I PLEDGE ALLEGIANCE TO THE FLAG OF THE
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, AND TO THE
REPUBLIC FOR WHICH IT STANDS...


OUR REPUBLIC WALK, A STEP TOWARD OUR NATIONAL DESTINY

By Charlie Crumley, CPA, CIRA

Georgia General Assembly Resolution Ambassador

January 2010


 It was on July 4, 1776 that 56 brave men committed treason against the most powerful nation in the world -- Great Britain. At the end of the document which they signed, they boldly stated --

"AND FOR THE SUPPORT OF THIS DECLARATION, WITH A FIRM RELIANCE ON THE PROTECTION OF DIVINE PROVIDENCE, WE MUTUALLY PLEDGE TO EACH OTHER OUR LIVES, OUR FORTUNES, AND OUR SACRED HONOR".

The document was, of course, the DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE. Of the 537 officials that we currently elect to oversee the Federal Government (Executive Branch, 2 -- Legislative Branch, Senate, 100, and House of Representatives, 435 -- Judicial Branch, none, they are appointed by the President subject to confirmation by the Senate), what would be your guess as to how many of these 537 elected officials would sign such a document and pledge today.

I would be absolutely shocked if any one would - I know that I wouldn't -- not in today's environment in which self interest dominates our attitude and conduct, and a "Mutual Pledge" is something out of the past.

Following eight years of almost insurmountable obstacles and conditions, we won our freedom from Great Britain - freedom to fight amongst ourselves. So for three more years the thirteen Colonies squabbled. These squabbles included even armed conflicts and became so severe that the Colonies decided that the agreement, under which they had long related, the Articles of Confederation, was in need of a serious update. A delegation from each of the Colonies met in Philadelphia in 1787 to undertake that task, but instead of an updated Articles, produced our CONSTITUTION for a new United States Central Government.

Suppose you had been sent to Philadelphia as a delegate. Would YOU have had the guts to jeopardize your status, relationships, your home, by supporting the idea of an even moderately dominant central government and for the state to give up any of its rights? That would have been tantamount to State Treason. I doubt if you would have been supportive, as in this day and age personal interests would tend to outweigh any chancy political good.

There is a story of Ben Franklin leaving the Constitutional Convention being stopped by a little old lady who asked Ben, "What type of government did you create"? He answered, "A Republic, madam, if you can keep it".

Ben was wrong. They did not create a Republic; they created the foundation for a Republic. It was left to the people to use that foundation to institute a Republic, but it never even got off the ground. Our inability to develop "universal interests" over self interests" even under George Washington's aegis led us into becoming a democracy under the inviting one-man-one- vote concept. George Washington was highly distressed by this lost opportunity to bring everyone together as one.

George warned us in his never delivered but published farewell address that "This spirit (self interest), unfortunately, is inseparable from our nature, having its roots in the strongest passions of the human mind. It exists under different shapes in all governments, more or less, stifled, controlled, or repressed; but, in those of the popular form, it is seen in its greatest rankness, and is truly their worst enemy".

"The ultimate domination of one faction over another, sharpened by the spirit of revenge, natural to party dissention, which in different ages and countries has perpetuated the most horrid enormities, is itself a frightful despotism. The disorders and miseries which result incline the mind to seek security and repose in the absolute power of an individual: and sooner or later the chief of some prevailing faction, more able or more fortunate than his competitors, turns this despotism to the purposes of his own elevation, on the ruins of public liberty."

"It serves always to distract the Public Councils and enfeeble the Public Administration. It agitates the community with ill founded jealousies and false alarms; kindles the animosity of one against another, foments occasionally riots and insurrect. There is an opinion that parties in free countries are useful checks upon the administration of the Government, and serves to keep alive the spirit of Liberty. This within certain limits is probably true but there beingconsequent danger of excess, the effort ought to be by force of public opinion, to mitigate it and assuage it. A fire not to be quenched, it demands a uniform vigilance to prevent its bursting into flames, lest, instead of warming, it should consume".

Thanks, George

Take a look at our "Mirror of Conduct" and you will see that we are in lock-step with George's admonitions. If you think otherwise consider the perception of a group of ants floating down a river on a log with each of them thinking that they are steering - or of the fish in the river, they don't even know they are wet.

Our situation today is clearly one in which the Government is becoming the Sovereign and We the People becoming its subjects. But the foundation to move toward becoming a Republic form of Government rather than the Welfare Democracy which we have become is still in place. It is up to the citizenry to make it be so.

