didn't contribute much in terms of open debate in front of the congress.  In fact he only spoke once at the convention.  Instead, Morris would have discussions with some of his greatest friends: Alexander Hamilton, George Washington, and Gouverneur Morris.  Robert Morris is known, however, to have nominated George Washington as the President of the Convention in Philadelphia, in Benjamin Franklin's absence.  Morris, the owner of perhaps the finest three-story mansion in Philadelphia, persuaded George Washington to reside in his home during his time as President of the Congress. William Pierce wrote that, "Robert Morris is a merchant of great eminence and wealth, an able financier, and a worthy patriot.  He has an understanding equal to any public object, and possesses an energy of mind that few men can boast of."  Without Robert Morris, America would not have had the money and to secure such a supreme law as our great Constitution.

Thomas Mifflin-Signer of the Constitution

"There can be no Right to Power, except what is either founded upon, or speedily obtains the hearty Consent of the Body of the People."

The above words were written by Thomas Mifflin as a student.  Mifflin was a delegate from Pennsylvania in the Constitutional Convention.  He was born January 10, 1744 in Philadelphia; he died January 20, 1800 in Lancaster, Pennsylvania.

Thomas Mifflin was born as a fourth generation Pennsylvania Quaker.  He graduated from the College of Philadelphia in 1760.  Mifflin apprenticed as a merchant and later started a business of imports and exports with a younger brother.  In 1768 Mifflin joined the American Philosophical Society.  He also was a delegate in Pennsylvania's colonial legislature and he was especially concerned with Parliament's taxation policies.

In 1774 he was elected to the first Continental Congress in Philadelphia.  His second term was cut short, however, when he was commissioned as the senior major in Philadelphia's Third Battalion.  Because of this he was kicked out of his Quaker church.  Mifflin went on to serve as one of Washington's aides in the Continental Army.  In 1775 he was appointed to be Quartermaster General of the Continental Army were he served for quite some time getting supplies and figuring out logistics for General Washington.  After the victories at Trenton and Princeton he was promoted as Major General.

He went back to the Continental Congress and served as its president in 1780.  When time came for the Constitutional Convention, Thomas Mifflin was prepared for his job as delegate.  From his military experience he knew that a country needed to have a strong government in order to survive.  However, at the convention he pushed for a balance between the state and federal government.  When he went back to convince his state to ratify the Constitution he was a great influence.  A man who served as a soldier and as a statesman, Thomas Mufflin was a key figure in the forming of America.  

Benjamin Franklin-Signer of the Constitution

"Only a virtuous people are capable of freedom.  As nations become corrupt and vicious, they have more need of masters."

These are just a few short words of wisdom from Benjamin Franklin, a man who every American should know about because of his great efforts in the creation of the United States.  (Yes, you should know more about him than the fact that he is on the hundred dollar bill.)

Benjamin Franklin was a man who was known throughout the United States and Europe as being a writer, scientist, philosopher, statesman, and newspaper publisher.  He was born on January 17, 1706 in Boston, Massachusetts and he died April 17, 1790 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

Franklin was the tenth son of a soap and candle maker.  He self-taught himself in about everything he knew.  He began as a printer who started publishing the New England Courant, one of the colonies four major papers.  Franklin moved to Philadelphia, after a falling out with one of his brothers, were he served in Pennsylvania's legislature from 1736 to 1764.  During that time he began publishing the Pennsylvania Gazette and, one of the best selling publications of its time, Poor Richard's Almanac.  Through his publications he was able to become quite a philanthropist who contributed to many causes such as public education, the building of libraries, and the building of street lamps.  Franklin also contributed a great deal to the starting of the American Philosophical Society, of which many founders like Washington, Jefferson, and Adams were members. Ben Franklin served in London as an agent in representing Pennsylvania and he later represented Georgia, New Jersey, and Massachusetts.

