Like most males, much of my youth was spent in pursuit of innate pleasures, led, to be blunt, by the instinctive drive to “spread my seed.” Now that I am older and my capacity for spreading the seed has weakened, my quest is now to “spread my soul.”
I have a great passion for sociopolitical commentary, and though commentary is subjective by nature, I try to avoid the pitfalls of demagoguery and the obsessions of faith. I revere the teachings of Jesus, the Nazarene, but I am at odds with many Christian doctrines. My political hero is Thomas Jefferson, and my religious opinions arise from his views as well. But at all events, I consider myself a political independent, though liberals will accuse me of conservatism in some things and conservative will find me liberal in others. Hopefully these commentaries will explain the goal is to be an independent thinker, a state of mind which both Jesus and Jefferson hoped to instill in every person.
Though I will mention this in some commentaries as well, there are distinctions that must be recognized for a thorough understanding of my positions.
Perhaps the most important of them is the divergence between the true teachings of Jesus and the clerical doctrines that form mainstream Christianity. Many people, especially Christians, have a difficult time separating Jesus from Christianity, but the truth is they are distinct entities and are often in conflict. That’s why the founders kept Christianity out of the law of the land and, instead, adopted Jesusonian principles for their guidance.
Almost as significant is the distinction between American society and the American Idea, (a/k/a American theory.) The American Idea is just that, and idea, or more precisely, a conglomeration of principles sculpted together as a guide for a sociopolitical system. It came to public view with the Declaration of Independence in 1776 and was encapsulated in the US Constitution in 1787-1789. American society is a separate entity that began to develop in the early 1600’s both as religious and commercial ventures guided under the British monarchical system and entangled with a variety of divergent colonial regulations. The Constitution was constructed to give superiority to the nation’s original principles (from the Declaration) and ultimately to make them applicable equally among all the states, a goal of the document stated in the phrase, “to form a more perfect union.”
We all know that American society was not at its best when the country was formed, and the founders realized that as well. Their idea was to move it forward to better reflect the principles they cherished. Unfortunately, they left it to future generations of American leaders to continue the shift forward into unity under American theory. Obviously, so far, we’ve failed miserably. In large part, the failures occurred because few leaders since the founding generation have thoroughly understood the American Idea. In some cases, leaders since have deliberately ignored the American Idea and kept its benefits from America’s residents.
Hopefully, this series of commentaries will help spread the good news…
K. S. Key – May 30, 2020