“Con Con” = Constitutional Convention – need to add this to our Lexicon
To elaborate on my earlier post today I felt it necessary to explain what the threat of a “Constitutional Convention” actually means to all of us in these United States of America. This plea by radical “inerrant-bible-thumping” Political Dominionists goes beyond the “Tea Baggers” (I still can’t keep a straight face when I say that). Of course they fold those extremists into their head count as well…they will “sleep” with anyone for a vote!
Nonetheless, a ConCon based on a tyrannical motive is a serious threat to our freedoms in this country that we need to fight to preserve and protect with a pluralistic and secular thrust. Just look at the number of organized and well-funded represented groups who attended their March 2009 Jekyll Island, Georgia conclave for what they called the “Jekyll Island Project”
The last Con Con was held in 1787, when every state called to replace the Articles of Confederation with a better system of government.
“The United States Constitution is unusually difficult to amend. As spelled out in Article V, the Constitution can be amended in one of two ways. First, amendment can take place by a vote of two-thirds of both the House of Representatives and the Senate followed by a ratification of three-fourths of the various state legislatures (ratification by thirty-eight states would be required to ratify an amendment today). This first method of amendment is the only one used to date. Second, the Constitution might be amended by a Convention called for this purpose by two-thirds of the state legislatures, if the Convention’s proposed amendments are later ratified by three-fourths of the state legislatures.” – umkc.com
Fifty-five delegates from every state except Rhode Island gathered in Philadelphia to write a new Constitution. Delegates included George Washington, Thomas Jefferson and James Madison. Their product of that convention, the U.S. Constitution, has proven itself for over 220 years.
Since that time we have amended the Constitution, but that very fact, combined with a “biblical law for-one and-all” approach has poured gasoline on the extremist fires. Those involved in a ConCon movement
associated with Political Dominionists groups such as wethepeople.org and givemeliberty.com certainly have a great deal in common with the folks over at the Constitution Party/Alaska Independence Party. By that I mean they are document ‘purists’ and would revert our constitution back to it’s first year wording if given the chance.
These groups and others are actively recruiting delegates from each state for a convention to effect this revision of the rule of land across America.
Alex Bird, (known as “dogemporer” on Daily Kos), my co-researcher and collaborator on my 2nd book, “God’s Own Party? – Keep Your Bible OFF My Ballot!” had this to add about this group’s efforts…
“The calls for ConCons are increasingly coming from groups that
have documented histories of violence (“Christian Patriot” militias,
domestic terror orgs linked with Joel’s Army groups like the Army of
God, and so on).Dominionist groups, particularly hardline Christian Reconstructionists in “fundamentalist Baptist” circles and the Joel’s Army neopentes, have become increasingly close to
secessionist and frankly terrorist orgs of this sort; also, there’s now
documented cases of churches and entire denominations being
steeplejacked by groups with close ties to domestic terrorism and
secessionism (not just the usual Joel’s Army suspects and their Army of
God/Christian Patriot militia/etc. linkage, but the steeplejack of the
conservative (leaning dominionist) Presbyterian Church of America by
neo-Confederates linked with the secessionist (and Christian
Reconstructionist-dominionist and rabidly racist) League of the South.”
And there is the link that I was heading toward…they are fueled by the Political Dominionists…who as I have said, fuel the anti-tax, anti-diversity, anti-everything.
Check out the Continental Congress, We the People Foundation, and a list of state affiliated organizations that are available on their web sites. And re-read Yeager’s letter again…it is remarkable.
Tags: Burton, CC2009, Centennial Congress, Christian, Constitutional convention, give me liberty, political dominionists, teabaggers, United States, we the people
July 18th, 2009 at 6:45 am
There has a been a highly disturbing movement gaining steam ever since the election to delegitimize our government and our President. I think it all hooks up together. You hear Glen Beck spewing it on Fox. I really think it is highly dangerous for our country.
I know what I thought was a perfectly normal woman here in civilized suburban Connecticut who since the election has gotten caught up in the wave of insanity. She has filled her garage with a year’s supply of long shelf-life food specially ordered from the survivalist catalogues, she is raising chickens in her suburban yard for eggs and potentially meat if needed, she and her husband have purchased guns for the first time in their lives, and she is stockpiling ammo not just for the guns but also to be used as currency as well as buying junk silver on ebay with her kids’ college fund also to be used for currency.
This is a woman driving around in a brand new Honda Odyssey meeting me at Starbucks for coffee. Nothing but nothing has changed in this woman’s life since we elected a new President except all the right-wing crap she listens to has convinced her that a complete societal and governmental breakdown is imminent.
This attempt at a new ConCon is disturbing and dangerous. And clearly these folks are not familiar with The Federalist Papers.
July 18th, 2009 at 8:31 am
Please consider contacting Bravenewfilms.org and see if they could put you in touch with a documentarian who might be interested in filming parts of the upcoming Continental Convention. Also, do you think it merits mentioning the ConCon to Hatewatch.org?
July 18th, 2009 at 11:08 am
That is a great idea. We are working on a tremendous mountain of research and I do think that you are correct in that a film production will ultimately have the largest audience in getting this message out. Thank you for that suggestion.
Yes, we do think it warrants monitoring them as a potential domestic terrorist hate group and are sharing anything that comes to our attention with federal authorities as well. Thank you for your comment…
July 18th, 2009 at 11:14 am
Anne…that is exactly what the general public need to hear! That there are so many people out there being caught up in this insanity and we have no way to gauge just how many of them there are. A quick guess is to simply take the evangelical audience and the numbers that voted for Palin/McCain and that is a scary number!
It is profound brainwashed paranoia and I truly do believe that there should be a line with spewing violent propaganda. I know it is difficult to honor our freedom of speech when we hear the things that come out of Fox – but when there are already numerous examples of violence that have already occurred, do we have to wait for an attempt on Obama? It is frightening.
July 18th, 2009 at 12:45 pm
Man have you got your facts all screwed up. The groups you name such as We the People all are and have been for years on public record as opposing a “constitutional convention.” If you take any time at all to read their web pages you’ll see clearly that We the People has gone out of its way to state this is not a “constitutional convention.”
Now I’m not one to usually support We The People but if you’re going to put up something on the Internet it seems to me you have the obligation to at least be slightly accurate in your accusations.
July 18th, 2009 at 2:48 pm
Aaaah Bill,
I knew this article would drag him out of the woodwork! I keep meaning to write that blog about “Astro-Turfing” and apparently the time is now. Bill has a propensity for chastising anyone who writes about concerns over a constitutional convention and uses the same cut & paste lecture for one and all.
I reminded Bill that I did not make any spurious connections on my own. My name is NOT Sandra Yeager, the author of that lovely call to arms letter wherein SHE cited the associations of Continental Congress 2009, We the People and Give Me Liberty – not I. That letter is posted previous to this one right here on my blog for your reference.
I will conclude by saying that some Astro-Turfers are more articulate than others…and I will demonstrate that in my next post that I am heading off to write post haste!
Stay TUNED!
August 5th, 2009 at 2:20 am
Post coming…again…she sent this regarding 2 of my posts…and again…thou doth protest too much, for why would she care?
August 5th, 2009 at 4:04 am
Got it covered Sandra, in my recent post…