The American Two Party System - The Roots of Polarization

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Did you ever wonder how a nation as powerful as America could be dependent on only two political parties to the exclusion of anyone who disagrees with them? Well it was not always that way. In fact there were no political parties back when we tossed out the English. Perhaps this history of the two party system will help you understand why it evolved and how it might have failed to meet the needs of today.

Following the publication of the Declaration of Independence (1776) and before the successful resolution of the War for Independence (1783), the American colonies decided it would be best to "confederate," at least for the purposes of entering into strategic alliances with European powers and perhaps waging war again with the mother country. This gave the U.S. the Articles of Confederation (1781), the first constitution of the "United States.” But the Articles were soon deemed inadequate and another Constitutional Convention was called (1787) which resulted in the U.S. Constitution (1789). But not without a fight.

The “Federalists” were of course instrumental in the movement for the new U.S. Constitution and for a stronger Federal role. The so-called Anti-Federalists were concerned that this new Federal government might over-power the states' sovereignties and abridge individual citizens' rights (most states had a long and proud history of individual rights). The passage of the Bill of Rights, as a permanent limit to the powers of the Federal government, answered much of that argument. Nonetheless, the struggle between a strong Federal government and state sovereignties has been an important thread in the play of our two-party system from the very beginning.

From that beginning in 1789, the U.S. didn't have a two-party system; it had George Washington, a President without a party. During his two terms, a rivalry grew between John Adams and Thomas Jefferson, both Federalists. Jefferson challenged Adams under the banner of the Democratic-Republican party. Interesting that this first real party, alone, should contain the nominal seeds of the present two-party system. The word Democratic implies will of the people, the word Republican implies rule of law (protection from a potential tyranny of the majority). The (mostly aristocratic and Virginian) Democratic-Republicans kept the Presidency from 1800 through 1828.

In 1828, the popular war-hero Andrew Jackson became the first President from a new party, the Democrats, the true party “of the people." With the exception of one term when the Whigs (a party whose name more clearly identified itself as the party of privilege than the Democratic-Republicans whom they replaced) won the Presidency, the Democrats held the White House until 1860.

The Northern Abolitionist Movement gave birth to a new party (1856), the Republicans. Abraham Lincoln was their first successful candidate for President (1860). The Northern, anti-slavery and pro-business Republicans held the White House thru 1912, with the exception of the Democrat Grover Cleveland's two non-consecutive terms. 1864 really marks the beginning of the two-party system of Democrats and Republicans. From the beginning, the Republicans have been Northern and pro-business, the Democrats Southern and more populist. Woodrow Wilson was the only other Democratic President besides Cleveland before the Great Depression. So, for all intents and purposes, the Republicans held Presidential power for 72 years but for 16 Democratic years.

The Great Depression (1929 and forward) changed all that. As business had so completely failed the people, the party of the people, the Democrats, under Franklin Roosevelt, won the support of the majority of the voters. Indeed, they kept power through 1968 except for the two terms of Dwight Eisenhower, who won his elections not for his politics but for his stature as a war-hero. Pretty much the Democrats (FDR, JFK, LBJ) successfully defined themselves as the party of the people, of the poor and middle class, and of the large and growing labor movement.

The Republicans were pretty much forced to redefine themselves, not as the party of privilege but as the party of individual and states’ rights, and of tax cuts and reduced government spending. But this didn't win them elections (nor did it represent their real values). Most Americans since FDR have identified themselves as Democrats, a natural thing as most Americans are not wealthy. Ever since 1932, the Republicans have only won the Presidency when their candidate was more personable and more “Presidential,” not because of his positions on the issues. Poll after poll for the last 70 years show Americans identify with Democratic positions even when they elect a Republican. TV has been a potent force in this phenomenon, as has the increasing role of religion and ignorance in the American political scene.

The nature of the parties' differences has altered dramatically, if not fundamentally, since 1864. The initial differences were over slavery and industrialism and the dominance of the South (poorer and less populous) by the North. The differences in the 1890's, following a Depression, were over a Gold standard and whether debts were to be repaid by cheaper or more dear money. In the 1910's, party differences centered around isolationism and fighting World War I. In the 1930's, again following the start of a Depression, the Democrats became the party of the people and of the Labor Movement while the Republicans were seen as the party of the Wealthy.