At the start of the Revolutionary War, Benjamin Franklin helped develop the Declaration of Independence as he served on the committee to draft it.  He also signed the Declaration of Independence and said to his fellow signers, "Gentlemen, we must now all hang together, or we shall most assuredly all hang separately." 

One of the most important roles Franklin played was during the war as an ambassador to France.  In France he became well respected and well liked, which gave him a lot of sway with the French government.  Because of Franklin, France committed loans, supplies, and some of their military to the Patriots efforts in the United States.  At the end of the war, Franklin was there in Paris with John Adams and John Jay to negotiate the Treaty of Paris.

At the Constitutional Convention, Benjamin Franklin was the oldest and perhaps wisest member at the age of eighty-one.  He was a delegate from Pennsylvania along with seven others.  Concerning Dr. Franklin's character William Pierce classified him as "the greatest philosopher of the present age.  He is [eighty-one] years old, and possesses an activity of mind equal to a youth of twenty-five."  Franklin was instrumental in helping mash out compromises, but none of his major ideas such as: an executive board rather than a president, a single-chambered legislature, and public service without pay were implemented into the Constitution.  Concerning compromises, Franklin was most influential in dealing with the compromise on representation.  He used his prestige, humor, and diplomatic powers to soothe disputes and encourage compromise.  Relating to the Virginia/New Jersey plan compromise Franklin said, "If a property representation takes place, the small states contend their liberties will be in danger. If an equality of votes takes place, the large states say their money will be in danger. When a broad table is to be made, and the planks do not fit, the artist takes a little from both, and makes a good joint."  As a wise old statesman, among other things, Benjamin Franklin was able to contribute great wisdom and knowledge to the Constitutional Convention.  Franklin exemplified a self-made man as he rose to become one of America's greatest men.

Jonathan Dayton-Signer of the Constitution

Jonathan Dayton was born October 16, 1790 and he died October 1824 in Elizabethtown, New Jersey.  As a young school boy Dayton attended Reeves School, taught by prominent educator Tapping Reeves, with Alexander Hamilton and Aaron Burr.  He went on to attend the College of New Jersey (Princeton University today) were he left early to fight in the Revolutionary War.

Jonathan Dayton joined the 3rd New Jersey Regiment under his father at the age of fifteen.  He was involved in the fighting that took place against the British in Canada during 1776.  He was at Valley Forge the winter the Continental Army stayed there.  He also achieved the rank of captain at the age of nineteen.  At Valley Forge he was on of the officers trained by Friedrick Von Steuben.  Later on in the war he and his uncle were captured in New Jersey by Loyalists who detained them in New York all winter before releasing them.  After the war he studied law before being asked as a delegate to the Continental Congress.

New Jersey asked Jonathan Dayton's father, Elias Dayton, to be a delegate for their state, but he declined the position to his younger (27) son Jonathan Dayton.  As a delegate from New Jersey, Dayton kept a fairly low profile because of his age.  However, he contributed as being part of the group in Philadelphia who hammered out the New Jersey and Virginia plans into what we have as our congress today.  Of Dayton, William Pierce wrote, "there is an impetuosity in his temper that is injurious to him; but there is an honest rectitude about him that makes him a valuable Member of Society."  Jonathan Dayton, young as he was, was one of the great founders of our country who got together in Philadelphia and created what America has called her greatest law for over two-hundred twenty years.

Exactly Right!

William Paterson-Signer of the Constitution

William Paterson was born in Ireland on December 24, 1745 and he died September 9, 1806.  After Immigrating from Ireland, Paterson attended the College of New Jersey (Princeton University today) and he graduated in 1763.  He then went on to study law under future signer of the Declaration of Independence, Richard Stockton.  He ran a law practice until the Revolutionary War broke out and he became Secretary of the New Jersey Provincial Congress.  Paterson also received a commission to his states militia, but he never saw active duty.  In 1776 he became New Jersey's Attorney General.