This was the dream of our founders and is the basis of their describing us as"WE, THE PEOPLE". WE, with all our foibles, ARE the More Perfect Union that they were pursuing. This UNION formed by WE then becomes the basis of the objectives of establishing justice, insuring domestic tranquility, providing for the common defense, promoting the general welfare, and securing the blessings of liberty". Anything that weakens WE, weakens the nation.

 This last item, "Secure the Blessings of Liberty" sounds good and its clear meaning is that to hold on to the blessings of freedom, we must hold on to being "WE". It also has a rather sad sense behind it -- that if we don't become We the People, why in all creation did they bother having the Revolution. In the back of their minds they were probably saying that they have shown us the way. If "We the People" don't take command, we will be right back where we started, with the people subordinate to something sovereign. The King is gone, but the void caused by not having a common will of the people will be filled by something or someone.

Our founders were bold enough to suggest that the world as it had been known needed to be turned up-side down. That the people, "WE THE PEOPLE", are the ones that should be the sovereign with the government being the subject. It was the Declaration of Independences that asserted "Governments are instituted among men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed". This empowers the people to assume their destiny of being sovereign over a servant government, but to do so require the people to have the ability and understanding to be co-sovereigns - that they can and should act and think individually, but must conduct our common affairs as one.

Are we bold enough to complete their dream?

It is the objective of OUR REPUBLIC WALK to create a Citizen Movement TOWARD OUR NATIONAL DESTINY AS a REPUBLIC, but

The foundation of a Republic is based on freedom -- freedom which -

Respects others -- your respect of them, and their respect of you,

Respects the views of others -- even though you may not agree,

Places the interests of all above selfish self interest, and

Requires a citizenry capable of being citizens of a Republic.

Securing the blessings of liberty and freedom can be realized only if we can become as strong and resolved as our founders and free as a Republic. The foundation is still there in the Constitution and awaits the people to move "Toward Our National Destiny".

In conjunction with the Bicentennial Celebration a few years back, one of the Celebration Programs was to address the drug problem with a petition drive to STOP DRUGS AT THE SOURCE. This was initiated by a Resolution to undertake such an effort signed by every member of the Georgia House and Senate - a record that still stands.

The program was an incredible success in terms of petitions garnering over 3,000,000 of them. But it quickly became clear that the various units of government were so ensconced that they didn't need to, or didn't desire or bother to, respond. After all, it's only a petition

This resulted in two further resolutions -- one to eliminate Civic Illiteracy and the other to eliminate Financial Illiteracy, both of which are necessary if WE are to be able to master being co-sovereigns. A further resolution requested all to participate in Our Republic Walk as a first step in moving toward our destiny.

The early thrust of Our Republic Walk is aimed at bringing people together - to understand their citizenship responsibilities -- to conduct themselves as responsible citizens -- to involve themselves in the issues of today - to regenerate the "WE". Everyone is so busy doing their thing, and in such a hurry to get to the boob tube, that there is little time or interest in taking anything on that doesn't relate to job and family. Clearly that attitude has to change and the well being of all must be a part our priorities. Failure to become involved is an open invitation for an ever expanding government to fill the void for us -- as they have been doing.

The accomplishing of these resolutions and their philosophic underpinnings is being directed by Ken Krautter, a former CPA who gave up his practice to spend full time working toward these fine objectives. As an indication of the progress being made, on the last day of this past Legislative Session, Governor Purdue honored our key group with Commendations and a photograph of his displaying the Originating Resolution along with our Primary REPUBLIC WALK activation team, and being designated as a Georgia General Assembly Resolution Ambassador by the Chief Justice of the Georgia Supreme Court.

We must be doing something right.

In summary, it is my observation that few elected officials want to have to fill the void created by the citizenry's apathy and lack of interest, and truly would prefer to be a representative of their constituents rather than the decision maker in their absence. However, just as certain as a pigs ass is pork, unbridled self interests and freedoms cannot coexist.

sonny purdue,Georgia General Assembly Resolution,charlie crumley
Display of the initaial Resolueion signed by 100% of the Members of the Georgia General Assembly held by Governor Purdue (center) supportted by (left to right) Assembly Ambassadors - Dennis Lutz, Robert Llera, Charles Crumley, Kenneth Krautter, Melvin Anderson.


sonny purdue,Georgia General Assembly Resolution,charlie crumley
Governor (Right) Purdue and me discussing the Commendation

accounting,bankruptcy,reconciliation,people vs government,accounting principles,sonny purdue,Georgia General Assembly Resolution,charlie crumley

accounting,bankruptcy,reconciliation,people vs government,accounting principles,sonny purdue,Georgia General Assembly Resolution,charlie crumley

accounting,bankruptcy,reconciliation,people vs government,accounting principles,sonny purdue,Georgia General Assembly Resolution,charlie crumley