The Purpose of Government
The purpose of Government is to Secure the Proto Criteria, therefore, the Proper Functions of a Government are only those activities which support that end.
“We hold these Truths to be self-evident, that all Men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness – That to secure these Rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just Powers from the Consent of the Governed, that whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these Ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or abolish it, and to institute a new Government, laying its Foundation on such Principles…” The U.S. Declaration of Independence
When a Government addresses issues that go beyond Securing the Proto Criteria it becomes Despotic, and the people fall victim to Authoritarian Creep. Authoritarian Creep is a subtle and incremental abuse of the System which results in the cultivation of increasing Power and Authority for Politicians and their Political Offices. There is a natural propensity in a Government for Authoritarian Creep – consider the history of Rome, for example, or Nazi Germany. In fact, pick any government that has ever existed upon the face of the Earth.
Constitutions, therefore, should be specifically drafted to curtail Authoritarian Creep; they should exist to protect people from Megalomaniacs, Dictators, Despots, Autocrats, Tyrants, Authoritarians, Totalitarians, Oligarchs, and those with similar aspirations. If a Constitution is soundly constructed and based firmly upon the Proto Criteria, it will provide for Limited Government with clear and concise Laws and no programs of Obligation and Dependency. It is the Chief Function of a Proper Constitution to limit the power of Political Officers. A Constitution that does not limit the powers of its Political Officers serves neither the People it affects nor the Proto Criteria.
With this in mind, let us examine how the Founding Fathers outlined their objectives in the preamble of the United States Constitution:
“We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defence, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.”
Since the Only Real Function of the Government is to Secure the Proto Criteria, the objectives listed in the preamble of the Constitution should never be interpreted or cultivated as Unqualified Functions – they must be Qualified by the Proto Criteria. In other words, objectives such as Domestic Tranquility, Common Defense, or General Welfare are not to be pursued outside the context of the Proto Criteria; they are not exclusive. If a Government attempts to achieve any objective apart from Securing the Proto Criteria it will automatically result in a State of Tyranny. Securing the Proto Criteria is the only thing a Government should do, the pursuit of any other Goal is an Atrocity against Freedom.
Before the Government passes any Law or undertakes any endeavor it must answer the question, “How does this act provide for the Security of the Proto Criteria?” If a Law or an Act doesn’t provide for the Security of the Proto Criteria, it is to be immediately abandoned.
Without Dedication to the Proto Criteria the Blessings of Liberty will never be Secured, for the Proto Criteria are the literal Foundations of Freedom. A conscientious Devotion to Safeguarding the Proto Criteria, however, will result in the formation of a more perfect Union, the establishment of Justice, the insurance of Domestic Tranquility, a provision for the Common Defense, and the promotion of the General Welfare.
The Idea that gave birth to the United States of America was inspired by the acknowledgment of the Proto Criteria; the Realization that Human Beings are endowed by their Creator with the Unalienable Rights of Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness. Everything about the founding of this Country was based in the Exceptional Notion that people should be governed by this Immutable Principle rather than the capricious fiats of dubiously exalted Men or Women, for all the historical models of Government had been based upon Human Leaders having Plenary Authority. American Exceptionalism is the notion that Human Beings have Unalienable Rights.
The objectives of virtually every Government that has ever existed have been more about Securing the Power and Authority of its Leaders than Securing the Proto Criteria. For Totalitarians, Dictators, Monarchs, Socialists, Progressives, Nihilists, Anarchists, etc. safeguarding the Proto Criteria is the least of their concerns, that is, if they are concerned about them at all. It is far more important for Rulers to establish Systems of Obligation and Dependency than it is to ensure the Self Reliance and Independence of their subjects.
What made the United States Exceptional among Nations was that for the first time in history Men tried to establish a Government that was not based on the whims of a Single Person or an Elite Council. The Founding Fathers thought more about the Rights of all People as Equals rather than establishing their own Rights as Exalted Leaders.
Were they Perfect? Of course not. They inherited the Anti-Proto Criterian Evils implemented by the Monarchies of England, Spain, and France such as Slavery and Taxation. Those who believe that Slavery was an invention of the American form of Government (i.e. the Proto Criteria) are utterly ignorant. Slavery was in place long before the Government of the United States ever came into being. The United States inherited Slavery from European Dictatorships and we were left to purge it from Ourselves.
Thank God for the Proto Criteria!
England didn’t tell us to abolish Slavery. Spain didn’t tell us to abolish Slavery. France didn’t tell us to abolish Slavery. There was no outcry from Europe for us to abolish Slavery, there wasn’t even an outcry from Africa. The call to abolish Slavery came from within, from our own People. The Citizens of the United States demanded that we abolish Slavery. The Proto Criteria demanded that we abolish Slavery. The Spirit of Freedom which drove our Founding demanded that we abolish Slavery… and WE DID, WE DID IT OURSELVES!
The English didn’t free the Slaves. The Spanish didn’t free the Slaves. The French didn’t free the Slaves. Africans didn’t free the Slaves. Marxists didn’t free the Slaves. Communists didn’t free the Slaves. Socialists didn’t free the Slaves. Liberals didn’t free the Slaves. And, sure as hell, the Democrat Party didn’t free the Slaves. Union Soldiers and the Resolve of Millions of Americans, filled with the Spirit of the Proto Criteria, freed the Slaves. The American Idea freed the Slaves. It wasn’t easy, it wasn’t quick, but it was sure.
Additionally, the Proto Criteria renders the political spectrum delineating Right and Left Wings, Conservatives and Liberals, or Capitalists and Communists dysfunctional, obsolete, and irrelevant. There are only two kinds of Real political demarcations: Proto Criterians and Anti-Proto Criterians.
Politics should not be thought of as a Spectrum of Compromise between two Evil Bookends, it is a crystal clear Target with the Proto Criteria as the Bull’s Eye: the Proto Criteria are either met or they’re not. Living by the Proto Criteria is never wrong.
When a person considers a political idea or candidate, they should ask themselves if the idea or the candidate are a hit or miss with regard to the Proto Criteria.
Exercising the Proto Criteria is never Wrong.