Since Franklin D. Roosevelt, then, the parties have divided the electorate, for better or for worse, along economic class lines. How then, you ask, have the Republicans been able to win any national elections at all, as they are the party of the Sheriff of Nottingham, not the party of Robin Hood? The reason is not hard to see. The rise of the Independents, now larger than the registration of either major party, began during the Viet Nam era and has accelerated ever since.

Both parties have lost their identity and lost their commitment to principles long held sacred.  As the voter had a more difficult time distinguishing between the two, neither party could dominate as split power between the parties provided a viable check and balance for the people.

While the more aggressive conservatives in the Republican party, Liberals in the Democratic party, and Libertarians in the loose confederation of the Tea party get all the media attention, in truth all three are fighting it out for control of the middle ground in political philosophy.

Today America can be found where the conservative and liberal philosophies blend in the middle, where fiscal responsibility and limited federal government embrace certain social obligations while rejecting other social issues.  America is not about class separation and philosophical polarization, it is about individual freedom and equal opportunity.  Neither party holds the key to such a goal. 

No Republican wants to starve the poor or cut benefits for the elderly any more than a Democrat wants to wipe out the upper class or take over big business. The very concept of such thought is promulgated by the news media to increase TV ratings, sell advertising or sell newspapers. Oh yeah, and also to help all the news "contributors" and political pundits sell their latest book telling us what is wrong with our country but only from their perspective.

So that is an entirely over-simplification of the history and evolution of the two party system and it will hopefully give you some insight into how we got in our current mess.  Getting out may take a lot more work than we hoped.
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Seven Cardinal Virtues, Seven Deadly Sins -The Survival Guide for Politics in America

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Anyone exposed to the media and politicians in America has a real good idea that something is terribly wrong. Partisan bickering seems to dominate the media stories as if the reality we face isn't bad enough. Obama blames Bush for everything wrong. Then he blames Republicans for doing nothing when the Democrats control everything and don't even need the Republicans.

The Democrats blame the Republicans for being obstructionists while the Republicans blame the Democrats for not including them in back room deals. All the while the media grovel for stories that incite the hatred and drama so they can beat each other in the ratings. Of course Obama blames Congress for not doing enough while Congress blames the White House for never taking a stand.



What we have is a classic stalemate in chess terms. What happens in a stalemate? No one wins. That leaves it up to the people to sort through the barrage of claims and counter claims, through the greed and corruption, through the lies and half truths in order to make some sense of where we stand and where we are going. It also means the politicians in Washington, the executives on Wall Street, the bosses in the union headquarters and the media in their ivory towers are all lost in the storm.

What does a captain of a ship do when facing a storm? Preparation and patience, combined with faith, strength and hope will always help you make it through the storm and tomorrow will always be there to reward your courage, strength and faith. In times like these when the truth is elusive and our leaders are paralyzed, when ethics and morality seem gone from governing, and when self-preservation dominates the common good it helps to remember the old ways.



In the ancient teachings of the Catholic Church through the works of theologians St. Augustine and St. Thomas Aquinas and dating all the way back to the ancient Greek philosophers Plato and Aristotle, long before the time of Jesus, good and evil was defined by the Seven Cardinal Virtues and the Seven Deadly Sins.



It would do us well in this time of a crisis of confidence and moral corruption to remember the Seven Cardinal Virtues and Seven Deadly Sins whether you are Catholic or not as they were an inspiration to the Christian founders of our great nation. It also would not hurt to see if you are living the virtues and rejecting the sins and apply the same standards to our candidates for public office.

The Cardinal Virtues



Four virtues play a pivotal role and accordingly are called "cardinal"; all the others are grouped around them. They are: prudence, justice, fortitude, and temperance. "If anyone loves righteousness, [Wisdom's] labors are virtues; for she teaches temperance and prudence, justice, and courage." These virtues are praised under other names in many passages of Scripture.

Prudence is the virtue that disposes practical reason to discern our true good in every circumstance and to choose the right means of achieving it; "the prudent man looks where he is going. Keep sane and sober for your prayers." Prudence is "right reason in action," writes St. Thomas Aquinas, following Aristotle. It is not to be confused with timidity or fear, nor with duplicity or dissimulation. It is called auriga virtutum (the charioteer of the virtues); it guides the other virtues by setting rule and measure. It is prudence that immediately guides the judgment of conscience. The prudent man determines and directs his conduct in accordance with this judgment. With the help of this virtue we apply moral principles to particular cases without error and overcome doubts about the good to achieve and the evil to avoid.

