Australia
"I sometimes think that America would be better off scrapping all the laws and returning to simply the Constitution and Bill of Rights. I've heard that suggestion all my life. It's surprising how I return to ponder that concept late in my life."
The founders of the American Constitution understood the brutality of law. That's why the first laws they created gave the citizens of the new country rights above all laws. That's why the citizens of the new country -- then only really a brave dream -- were placed in the position of being the most important part of the society.
These new citizens wouldn't find out for years that they even had those rights. First they had to pass through the fires of an 8-year struggle to give those brave ideas a chance. And before those rights could become a light to the world, another war would begin only a few years later that would destroy the new capitol.
Those who would abuse the law to prey on ordinary people were not easily persuaded to let such ideals have a trial, even in a small colony far away from Europe.
Today, that once-fragile colony has become a light to the world. A thousand years from now, when history speaks of the United States, it will be legendary. Like ancient Greece, the ideals of that Constitution will inspire men the rest of time.
There have been so many tests of those concepts. No nation is immune to the diseases of brutality, prejudice, and the blind rage of fear. Literally, millions have died to offer those ideals to the world; and more are dying still, every day.
When I was little, I was told like most Americans that we did not know what we had in our country; that we would have to travel to understand. Like most young people, I didn't understand and just filed the words away.
I have lived outside my country for about 10 years of my life, usually just roaming from one country to the other, not really seeing the lives around me. What has always struck me is how often someone would say that they wanted to live in America. Their eyes would light up; they'd smile at the thought; and they'd ask me why I would ever want to live anywhere else.
For most of my life, I really didn't understand.
It took coming to Australia to learn the value of concepts like equal protection under the law; the right to peace in one's own home; and the right to be treated equally under the law. Here, I learned why those dusty old ideals are so important. Because here, they don't exist.
I have to admit that I expected so much more from Australia.
The founders of the American Constitution understood the brutality of law. That's why the first laws they created gave the citizens of the new country rights above all laws. That's why the citizens of the new country -- then only really a brave dream -- were placed in the position of being the most important part of the society.
These new citizens wouldn't find out for years that they even had those rights. First they had to pass through the fires of an 8-year struggle to give those brave ideas a chance. And before those rights could become a light to the world, another war would begin only a few years later that would destroy the new capitol.
Those who would abuse the law to prey on ordinary people were not easily persuaded to let such ideals have a trial, even in a small colony far away from Europe.
Today, that once-fragile colony has become a light to the world. A thousand years from now, when history speaks of the United States, it will be legendary. Like ancient Greece, the ideals of that Constitution will inspire men the rest of time.
There have been so many tests of those concepts. No nation is immune to the diseases of brutality, prejudice, and the blind rage of fear. Literally, millions have died to offer those ideals to the world; and more are dying still, every day.
When I was little, I was told like most Americans that we did not know what we had in our country; that we would have to travel to understand. Like most young people, I didn't understand and just filed the words away.
I have lived outside my country for about 10 years of my life, usually just roaming from one country to the other, not really seeing the lives around me. What has always struck me is how often someone would say that they wanted to live in America. Their eyes would light up; they'd smile at the thought; and they'd ask me why I would ever want to live anywhere else.
For most of my life, I really didn't understand.
It took coming to Australia to learn the value of concepts like equal protection under the law; the right to peace in one's own home; and the right to be treated equally under the law. Here, I learned why those dusty old ideals are so important. Because here, they don't exist.
I have to admit that I expected so much more from Australia.
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5:38 PM
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