At the Constitutional Convention, William Paterson was a huge advocate in defending states rights.  He also is known as the Father of the New Jersey Plan because of his work for equal representation.  The New Jersey Plan called for each state to have an equal amount of representatives in the legislature.  The Virginia Plan, however, contradicted this as it called for a legislature based on population alone.  Today we see the compromise of these two plans in our Constitution as a bicameral legislature with the House of Representatives (Virginia Plan) and the Senate (New Jersey Plan).  William Paterson was instrumental in getting states equal representation in at least one venue of legislature.  William Pierce said the following of William Paterson:

"[He was] one of those kind of Men whose powers break in upon you, and create wonder and astonishment. He is a man of great modesty whose looks bespeak talent of no great extent, but he is a Classic and a Lawyer, and an Orator-and of a disposition so favorable to his advancement that everyone seemed ready to exalt him with their praises."

David Brearley-Signer of the Constitution

David Brearley was one of the four delegates to the Constitutional Convention from New Jersey.  Brearley was born June 11, 1745 in Spring Grove, New Jersey and he left this earth on August 16, 1790 at Trenton.

David Brearley attended what is now Princeton University, but he never finished there.  He, however, took up the study of law and, after passing the bar exam, started a law practice near Trenton.  During the Revolutionary War he served in both the militia and the Continental Army.  In the New Jersey militia he served as the second in command in Colonel Phillip Van Cortland's regiment.  Also while serving in the New Jersey militia, Brearley and his regiment were involved in the battle for New York specifically on Manhattan Island.  (The British Regulars defeated the patriots in New York.)  Brearley was then commissioned to the Continental Army as a Lieutenant Colonel.  In 1779 New Jersey appointed him as Chief Justice, succeeding Robert Morris.

As part of the Constitutional Convention, David Brearley helped work on the judicial provisions found today.  He sought for a strong government that would recognize and protect states rights under the law, so it is no wonder he attended the Constitutional Convention.  As a delegate he helped figure out the many compromises that led to our Constitution.  David Brearley was an advocate for individual rights, very knowledgeable concerning law, and one of our great founders who orchestrated our greatest law, the Constitution.

William Livingston-Signer of the Constitution

William Livingston was born on November 30, 1723 in Albany, New York and he died July 25, 1790 in Elizabethtown, New Jersey.  He came from a family of very wealthy merchants who owned a large estate along the Hudson River.  William Livingston, however, decided to not follow in his family's footsteps. He went to Yale and earned a degree in what we would today call political science. He then went on to become a lawyer and he started his own law practice in New York City.  At about the same time he started the Independent Reflector, a newspaper which was very influential in political, state, and national subjects.  William Livingston was a charter member of the American Philosophical Society.   He retired from the legal and political scene for a while to become a gentleman farmer before being pushed back in because of the Revolutionary War.

In 1774 William Livingston went to the Continental Congress as a delegate.  Later, in 1775, he joined the New Jersey militia as a Brigadier General.  His role in the militia was mainly that of organizing and training militia members in defence.  In 1776 he became New Jersey's first elected governor.  While the Articles of Confederation were in place, William Livingston spoke against their weakness in sustaining a strong country.

It is no surprise that when the Constitutional Convention came around that William Livingston led his state as one of four delegates.  At the convention, Livingston stood strongly for the New Jersey plan which advocated a legislature where each state had equal representation (senate).  When the Great Compromise rolled into place, William Livingston gladly agreed with the formation of the Senate (for equal representation) and the House of Representatives (for representation based on population).  William Livingston was one of the many founders who were opposed to the institution of slavery, but in order to get the southern states to join the Union he and many others did not immediately abolish it.  Livingston with others made it possible in the Constitution to eventually get rid of slavery.  With the 3/5 compromise, the southern states were not able to have an extreme amount of congressmen with the help of their large slave population. Thus, slavery could eventually be changed and the southern states would not have an overriding vote on the matter.  The issue of slavery was eventually resolved, but only after the civil war.  William Livingston said this about the institution of slavery:

"I hope we shall at last, and if it so please God I hope it may be during my life time, see this cursed thing [slavery] taken out. . . . For my part, whether in a public station or a private capacity, I shall always be prompt to contribute my assistance towards effecting so desirable an event."