Justice is the moral virtue that consists in the constant and firm will to give their due to God and neighbor. Justice toward God is called the "virtue of religion." Justice toward men disposes one to respect the rights of each and to establish in human relationships the harmony that promotes equity with regard to persons and to the common good. The just man, often mentioned in the Sacred Scriptures, is distinguished by habitual right thinking and the uprightness of his conduct toward his neighbor. "You shall not be partial to the poor or defer to the great, but in righteousness shall you judge your neighbor. Masters, treat your slaves justly and fairly, knowing that you also have a Master in heaven."

Fortitude is the moral virtue that ensures firmness in difficulties and constancy in the pursuit of the good. It strengthens the resolve to resist temptations and to overcome obstacles in the moral life. The virtue of fortitude enables one to conquer fear, even fear of death, and to face trials and persecutions. It disposes one even to renounce and sacrifice his life in defense of a just cause. "The Lord is my strength and my song. In the world you have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world."

Temperance is the moral virtue that moderates the attraction of pleasures and provides balance in the use of created goods. It ensures the will's mastery over instincts and keeps desires within the limits of what is honorable. The temperate person directs the sensitive appetites toward what is good and maintains a healthy discretion: "Do not follow your inclination and strength, walking according to the desires of your heart." Temperance is often praised in the Old Testament: "Do not follow your base desires, but restrain your appetites." In the New Testament it is called "moderation" or "sobriety." We ought "to live sober, upright, and godly lives in this world."



The Theological Virtues

The human virtues are rooted in the theological virtues, which adapt man's faculties for participation in the divine nature: for the theological virtues relate directly to God. They dispose Christians to live in a relationship with the Holy Trinity. They have the One and Triune God for their origin, motive, and object.

The theological virtues are the foundation of Christian moral activity; they animate it and give it its special character. They inform and give life to all the moral virtues. They are infused by God into the souls of the faithful to make them capable of acting as his children and of meriting eternal life. They are the pledge of the presence and action of the Holy Spirit in the faculties of the human being. There are three theological virtues: faith, hope, and charity.

Faith

Faith is the theological virtue by which we believe in God and believe all that he has said and revealed to us, and that Holy Church proposes for our belief, because he is truth itself. By faith "man freely commits his entire self to God." For this reason the believer seeks to know and do God's will. "The righteous shall live by faith." Living faith "work[s] through charity."
The gift of faith remains in one who has not sinned against it. But "faith apart from works is dead": when it is deprived of hope and love, faith does not fully unite the believer to Christ and does not make him a living member of his Body.

The disciple of Christ must not only keep the faith and live on it, but also profess it, confidently bear witness to it, and spread it: "All however must be prepared to confess Christ before men and to follow him along the way of the Cross, amidst the persecutions which the Church never lacks." Service of and witness to the faith are necessary for salvation: "So every one who acknowledges me before men, I also will acknowledge before my Father who is in heaven; but whoever denies me before men, I also will deny before my Father who is in heaven."

Hope

Hope is the theological virtue by which we desire the kingdom of heaven and eternal life as our happiness, placing our trust in Christ's promises and relying not on our own strength, but on the help of the grace of the Holy Spirit. "Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for he who promised is faithful. The Holy Spirit, he poured out upon us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that we might be justified by his grace and become heirs in hope of eternal life."

The virtue of hope responds to the aspiration to happiness which God has placed in the heart of every man; it takes up the hopes that inspire men's activities and purifies them so as to order them to the Kingdom of heaven; it keeps man from discouragement; it sustains him during times of abandonment; it opens up his heart in expectation of eternal beatitude. Buoyed up by hope, he is preserved from selfishness and led to the happiness that flows from charity.

Christian hope takes up and fulfills the hope of the chosen people which has its origin and model in the hope of Abraham, who was blessed abundantly by the promises of God fulfilled in Isaac, and who was purified by the test of the sacrifice. "Hoping against hope, he believed, and thus became the father of many nations."

Christian hope unfolds from the beginning of Jesus' preaching in the proclamation of the beatitudes. The beatitudes raise our hope toward heaven as the new Promised Land; they trace the path that leads through the trials that await the disciples of Jesus. But through the merits of Jesus Christ and of his Passion, God keeps us in the "hope that does not disappoint." Hope is the "sure and steadfast anchor of the soul . . . that enters . . . where Jesus has gone as a forerunner on our behalf." Hope is also a weapon that protects us in the struggle of salvation: "Let us . . . put on the breastplate of faith and charity, and for a helmet the hope of salvation." It affords us joy even under trial: "Rejoice in your hope, be patient in tribulation." Hope is expressed and nourished in prayer, especially in the Our Father, the summary of everything that hope leads us to desire.

