Chapter 6 Freedom
US Constitution’s First Amendment
Control of the Press in the 3rd Reich
A Call to Action
Informing Yourself and Others
Political Action
Chapter 6 Freedom
US Constitution’s First Amendment
“Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof, or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press, or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.”
Congress shall make no law respecting an: The amendment begins establishing the foundation principle that includes a listing of the following prohibitions of things that the government in any form, national, state or local, may NOT do. There are six specific freedoms itemized.
1) establishment of religion. The creators of the Constitution were very familiar with the establishment of religion by the government and wanted no part of it. In England, where many had come from, the state-sanctioned a particular church, Church of England, and abused its position of power by persecuting all that did not agree with it. They wanted NO church to have power over others to prevent their free practice of their beliefs or force their beliefs on others. That is the way it is often defined. But in reality, of the historical moment, they meant no particular church should be able to be promoted by the government, nor dictated to by the government. And “church” was used in the context of Christianity. Although they did seem to include Judaism. Today it would also include Zoastroism, Communism, Islam, Confucianism, Bahia’s and Atheistic Evolutionism.
Many of the first settlers in New England, on the Mayflower, had come from Holland because they had earlier fled England because of persecution from the Anglican Church. Notice there is NO reference to “separation of church and state.” Liberals found “separation” referenced in a letter written by Thomas Jefferson to a Baptist Church. This letter has no legal standing in the Constitution, so separation of church and state is NOT law or even precedent. It is a fabricated doctrine not based in the Constitution.
2) prohibiting the free exercise thereof. All religions are not to be constrained in practice of their worship, lifestyle, etc. by interference from the government as long as they obey the laws of the land based on the Constitution. For example, the Navajo are allowed to smoke peyote (with effects similar to marijuana) in their worship because it is a religious tradition established many generations ago. Prohibiting free exercise also includes employers making “reasonable accommodation” to employee’s religious practices. For example, businesses are encouraged to schedule to allow Jews to take off Saturday or Moslems, Friday or Christians, Sunday.
3) abridging the freedom of speech, and to some extent, the next one free press is the heart of the issue of the muzzling of critical thinking skills in students. The basic concept of free speech is to allow anyone to express their opinion about any topic without suppression as long as what they say is does not violate the law. There should be NO restraint because another doesn’t like what is being said. Free expression becomes obvious during political campaigns when the “mud” flies from both sides.
4) (freedom) of the press; The free press is established to be a watchdog on government and general moral actions. Totalitarian governments first action when coming to power is to seize control of and then muzzle the press. For example when the Nazis, Communists, etc. take control one of the first things they do is turn the press into a propaganda machine for the government. In US history press freedom alerting the public of government actions has been illustrated many times. Twentieth century examples, both positive and negative include: Nixon’s Watergate, Reagan’s “Mr. Gorbachov tear down this wall” (referring to the wall separating East Berlin from West Berlin), Bill Clinton’s sexual improprieties, Obama’s promise that “you can keep your doctor”, Hillary’s home server destruction of evidence. The underlying concept of a free press is that an informed public will make good political decisions. The development of liberal controlled media producing “fake news” is the greatest threat to this freedom in the life of our republic. A media that does not tell the truth is historically how the Nazis, Communists and other Totalitarians controlled their populations. Fortunately, with today’s technology and the Internet, it’s probably impossible to perpetuate lies for very long. Since Trump was elected, the inability to perpetuate lies is illustrated in the severe loss of confidence in the Main Stream Media.
5) the right of the people peaceably to assemble, Peaceful assembly to demonstrate for or against government policies is guaranteed to all citizens. As soon a demonstration becomes violent, either injuring someone or damaging property it has become unlawful and should be suppressed. Such assemblers are breaking laws and should be prosecuted.
6) and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances. This last freedom allows citizens both individually and collectively petition the government, at all levels, for grievances, complaints or contentions of damage by government actions. For example, if the county were to take your property for a road they have to pay you a fair price, or you can petition them to stop the seizure until you’re satisfied. Later amendments include this as “search and seizure.” Citizens may petition for political goals or actions through two processes, “Referendum and Recall.” The government may occasionally put questions on the ballot as referendums to test public support. In some states, state-sanctioned lotteries were put on the ballot to be approved or not. Last, holders of political office may also be recalled from office if the public desires. A petition must be filed and a special election is held.
The First Amendment sets up a framework of a government, “of the people, by the people and for the people” that permits, and encourages free dialogue on political issues. President Abraham Lincoln understood these principles when he dedicated the battlefield at Gettysburg.
“Four score and seven years ago our fathers brought forth on this continent, a new nation, conceived in Liberty, and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal….that we here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain — that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom — and that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth.” Abraham Lincoln – November 19, 1863
Control of the press in the Third Reich.
