Learning from the Lessons of History

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Highlights from Populist Party Commentary

What Will History Say About Today's America?
by Brian Trent

Imagine what America's legacy will look like in a history book some 500 years hence. I can easily see some golden opening chapters where the dream of a democratic Republic - straight from Greco-Roman ideals - is realized. The nation which began bold and bright - breaking away from the tyranny of the British crown, rising to global dominance, and becoming a leader the rest of the world looked to, then comes to the 21st century.

The United States defeated Nazi Germany and Imperial Japan, and thwarted the British Empire when they were just scattered colonies in the wilderness. But when faced with cave-dwelling terrorists in the 21st century, they became shrieking cowards who were willing to trade their Constitution, their freedoms, and their souls in exchange for a Nanny State Fatherland.
The average American had never read the Constitution, so was willing to believe whatever pundits said it said.
The Founding Fathers called the Constitution the "supreme law of the land" which officials had the duty to "preserve, protect, and defend."

(read more here)

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What We Should Have Learned From Vietnam
by Paul Kemp

War is essentially a way to scare the taxpayers, who know little about the outside world and thus fear it easily, into parting with their tax money, their sons and daughters, and their freedom. Now the threat is Islamo-Fascism, but it's the same routine.

When Americans got tired enough of the war on Vietnam - and no amount of carpet bombing was able to force the Viet Cong into doing our bidding - we called it off and left.

Wartime is party-time for the Military-Industrial Complex. It is when they receive Carte Blanche to charge any price, and avoid accountability for what was spent.

(read more here)

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Who was Really our First President?
by Clay Barham

George Washington was the first President under our current United States Constitution, but who ran the country in the thirteen-years between the split with Britain and George Washington's inaugural? Why is this important? From 1620 New England, through the break with Great Britain, new traditions grew in America. Those traditions led us to human freedom and dignity not found anywhere else in the world.

There were five Presidents of the Continental Congress, serving under the 1774 Articles of Association. Then, there were ten Presidents serving under the 1781 Articles of Confederation. There have been 43 Presidents serving under the 1789 Constitution. Samuel Huntington was the last to serve as President of the Continental Congress, and the first to serve as President under the 1781 Constitution, providing for "The Perpetual Union of the United States of America." When the Continental Congress ceased to exist, the United States of America in Congress Assembled, assumed all federal constitutional powers.

(read more here)

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Free from the Nightmare of Prohibition
by Harry Browne

Until the early 1900s, the federal government did little to regulate or control the sale or use of alcohol or drugs - except for taxing alcohol.

It may be hard to believe today, but early in the 20th century a 10-year-old girl could walk into a drug store and buy a bottle of whiskey or a packet of heroin. She didn't need a doctor's prescription or even a note from her parents. Any druggist would sell to her without batting an eye; he would assume she was on an errand for her parents.

While that may seem amazing now, it wasn't to anyone then. Heroin was sold in packages as a pain reliever or sedative - just as aspirin or other analgesics are sold today. The measured dose didn't make anyone high, and rarely did anyone become addicted - certainly no more often than with sleeping pills today.

Given such easy access to liquor and drugs, we might assume that America's adults and children were all high on booze and drugs. But that wasn't the case.

(read more here)

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Published 5 days a week, Populist Party Commentary and the Populist Party blog both strive to provide an alternative point of view to current events and political theory.

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Copyright 2008, The Populist Party of America