We can therefore hope in the glory of heaven promised by God to those who love him and do his will. In every circumstance, each one of us should hope, with the grace of God, to persevere "to the end" and to obtain the joy of heaven, as God's eternal reward for the good works accomplished with the grace of Christ. In hope, the Church prays for "all men to be saved." She longs to be united with Christ, her Bridegroom, in the glory of heaven:

Hope, O my soul, hope. You know neither the day nor the hour. Watch carefully, for everything passes quickly, even though your impatience makes doubtful what is certain, and turns a very short time into a long one. Dream that the more you struggle, the more you prove the love that you bear your God, and the more you will rejoice one day with your Beloved, in a happiness and rapture that can never end.

Charity

Charity is the theological virtue by which we love God above all things for his own sake, and our neighbor as ourselves for the love of God.

Jesus makes charity the new commandment. By loving his own "to the end," he makes manifest the Father's love which he receives. By loving one another, the disciples imitate the love of Jesus which they themselves receive. Whence Jesus says: "As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you; abide in my love." And again: "This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you."

Fruit of the Spirit and fullness of the Law, charity keeps the commandments of God and his Christ: "Abide in my love. If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love."

Christ died out of love for us, while we were still "enemies." The Lord asks us to love as he does, even our enemies, to make ourselves the neighbor of those farthest away, and to love children and the poor as Christ himself.

The Apostle Paul has given an incomparable depiction of charity: "charity is patient and kind, charity is not jealous or boastful; it is not arrogant or rude. Charity does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrong, but rejoices in the right. Charity bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things."102

"If I . . . have not charity," says the Apostle, "I am nothing." Whatever my privilege, service, or even virtue, "if I . . . have not charity, I gain nothing." Charity is superior to all the virtues. It is the first of the theological virtues: "So faith, hope, charity abide, these three. But the greatest of these is charity."

The practice of all the virtues is animated and inspired by charity, which "binds everything together in perfect harmony"; it is the form of the virtues; it articulates and orders them among themselves; it is the source and the goal of their Christian practice. Charity upholds and purifies our human ability to love, and raises it to the supernatural perfection of divine love.

The practice of the moral life animated by charity gives to the Christian the spiritual freedom of the children of God. He no longer stands before God as a slave, in servile fear, or as a mercenary looking for wages, but as a son responding to the love of him who "first loved us":

If we turn away from evil out of fear of punishment, we are in the position of slaves. If we pursue the enticement of wages, . . . we resemble mercenaries. Finally if we obey for the sake of the good itself and out of love for him who commands . . . we are in the position of children.

The fruits of charity are joy, peace, and mercy; charity demands beneficence and fraternal correction; it is benevolence; it fosters reciprocity and remains disinterested and generous; it is friendship and communion: Love is itself the fulfillment of all our works. There is the goal; that is why we run: we run toward it, and once we reach it, in it we shall find rest.

The Gifts and Fruits of The Holy Spirit

The moral life of Christians is sustained by the gifts of the Holy Spirit. These are permanent dispositions which make man docile in following the promptings of the Holy Spirit.

The seven gifts of the Holy Spirit are wisdom, understanding, counsel, fortitude, knowledge, piety, and fear of the Lord. They belong in their fullness to Christ, Son of David. They complete and perfect the virtues of those who receive them. They make the faithful docile in readily obeying divine inspirations.

Let your good spirit lead me on a level path.

For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God . . . If children, then heirs, heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ.

The fruits of the Spirit are perfections that the Holy Spirit forms in us as the first fruits of eternal glory. The tradition of the Church lists twelve of them: "charity, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, generosity, gentleness, faithfulness, modesty, self-control, chastity."



