Freedom and Justice Discussed-Body of Liberties 1641 and Bill of Rights 1789 (Hate and Corruption Thought Experiment)

Learning about our values and freedoms of society is important for positive and constructive civic engagement. The very rights of our people have a long history that goes into a philosophical discussion that spans back to Europe and Europe's borrowing of ideas from other golden eras of the Catholic, Greek, Roman and Islamic Empires as well as Jewish influence (The point it is universal and touched by many peoples Antiquity Freedom). Ideas do not exist in a vacuum and change and adjust over time making them living ideas that are as valuable today as they were centuries ago and will be tomorrow. Learning helps us understand the development of society and its collective benefits of shared values.

(I found this Bill of Rights History in Documents book at a thrift store I read so it got me thinking about this hypothetical thought experiment I have been using to understand for myself how to strengthen a democracy and in turn an economy. Reading these documents how they were actually written without a filter or mediator creates some insights into how the founding fathers/mothers thought. This is why to ancient Greeks and others saw an ideal citizen as an informed one. I already read it so if you want the book you can get it from me on Bill of Rights eBay)

Universal thoughts and ideas do not have borders or racial or religious preferences but are added to and adjusted to the needs of people. They stick in history because they have value to societal survival. This collective support and adaption is often why society is continuousy although slowly advancing and developing over time. It is possible to trace the development of intellectual thought through an analysis within different cultures and lenses. History of Ideas

(As a side thought, reading history and philosophy with an open mind and without bias or short term focus may allow for deeper knowledge heirarchies/scafolding that are more sophisticated than what would be possible without such exposure. This is why experts and philosophers are well read deep thinkers who often understand different cultures and peoples.)

We have been exploring a philosphical theoretical thought experiment for learning purposes on hate and coruption. In the example, a corrupted network ( dubbed "The Clan") of which some members engaged in bullying, spreading dehumanizing rumors, targeting, sexual expoitation, enrichment through intimidation/threats, blatant violation of human/civil rights, harming kids, disrespecting vets, manipulating sick elderly for money,  social prestige, and much more. While certainly it had racial and religious under and over tones to it, it also exposed a much wider problem of corruption (comingled data points and manifest/latent functions We can talk about different lines as indicators of bad behavior later. Theoretically anyway.).

This learning example is an interesting one because people have reported the behaviors in public, it was well known they were committed, people were enriched from aggression, submitted formal complaints, talk opening about immunities, and are aware of the social connections between decision makers, investigators, and perpetrators (friends known to be part of the same social network). Some have experienced similar behaviors and are very aware of corruption. No matter how many laws and rules are broken or how many people are harmed there was little to no attempt to hold to account the network leading to a first stage of default and then a number of other stages where community members had to act to protect their public institutions and did so in a public legal way. 

(The coordination and insulation of bad behaviors could be put into certain category that a forshadows the possibilities of collectivization under just the right circumstances. A danger with the blind eye approach to network protection. There are many micro defaults that are avoidable in the example but the higher route was often not taken. Each time we are engaged in an ethical question like this we must consider the benefits and risks of choices. Choosing the highest moral standards are best but often unwanted in situations where hate, extremism, social networks and corruption exist in the same time and place. Remeber this is just a theoretical example of "what ifs")

The little mental exercise helped highlight 5 stages so far that ranged from defaults to community resilience. Let us pretend people reported but ultimately because of rampant corruption and hate where there was no recourse (victims silenced and exploited through corruption, hate and threats of violence). Good officials became muted for fear of upsetting Clan leaders (We support good officials when we report bad behavior and remove the elements that impact their full functioning and quality of work satisfaction. In other words, we fix the environment to let good people thrive by the values we live by. Continue to report until the network breaks or decision makers believe the community has value above their homogeneous friend/work network.). The rumblings and grumblings of community members grew but no ability to gain resolution. Investigations into perpetrators blocked while whisleblowers and concerned citizens quickly were put on secretive lists (History should be our guide here if such behavior becomes common.). 

(Let us thing from an adaptability aspect. If we know that something is wrong or a group of trouble makers caused issues then it would make sense to adapt upward. New problems bring new opportunities. Entre and intrapreneurs can sometimes foresee problems based on objective information and strategically adjust. This is why we should promote people on merit and specifically seek out the best and brightest versus the most connected. This example helps us learn why we wouldn't want to focus on status, race, religion, reasonable political perspective as a true measure of a persons worth or value.)