Another example of government control of the press is the situation in the third Reich. “The Propaganda Ministry, through its Reich Press Chamber, assumed control over the Reich Association of the German Press, the guild that regulated entry into the profession. Under the new Editors Law of October 4, 1933, the association kept registries of “racially pure” editors and journalists and excluded Jews and those married to Jews from the profession. Propaganda Ministry officials expected editors and journalists, who had to register with the Reich Press Chamber to work in the field, to follow the mandates and instructions handed down by the ministry. In paragraph 14 of the law, the regime required editors to omit anything “calculated to weaken the strength of the Reich abroad or at home.”
http://www.ushmm.org/wlc/en/article.php?ModuleId=10007655
Cited from The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum article from the Holocaust Encyclopedia. “The Press in the Third Reich, Establishing Control of the Press.” Permission granted by the organization.
A Call to Action
As I have shared this information with many diverse groups, a consistent question I’m asked: “What can I do?” How can the education system be changed to bring quality back and a sound moral base established in our children’s education?
As we’ve seen, there has been a well-executed plan to alter culture and bring about concrete social changes including; relative morality (abortion, promotion of “sexual freedom,” etc.), socialism, one world government and numerous other liberal causes. They have been very successful in bringing about social change resulting in;
1) the substantial decline in academic achievement (as more and more time is spent on values and less and less on content),
2) the rapid rise in teen moral problems including pregnancy, drugs, alcohol abuse, etc., and
3) the rapid growth of Christian schools.
4) the rapid growth of Homeschooling.
The growth of Christian and home schools are unintended consequences: Due to reactions of folks determined to educate their children in truth and moral responsibility. You can help bring public education back to a content oriented, Judeo-Christian environment with two steps;
- Inform yourself and others of the actual situation in your local schools
- Take POLITICAL action to bring about change. It is only through political control that the system can be modified.
Informing Yourself and Others
Informing yourself of the local situation is a necessary first step but is often difficult. Local school officials will usually cooperate initially with efforts to obtain information, however, as one begins to dig into details of texts, curricula and classroom activities, you should expect increasing resistance to your endeavors. As you start information gathering, it is important you not take an adversarial position with the school board, principal or teachers. The most common reaction as you gather data will be the cry of “censorship.” does that ever reveal their hypocrisy! An effective way to counter this charge is to take a “wounded” stance and state that you are only gathering information about the schools. Some of the methods to collect information are:
- Review of textbooks and other resources for content and depth of subject matter. Most texts are attractive, but content will differ radically depending on the author/publisher’s view of the subject. Library lists and the list of audio/visual aids are often very helpful. A good deal of assistance can be obtained by writing to ERA – Educational Research Analysts, P. 0. Box 7518, Longview, TX 75607-7518, Telephone – 214-753-5993.
- ▪ Analysis of school ratios: such as the number of guidance counselors, psychologists, etc. per hundred students vs. the number of teachers per hundred students; (The closer the ratios, the more “values” in the school’s curriculum). The number of students per class and other ratios that are meaningful to the situation can be calculated but must be interpreted with care.
- Surprise visits to the school. Although most schools will resist “surprise visits” this is a very effective way to see first-hand the situation in the school. If your school has open classrooms they often prohibit surprise visits. In retrospect, I understand why; CHAOS REIGNS, AND THERE IS NO REAL LEARNING GOING ON!! Often, support from a friendly school board member or another person of political influence will make surprise visits more effective. In any case, the element of surprise is essential. Make this visit in mid-morning, mid-week so as to avoid the times of “normal crisis” at the beginning and end of each day and each week.
- The level of assigned homework, especially book reports, papers and special projects. Is it reasonable and challenging?
- Discipline, rules, and enforcement. What are the rules? How strict their enforcement? How significant is the drug/alcohol problem? How prevalent is sexual activity? How common is VD? Is Planned Parenthood active in the school? Planned Parenthood is one of the leaders in promoting promiscuity among teens through sex education programs and has a vested financial interest in promoting teen pregnancy, through its ownership of many abortion clinics. Any school that says they don’t have these problems isn’t telling the truth and should be viewed skeptically.
- Other sources of information that should be consulted are; local media (including reporters and editors), teachers, recent graduates or anyone else that has been “inside” the system.
Political Action
Once the situation in your local public schools has been evaluated, you must decide how to approach the political arena. The two approaches to bring about political change without the direct election to public office are: 1) cooperative and 2) adversarial. Since each situation is different, we will not give a specific plan, but share some thoughts on both approaches. The cooperative method is often the first method used since most people are more comfortable with it than becoming an adversary. We work with the political powers in a spirit of cooperation to bring about the reintroduction of content-oriented education, which can be done by meetings at the teacher, principal, and school board level. In some situations this method is effective, but often verbal assent is given, but no real action or change takes place. The second method is to take an adversarial role in which a public position is taken with particular issues, and confrontation with the political structure is provoked. The specific issue selected should be one broad enough to cause a “public opinion” response. To bring about change in this manner, a great deal of planning and strategizing is necessary. A group of politically astute persons should form a steering committee through which ALL decisions and statements should pass. The press should be considered to be hostile and careful analysis of ALL statements before release is essential. Political change will be brought about only as you are dedicated to making it happen. We hope this information has been helpful to you and you will begin today to help bring American education back to a content-oriented environment.