The Sins

Beginning in the early 14th-century, the popularity of depicting the Seven Deadly Sins by artists of the time ingrained them in western popular consciousness. The Italian poet ante Alighieri (1265-1321 C.E.), wrote three epic poems (known collectively as the Divine Comedy) titled Inferno, Purgatorio, and Paradiso. In his book Inferno, Dante recounts the visions he has in a dream in which he enters and descends into Hell. According to Dante, he is told by his guide that a soul's location in Hell is based upon the sins that they commit when they are alive. In each 'ring' of hell, a specific punishment is doled out. As they descend lower and lower, the punishments (and consequently sins) become worse and worse until he reaches the bottom and discovers Satan. In Inferno, Dante encounters these sins in the following order (canto number): Lust (5), Gluttony (6), Avarice (7), Wrath (7-8), Heresy (10), Violence (12-17), Blasphemy (14), Fraud (18-30), and Treachery (32-34).

The Seven Deadly sins are listed today as follows:

Lust (Latin, luxuria)

Lust (fornication, perversion) —
Obsessive, unlawful depraved thought, or unnatural desire for sexual excitement, such as desiring sex with a person outside marriage or engaging in unnatural sexual appetites. Rape and sodomy are considered to be extreme lust and are said to be mortal sins. Dante's criterion was "excessive love of others," thereby detracting from the love due to God. Lust prevents clarity of thought and rational behavior.

Gluttony (Latin, gula)

Gluttony (waste, overindulgence) —
Thoughtless waste of everything, overindulgence, misplaced sensuality, uncleanliness, and maliciously depriving others. Marked by refusal to share and unreasonable consumption of more than is necessary, especially food or water. Destruction, especially for sport. Substance abuse or binge drinking. Dante explains it as "excessive love of pleasure".

Avarice (Latin, avaritia)

Greed (treachery, avarice) —
A strong desire to gain, especially in money or power. Disloyalty, deliberate betrayal, or treason, especially for personal gain or when compensated. Scavenging and hoarding of materials or objects. Theft and robbery by violence. Simony is the evolution of avarice because it fills you with the urge to make money by selling things within the confines of the church. This sin is abhorred by the Catholic Church and is seen as a sin of malice. Dante included this sin in his first novel. Simony can be viewed as betrayal. Thomas Aquinas on greed: "it is a sin against God, just as all mortal sins, in as much as man condemns things eternal for the sake of temporal things."

Sloth (Latin, acedia)

Sloth (apathy, indifference) —
Apathy, idleness, and wastefulness of time. Laziness is particularly condemned because others must work harder to make up for it. Cowardice or irresponsibility. Abandonment, especially of God. Dante wrote that sloth is the "failure to love God with all one's heart, all one's mind and all one's soul".

Wrath (Latin, ira)

Wrath (anger, hatred) —
Inappropriate (unrighteous) feelings of hatred and anger. Denial of the truth to others or self. Impatience or revenge outside of justice. Wishing to do evil or harm to others. Self-righteousness. Wrath is the root of murder and assault. Dante described wrath as "love of justice perverted to revenge and spite".

Envy (Latin, invidia)

Envy (jealousy, malice) —
Grieving spite and resentment of material objects, accomplishments, or character traits of others, or wishing others to fail or come to harm. Envy is the root of theft and self-loathing. Dante defined this as "love of one's own good perverted to a desire to deprive other men of theirs".

Pride (Latin, superbia)

Pride (vanity, narcissism) —
A desire to be more important or attractive to others, failing to give credit due to others, or excessive love of self (especially holding self out of proper position toward God). Dante's definition was "love of self perverted to hatred and contempt for one's neighbor". In Jacob Bidermann's medieval miracle play, Cenodoxus, superbia is the deadliest of all the sins and leads directly to the damnation of the famed Doctor of Paris, Cenodoxus. Pride was what sparked the fall of Lucifer from Heaven. Vanity and narcissism are good examples of these sins and they often lead to the destruction of the sinner, for instance by the wanton squandering of money and time on themselves without caring about others. Pride can be seen as the misplacement of morals.

Interpretation

In the original classification, Pride was considered to be the 'deadliest' of all sins, and was the father of all sins. This relates directly to Christian philosophy and the story of Lucifer as told in the Bible. Lucifer, the highest angel in heaven, surrendered to the sin of pride and demanded that the other angels worship him. This being a violation of God's will, Lucifer and his followers were cast from heaven.

Summary

Our forefathers talked of the need for all Christians to continually work to master the Cardinal Virtues and to eliminate the Deadly Sins. It was a lifelong dedication. The results of such perseverance were the Declaration of Independence and Constitution. Would we not do well to do the same? These are the standards that created America, they are the foundation to preserve America. Live them and demand the same from our elected officials.