 In this example, to the positive attributes of the community, more victims led to collective pressure to vote out those misusing authority. The other mechanisms of changes didn't work as promised leaving victims and the rest of the community in a difficult spot (the danger of social clan networks.) As change was thrusted upon unyeilding hate and corruption supporters, prosperity began to return as a reward for patriotic values that were supported by the vast majority of society members (Corruption and hate generally have a negative effect on society because it reduces free innovative thought, upward pressure to encourage good leadership, and ultimately lowers transaction quality and speed which are foundational to economic health. Democratic societies typically experience more growth because of those freedoms In this thought experiment, freedom of speech and religion violated in wholesale. i.e. telling the victims why they are being targeted and then acting on that. Democracies and Wealth)

The philosophical example helps us think of the importance of community in preserving freedoms and the poor judgement some officials can display at times when they can benefit themselves or their friends (which benefit themselves). If we went to the bottom of the barrel argument they were aware of the crimes, knew they were harming good citizens to further clan interests, and tried to shirk responsibility as a result of creating all those victims. Restoring health also restores trust. (It is just something that is rooted in change and social perception; right or wrong. Our forefathers/mothers knew there was a propensity for people to misuse power and that is why checks and balances were created within the system.) The remnants of corruption and hate lingering on due to foot dragging and resistance to healthy change.

We should also make a distinction between mistakes that are corrected when compared to intentional nufarious activity where mistakes are repeated, rewarded, uncorrected and encouraged. Where the right thing is the wrong thing and the wrong thing is the right thing then we need to review and learn. Adjust and change. Victims are data points that point to a future unknown. If there are more victims the path becomes a little clearer (Other markers might be witnesses, video, economic datamarks, testimony, ideology, outcomes, etc. The words of those within those corrupted networks sort of start to look manipulative by nature.). 

Consider how deeply rooted freedom is from the beginning,

The Massachusetts Body of Liberties (1641) 

You can see some similarities with th 12 Amendments and specifically the 10 that are known as the Bill of Rights. Notice similarities in lines of thinking over historical periods that include root thoughts from different times, places, peoples, forms of worship and races. No one owns the concept of freedom but some societies such as ours codified it as fundamental to their being (Leaders should support that.). Some will seek to restrict those freedoms based on superficial perspectves, pressure, immature ideological development, unwritten expecations, etc. but ultimately these are perversons of something pure and universal (Using elightened ideals as the northern star versus lower bar anchors. You have to reach for something so make sure it is a good thing. ). 

Transcription of the 1789 Joint Resolution of Congress Proposing 12 Amendments to the U.S. Constitution

One lesson we might learn is that these are not useless words on an old piece of parchment or paper.  Freedom is rooted in our beginning and it is built into our culture and this is why our parents, great grand parents and great great grandparents strove for that freedom for hundreds of years and why so many of us have sacrificed to preserve it. Most believe in and support our principles as a people. Sometimes not everyone supports those ideals and will undermine those root freedoms for sefish gain. This is why we need some checks and balances when poor behaviors are normalized. No matter the pain and pressures to bend a knee to a lower standard and weaker moral conscious, we still have a responsibility to teach others from generation to generation to minimize the corrosive influence of corruption and hate. Where men/women make mistakes we enscripted a guiding reminding us of our ideals "In God We Trust"

(Let us explore philosophy a little more here. The term "In God We Trust" is that anchor ideal form of a type of perfection. We are expected to strive for the highest ideals because these institutions were inspired by moral and religious philosophies/philosophers. Some would say that at the root/encode of our social contracts and artificts is a collective "moral conscious" on how man/woman should live as free beings {free will}.  It isn't about a specific God or a specific form of worship. The concept of a higher moral conscious and order was drawn from many poeple's in history but is fundamental. We are going pretty deep into philosophy so let us pause there for a while.)

First Amendment: “Congress Shall Make No Law Respecting an Establishment of Religion, or Prohibiting the Free Exercise Thereof; or Abridging the Freedom of Speech, or of the Press; or the Right of the People Peaceably to Assemble, and To Petition the Government for a Redress of Grievances.”

*This is a philosophical thought experiment for learning purposes so take with a grain of salt. We can end the writing anyway we want and It will likely be a very positive. It is designed to help us think about the importance of integrity in systems and ensuring they are focused on their stated purpose and missions. Democracy is managed and run by people and therefore they must be central to decision making. We will write in a very positive outcome of win-win.