America was an attempt to create a society unmoored from the ancient regime, but supposedly still tethered by reason. The result was, as the anti-federalists predicted, especially Brutus, who warned the the Supreme Court would end up as the arbiter of to many disputes with how the Constitution was constructed. He was correct, as the Court has given so many "rights" not found in the text of the Constitution, nor in natural law.
First, we should have picked our own cotton, though we can blame the jews and Brits for setting up the conditions in the first place for the slaves trade.
Second, while the white propertied class running things would have worked pretty well, as things got industrialized you had plenty of "mechanics" as they termed them in the 18th Century. Cities full of tradesmen and merchants without land per se, but wealth. These people then acquired political power.
Third, even with tradesmen having the vote, a kind of WASP nation would have worked too, but there was the importation of masses of Catholics who were later given, or took political power. Still, they were white and respected the established order and did not try to make a Spain or pre-revolution France out of the place where the Catholic Church was given all sorts of powers, mostly in education.
But what really, really, really made things go off the rails, was the immigration act of 1965. We imported the 3rd world.
America was an attempt to create a society unmoored from the ancient regime, but supposedly still tethered by reason. The result was, as the anti-federalists predicted, especially Brutus, who warned the the Supreme Court would end up as the arbiter of to many disputes with how the Constitution was constructed. He was correct, as the Court has given so many "rights" not found in the text of the Constitution, nor in natural law.
First, we should have picked our own cotton, though we can blame the jews and Brits for setting up the conditions in the first place for the slaves trade.
Second, while the white propertied class running things would have worked pretty well, as things got industrialized you had plenty of "mechanics" as they termed them in the 18th Century. Cities full of tradesmen and merchants without land per se, but wealth. These people then acquired political power.
Third, even with tradesmen having the vote, a kind of WASP nation would have worked too, but there was the importation of masses of Catholics who were later given, or took political power. Still, they were white and respected the established order and did not try to make a Spain or pre-revolution France out of the place where the Catholic Church was given all sorts of powers, mostly in education.
But what really, really, really made things go off the rails, was the immigration act of 1965. We imported the 3rd world.
Civil Rights Act of 64, and then the Immigration Act of 65. Those work hand in hand.