Thanks to the Catechism of the Catholic Church and New World Encyclopedia for guidance in this article.

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Summer Comes to Coltons Point

As the last lingering effects of the long cold winter and spring fade away it is the beginning of summer here at Coltons Point and we are well on our way to enjoying one of the most beautiful transitions to summer in years. For the past week it could not have been more beautiful as you can see from the photos shot around Coltons Point this Memorial Day weekend.

It is a time to remember our veterans, those who fought to give us freedom, and that fight began right here in Coltons Point when the two ships arrived from England 375 years ago and set in motion events that would result in a war of independence from England.

Just 125 years ago Coltons Point and St. Clement's Island were being hailed as one of the best resorts on the East Coast as the steam boats brought holiday seekers from Baltimore and Washington, DC. Now they drive in cars to transform this ancient old fishing village into a summer resort that at times seems to be like the Long Island shore of the Hamptons.

Nearly four centuries have passed since the ships arrived yet life here at the Point is as vibrant, hopeful and protected as when it began. Sir George Calvert, Captain John Smith and Father Andrew White all shared the same dream to build the New World of America into the best nation in the world and the basis for being best was the freedoms guaranteed to our citizens.

No freedom was more important than the freedom of religion which was the foundation of the St. Clement's and Coltons Point landings. No where in the world offered such guarantees to all citizens and to all religions.

This freedom was incorporated in the grant given to the Calvert family to settle Maryland. It was first tested in George Calvert's first colony at Avalon in Newfoundland which he acquired in 1621. It was refined in 1634 when the Calvert ships, the Ark and the Dove, brought the English colonists to America. The dream continues to this day.

We hope you join us in honoring those brave men and women who offered and often gave their lives so that we could enjoy the life, liberty and pursuit of happiness we now take for granted.

Obama's Historic Presidency - Harvard Must Clean Up the Yale Mess

On the abs and shoulders of newly elected Barack Obama comes the most daunting task of his historic presidency which is cleaning up the legacy (mess) that 20 straight years of Yale grads as president has bestowed on us. The last Harvard grad to undertake such a challenge was John F. Kennedy 48 years ago.

In 1636 Harvard was founded and in 1701 Yale was founded and ever since these two Ivy League competitors have been at each other's throats whether it was in founding a nation, creating the game of football, distinguishing themselves as the educational elite of America, charging the highest tuition in the nation to attend, or just capturing the presidency.

Almost a year ago I wrote an article called "Presidential Election 2008 - Harvard versus Yale" . The stunning recent success of Yale in capturing the presidency the past 20 years and nearly for an additional 8 with Hillary capped a long and dominant run by the Bulldogs. In every election since 1972 either a Democrat or Republican presidential candidate or both were from Yale and the 20 year domination beat out the old record held by Harvard and Franklin Roosevelt.

Roosevelt was elected four times himself, meaning Harvard had the muscle to change the Constitution and have a president elected more than twice to keep a favorite son in office. He served into his 13th year before dying and had been elected to serve 16 years. Yale controlled the White House the last 20 years with three different presidents, Bush, Clinton and Bush 2.

Now before we all become overly enamored with the power and success of the Ivy elite remember that Harvard, the venerable 372 year oldest university in the nation still has the dumbest mascot ever adopted by a school in America while the Yale Bulldogs must explain away the legacy of the past 20 years. Oh yes, and only once in history has someone been president who graduated from both schools, our very own George W. Bush, leaving both with much to explain.

As for the Harvard mascot, for those of you who don't know and the Harvard Crimson has worked very hard to conceal the fact, the university mascot is a real person, John Harvard, a puritan clergyman from England in the 1600's. A statue of John Harvard, sculpted by Daniel Chester French, sits in Harvard Yard at Harvard University. Despite its name, the statue does not depict the true likeness of John Harvard, as the sculptor had no accurate image to work from.

The statue, known by Harvard tour guides as the statue of three lies, claims that it depicts John Harvard, Founder, 1638, but in reality Harvard was a contributor, not the founder; the institution was founded in 1636; and the statue is actually a likeness of someone else as French used a student as a model. What Harvard did do was leave the first major endowment to Harvard along with his library thus immortalizing the value of endowments over academics. The current mascot is a hideous distortion of the original John Harvard who wasn't John Harvard to begin with but some student.

