“I know my rights, I know the law, and what I say I saw, I saw!”

I may not be a movie buff, but even I know that this line comes from the Shirley Temple movie The Little Princess.

This 1939 quote applies to most Americans today. We know our rights. We know the first amendment, and we argue about what can be included in free speech. People join the NRA to defend their right to own guns. Characters on television continually seek refuge in their fifth-amendment rights.

But do we know the tenth amendment?

The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people.

Who cares? I do. If my state treads on my freedom, I can move to a different state. Consider the Great Migration (1910-1970), the mass movement of African Americans north. They knew how to escape Jim Crow laws.

Even now, we can choose to live in a state where it’s easy to run a home business or where there are fewer restrictions on home schooling. If I want to drink large sodas, I’ll stay out of New York City.

But if the federal government enacts oppressive regulations, where can I go to escape? Does the Constitution give Congress power to regulate health insurance, or was this a power reserved to the states?

I promised not to post again until I had read the entire Constitution. I kept my promise. I only found three places in the Constitution that might give Congress power to regulate health insurance. They are as follows:

1. The Commerce Clause (Article I, Section 8.3)
2. The General Welfare Clause (Article I, Section 8.1)
3. The taxing power (Article I, Section 8.1 and Amendment XVI)

If you found another relevant clause, please comment.

Made in China – So What?

I’m taking a short break from discussing health care to address Olympic uniforms. My main thought is “Big deal!” In 1776, Adam Smith explained:

It is the maxim of every prudent master of a family, never to attempt to make at home what it will cost him more to make than to buy… If a foreign country can supply us with a commodity cheaper than we ourselves can make it, better buy it of them with some part of the produce of our own industry, employed in a way in which we have some advantage.

 If China can make clothing cheaper than we can, we’re fools to make it ourselves. We should make the things we can make most efficiently and trade with China for our shirts and shoes.

There are legitimate things to debate concerning international trade. Why is it cheaper to make clothes in China? Do we have too many business regulations in the U.S.A.? Are our corporate taxes too high? Are the Chinese workers underpaid? If so, would we help the Chinese people by refusing to do business with their country, or do we help them more by providing jobs that are better than what they would get otherwise? Do American workers receive enough in unemployment/welfare that they are unwilling to take low-paying jobs like manufacturing clothes?

If news shows want to cover Olympic uniforms, I wish they would deal with these questions. Continually running video clips about burning the uniforms is not news. It’s emotional hype, and I’ve had enough of it.

Whose Job Is It?

Ever get frustrated with your friends who gripe about constitutionality when the health care system is a mess? It’s almost like people standing around, watching a house burn and arguing about who should get the hose.

But in this case, it does matter who does it. Our founding fathers divided the power between the federal and state governments to safeguard our freedom. Putting all the power in the hands of a few is very dangerous.

How do we know whose job it is to address health care? The answers are all found in a ten-page document – our Constitution. Have you read it lately?

I read Article I last night. I was pleasantly surprised that it is much easier to understand than modern legalese. I promise I won’t post here again until I finish reading the Constitution. Will you take the challenge, too?

Five Questions about the Affordable Care Act

“Give me liberty or give me death!” Patrick Henry exclaimed. We all know this line, but can we quote anything else he said? He opened that famous speech with other wise words. After complementing the patriotism of the gentlemen who had just spoken, he said:

I hope it will not be thought disrespectful to those gentlemen if, entertaining as I do, opinions of a character very opposite to theirs, I shall speak forth my sentiments freely, and without reserve…[In] proportion to the magnitude of the subject ought to be the freedom of the debate. It is only in this way that we can hope to arrive at truth…

 I have good friends on both sides of the health care debate. Like Patrick Henry, I hope I do not sound disrespectful when I speak. We need the truth. Let us have free debate.

My five most important questions about the Affordable Care Act are as follows:

1. Who should address the health care problem, the federal government or the states?
2. Can we afford the ACA?
3. Will the ACA work?
4. Will the ACA impair our freedom?
5. Are there feasible alternatives to the ACA?

I plan to address these questions in a series of posts. I hope I do not antagonize my friends. I want free discussion. As Patrick Henry said, “Should I keep back my opinions at such a time, through fear of giving offence, I should consider myself as guilty of treason towards my country…” Please join me in this search for truth.