William Livingston is a great example of the goodness of the men who founded are country.  His experience and political knowledge were great contributions to the forming of the Constitution.

Have Gratitude Enough to Stand for Freedom

I think the main problem facing Americans today is that we haven't been grateful for our blessings and freedoms in this great country.  We have been so blessed that we don't even realize when freedom and liberty are taken away in different aspects of our lives.  My uncle has in the past year been on work trips to Morocco and India and he told me that as he saw their condition and then came back home he felt really blessed.  We talked about how even the poorest person in America has a roof over their head.  What country does the world turn to for refuge, ours, the United States of America.  As Americans we need to realize our blessings in order to notice when are liberties and rights are slowly being taken away.  George Washington wrote the following:

"I am much concern'd, that your Honour should seem to charge me with ingratitude for your generous, and my undeserving favours; for I assure you, Hon'ble Sir, nothing is a greater stranger to my Breast, or a Sin that my Soul abhors, than that black and detestable one Ingratitude."

Don't we all wish we could be like George Washington in our desire to avoid ingratitude.  American, have enough gratitude for those that have gone before to fight for what they stood for, Freedom.

Alexander Hamilton-Signer of the Constitution

"If angels were to govern men, neither external nor internal controls on government would be necessary.  In framing a government which is to be administered by men over men, the great difficulty lies in this: you must first enable the government to control the governed; and in the next place oblige it to control itself."  -The Federalist, by Alexander Hamilton, John Jay, and James Madison

The lone delegate from New York, Alexander Hamilton was extremely instrumental in forming the Constitution.  Hamilton was born on January 11, 1757 on the island of Nevis in the British West Indies and he died July 12, 1804 in New York City after being shot in a duel with Aaron Burr.

Alexander Hamilton was born to unmarried parents and his mom died when he was eleven years old.  From then on he had to look our for himself.  He finally made it off the British West Indies at the age of fourteen when his employer, a merchant, recognized his intelligence and sent him to New York City for education.  While in New York and attending school he stayed for a year with William Livingston (a future Signer of the Constitution).  Hamilton never did graduate from college.  In 1775, however, he joined the militia.  By 1776 he was given a Captain's commission and he was placed in charge of an artillery group on Manhattan Island.  Because New York City was England's next target, Hamilton got to work with Henry Knox and Nathaniel Greene, two of General Washington's greatest military leaders.  He reported to Knox for quite some time.  Knox, seeing the military skill of Alexander Hamilton, suggested him as an aid to General Washington.  Through the war Hamilton served very closely with General George Washington.  Washington and Hamilton eventually had a feud from which Hamilton resigned.  Their feud was later overcome and Hamilton again worked against the British.  At the battle of Yorktown Alexander Hamilton led his own battalion against the British fortifications.  After the war he took up the study of law and in a few short months was admitted to the bar.

As a delegate at the Constitutional Convention Alexander Hamilton was instrumental.  Just previous to the Constitutional Convention Hamilton, along with James Madison, was the guiding leader of the Annapolis Convention.  In the Constitutional Convention, Hamilton did a great deal in pushing for a strong national union, one that would be able to fight of opposing countries.  Along with John Jay and James Madison, Alexander Hamilton wrote The Federalist to help persuade the states to ratify the newly formed Constitution.  William Pierce wrote the following about Alexander Hamilton:

"Colo. Hamilton requires time to think; he enquires into every part of his subject with the searching of philosophy, and when he comes forward he comes highly charged with interesting matter; there is no skimming over the surfaces of a subject with him; he must sink to the bottom to see what foundation it rests on."

Even though Hamilton may have never gotten along with one of our greatest presidents, Thomas Jefferson, he was an essential founder in the forming and convincing of the states of the greatness of our Constitution.