Obama is the 8th Harvard grad to serve as president from colonial days after John Adams, John Quincy Adams, Rutherford Hayes, Teddy Roosevelt, Franklin Roosevelt, John F. Kennedy and George Bush. John Adams was vice president under George Washington for two terms before being elected the 2nd president of the USA in 1797.

Yale has given us 5 presidents with the first being William Howard Taft who was not elected until 1908, 111 years after the first Harvard president. Following Taft were Gerald Ford, George Bush, Sr., Bill Clinton and George Bush, Jr. all in the past 35 years.

The current Yale legacy, Iraq, Afghanistan, the credit crisis, Wall Street collapse, auto company collapse, insurance industry collapse, in fact the whole economic collapse, the extreme negative attitudes toward our elected officials, financial leaders and media, the negative attitude of the world toward America, corruption, oil crisis, terrorism and all the other stuff is certain to be the biggest challenge to Harvard since the great depression and World War II inherited by Franklin Roosevelt.

We can only hope and pray that Barack Obama can clean up the Yale mess and maybe even get the Harvard mascot finally changed during his historic presidency, something even the Adams, Roosevelt's and Kennedy failed to accomplish.

What happens if the USA has a Financial Meltdown?

If any other nation of the world faced the financial disasters we faced the last year from the oil price spiral to the housing catastrophe, the doubling of food prices to the largest budget deficit in history they would have been foreclosed, bankrupted and sold at a sheriff's auction.

The leaders would have been strung up from the nearest lamp pole, the people would be rioting in the streets, there would be a breakdown of authority and anarchy would rein supreme. So why are oil prices in a free fall, the stock market soaring, people calm and politicians still in office?

There is one intangible in economics that defies all rules of accounting and all standards of financial integrity. It is an intangible that stands in the face of common wisdom and sinister manipulation. It makes executives buffoons, analysts liars and politicians fools and in the end stands in defense of the helpless and silent majority called citizens.

It is the spirit of a nation born out of revolution, hardened by civil war and awakened by world wars. It is the spirit of freedom that guides the United States and makes it the envy of terrorists and financiers, the super rich and despots, warmongers and human rights violators, and all of those whose lives are grounded in evil and motivated by greed.

The American Spirit has withstood the test of time and the trials of sacrifice and never faltered from its ferocious defense of freedom, protection of human rights, its sense of fair play, its tolerance of diversity and its foundation in spirituality. True spirit can only come from a higher force like spirituality, a fact our Founding Fathers knew well and our current leaders keep trying to forget.

The United States is not old, it is still young and it will never lose its youthful enthusiasm because our Founding Fathers made it a living, breathing modern nation the day they adopted a Constitution that was the first in world history to be first person present tense.

The USA is the richest, most powerful and still most generous nation on Earth no matter who is the present pretender to the American seat of power (the president) for in truth the president and congress work for the people.

Our nation, under God, has evolved and grown for 232 years making it one of the oldest continuous forms of government yet one of the youngest nations in world history. Our role in the world far surpasses that of being a super power. People want what we have and we buy from others what we need and the result is an economic system that is the most unique, yet most stable in history.

I mentioned in a recent banking article how 15 of the top twenty banks in the world are from Europe. Two others are from Japan, meaning 17 of the top 20 banks in the world are from other nations leaving just 3 of the top 20 from the US. Yet the profits and losses of all those world banks are dictated by the US economy, no one else.

The world would be bankrupt if the US was bankrupt. The vast majority of money in the world is driven by the US economy, what the US needs and what the US generates, and the nations of the world, like it or not, would fade away and die without access to our markets, goods and services.

That is not an indication of arrogance but a statement of fact. We are in a financial mess but one we have faced before and when our leaders prosecute the crooks including those sitting next to them in our seats of power the system will heal and the world will be stabilized for a time.

Pay no attention to the purveyors of doom and gloom in the corporate boardrooms or on the evening news. They do not share our agenda. And we do not share their agenda. In the end they cannot win as their motives are not pure and their actions are not good.

Those that have tried to use the resources of America for personal gain will be stopped. Those whose greed drove them to manipulate markets, fix prices, corrupt associates and bribe officials have had their moment, even disrupted the world economy in the process.

In the end all the true enemies of the US are dependent on the US and cannot allow our country to fall into ruin. We have the only economy capable of making them billions of dollars and of protecting their trillions of dollars of investment in the US. The Spirit of America remains a beacon drawing the people of the world to us and that spirit will continue to dominate the world until it has spread throughout the world.