Those Who Make Peaceful Divorce Impossible Will Make Domestic Violence Inevitable

I ask forgiveness from any reader who recalls JFK’s famous 1962 quote, but paraphrasing seemed apropos after comments on last month’s column addressing ‘peaceful transfers of power’ bantered about by mass media, politburo members and pundits. I’ve wondered what my parents thought when hearing, “Those who make peaceful revolution impossible will make violent revolution inevitable,” from this soon to be assassinated President making such great gains toward freedom – e.g., reducing the outrageous 92.7% marginal income tax rate, blocking moves to further debase our currency, growing weary of CIA, et al types after Bay of Pigs lies and deception along with the military industrial complex pressing for more resources to Vietnam – to enumerate a few specifics. Both of my parents passed last year in 2020 (58 years later), which spared them witnessing recent events foreshadowed by JFK. I contemplated if there was anything they could’ve done to avoid or further postpone this inevitable end. My mind defaulted to a favourite quote from Coretta Scott King, “Freedom is never really won; it must be fought and won every generation.” Perhaps generations to come will learn to successfully fight for freedom after understanding so many prior generations promoted, welcomed and embraced ever more tyranny and command economy policies/programs.

Nothing ‘miraculous’ in the hegemonic transfer of executive power we’ve witnessed these past several score. Removing the Trump crime family to reinstall the Biden crime family offers no more hope than reinstalling Ms. Pelosi as Speaker a couple years ago. The title was inspired by Harry Browne’s battered voter abuse campaign ad. Going back to the same spouse/family member who is beating and harming you, expecting them to change becomes foolhardy (and painful to watch) after enough iterations. Sending in the cops – i.e., 25,000 troops, will give time to clean up the mess and allow black eyes and bruises to heal until the next triggering event. I’ve certainly witnessed enough in Alabama. I saw no hope for our State after the 2002 gubernatorial election result was manipulated (indifferent which goober, Don or Bob, was installed) and the righteous citizens of our State didn’t ‘Storm the Statehouse’ as Felon Hubbard would say. Fitting that Bob Riley (Red socialist) was the governor who changed one of our two statues in the Rotunda to an avowed socialist as our representative statue there on Jan. 6th to witness this domestic violence. Violence not seen since some from a US territory showed their disdain for federal occupation and control back in 1954.

Jan. 6th is what true civil war looks like after failure to allow peaceful exit of sovereign States or occupied territories. Civil war is fighting for control of the SAME government. Wise founding fathers’ design made civil war unlikely at best, foolish at worst – a State no longer wanting to be in the voluntary coalition would exit. The uninvited army into Maryland (April 1861) was the first to explicitly commit treason; the armies repelling this treason was not insurrection – they were not trying to take over their State government or trying to take the federal government they seceded from to coerce other States. State legislators or governors did not request federal government protection from the armies/soldiers serving their own State.

‘Civil War’ is the oft used poor nomenclature for the 1861 – 5 military conflict where it was NOT two factions fighting over control of the same government; in fact several States attempted to peacefully separate from, not destroy or control the federal government. Little wonder about initial seceded States’ (where the 1860 elected President wasn’t even on their State’s ballot, in an era of much more competitive ballot access) reluctance to again suffer high taxation defeated in 1783 and successfully defended against again in 1815.

Lincoln was wisely refused an unconstitutional force bill. When this new executive shown willingness to commit (Art. 3, Sec. 3) treason to impose the Republican Party’s desired mercantilist wealth transfers militarily – other States also desired peaceful exit. Few presidents showed more courage and sagacity than Buchanan trying to allow the peaceful transfer of central/federal power to a new coalition of States without bloodshed. After South Carolina seceded Buchanan asserted:

“Apart from the execution of the laws, so far as this may be practicable, the Executive has no authority to decide what shall be the relations between the Federal Government and South Carolina. He has been invested with no such discretion. He possesses no power to change the relations heretofore existing between them, much less to acknowledge the independence of that State. This would be to invest a mere executive officer with the power of recognizing the dissolution of the confederacy among our thirty – three sovereign States.”

President Buchanan understood an integral part of guaranteeing republican forms of government within a sovereign State is the right of the people in each State to independently determine their desire to remain in any coalition/confederacy of States. No Legislature or Governor (of a State like South Carolina, seceded from the USA/changed to the CSA or from a State like Maryland, still in the USA) asked for federal troops to address civil unrest or insurrection within their State when considering the Force Bill. Not getting the February 1861 Force Bill from Congress after President Buchanan makes it clear he will not commit Art. 3, Sec. 3 treason pressed Mr. Lincoln and the Republicans’ orchestration of military action before Congress reconvenes to accomplish their desired transfer of wealth and power.

President Buchanan adhered to the letter, Spirit and pre – Lincoln tradition of the Constitution, unwilling to fail his oath of office and step outside his authorization at perhaps the most difficult time since the Nullification Crisis. He understood there are no enumerated powers for the executive to act unilaterally, esp. in this manner not authorized. This is well reasoned by Buchanan in his following words:

“The question fairly stated is, has the Constitution delegated to Congress the power to coerce a State into submission which is attempting to withdraw or has actually withdrawn from the Confederacy? …After much serious reflection I have arrived at the conclusion that no such power has been delegated to Congress or to any other department of the Federal Government. It is manifest upon an inspection of the Constitution that this is not among the specific and enumerated powers granted to Congress, and it is equally apparent that its exercise is not ‘necessary and proper for carrying into execution’ any one of these powers.”

Small wonder pro – government historians unanimously place Buchanan as the worst president.

Alas, the Republicans (since inception) have been more interested in using the tax code to pick winners/losers and redistribute wealth to specific interests over the general welfare, how many lives are damaged/destroyed in the process are of increasingly less concern. Much wailing and gnashing of teeth has been observed about the five deaths on Jan. 6th. I couldn’t help but think how much blood has been spilled and sacrificed on this esteemed altar of democracy via undeclared wars, subsidized abortion, wrongful takings, treaty violations, etc. these past several score as a forced coalition instead of the republican form of government joining independent, sovereign States guaranteed in the Constitution. There was a time we understood Greek history of standing divided, tall and strong against the united monolith of Persian tyranny. The Peloponnesian War further showed enough Greeks were also willing to stand strong and divided against the monolith of Athenian tyranny – sometimes the ‘good guys’ win…