Having rejected the democracy model, the Framers defined a representative republic with elected representatives to speak for the peoples of the several states.

Misinformed Americans fail to understand the contradiction when they vehemently argue that every citizen has the right to personally be involved in voice and vote on virtually every issue regardless of its relevance to the strictly limited central government's powers enumerated by the Constitution. We often hear these folks talking about democracy, or representative democracy based on the representatives being instructed by public plebiscite on key issues.

Seldom do they ever recognize the distinction and refer to our Republic or those we elect to represent us with their own wisdom subject only to the consent of the governed, meaning, they are answerable to the people on regular intervals.

Under this successful format the Republic has survived many leftward thrusts to remake it a democracy---- all the way to individuals controlling every social or cultural issue for which they are currently crusading for or against.

In many countries this form of democracy is unofficially known as Communitarianism. It is, or has been, the popular vogue in Europe. For more information, read some of our previous commentary on the subject. Essentially, it contends that collectivist "community" rights trump and supercede individual rights. In other words, communitarianism advocates the Majority Unlimited aspect of democracy. We note with dread that a self-described "community organizer" was recently elected President.

Communitarianism is being taught in American law schools and has indeed found its way into local governments throughout the United States.

Many socialists and socialist-leaning people were imported from Europe to fight in Lincoln's War to Prevent Southern Independence and in the decades that followed. The Communist Party in the U.S. (CPUSA) flourished from 60,000 members in 1919 (The Socialist party had about 40,000 in 1919) to almost 200,000 around World War II. It goes without saying that most were supporters of FDR's "New Deal."

But in the 1950s with the Korean War, the Cold War, the second "Red Scare" and the efforts of Sen. Joseph McCarthy, membership fell to less than 10,000 by 1957. The Socialist Party of America fizzled, too, fielding their last Presidential candidate in 1956. McCarthy was eventually pilloried for aggressively outing Communists in government and various institutions but once he was (wrongfully! **) censured by the U.S. Senate and discredited by the media, many socialists and Marxists continued to ply their subversions, though with greater stealth. Many went underground or infiltrated other political parties.

Since the early 1960s, creeping, incremental socialism has progressed through much of American political policy and many American institutions.

Cleon Skousen, in his 1958 book "The Naked Communist," listed 45 Communist Goals to destroy America from within. Number 30 on the list is "Discredit the American Founding Fathers. Present them as selfish aristocrats who had no concern for the 'common man.'" Of course, number 30 goes hand-in-glove with number 29: "Discredit the American Constitution by calling it inadequate, old-fashioned, out of step with modern needs, a hindrance to cooperation between nations on a worldwide basis." and number 31, "Belittle all forms of American culture and discourage the teaching of American history...."

Whether a result of intentional treachery and subversion on the part of socialist enemies or a result of complacency, laziness and dereliction on the part of average Americans and the education establishment---or more likely, a combination--- we can see that communist goals #29 through #31 are being accomplished and are having the desired effect. If Americans don't know their history or how their government is supposed to work, how can they recognize violations of the Constitution or when they're being misled about politics or history?

Too many Americans are ignorant of their history and their government. That is an obvious and undeniable fact. The organization of facts and resources in this essay are intended to help patriots begin to change that. Knowledge is power and it will be the key to the survival of our liberties in the future as it has been since the founding.

In this installment, we have defined what the U.S. Constitution is, and its purpose and we have referenced the core principles embodied in it. We have reviewed irrefutable evidence that our government was not intended to be a democracy or any of its Quixotic Utopian brothers (socialist, communist, communitarian), but rather a constitutional Republic. We understand that the key advantages to a Republic are the built-in protections for the rights of the Individual and the Minority against oppression by the Majority and the checks and balances of opposing branches.

Finally, we clarified that our rights and liberties are God-given and not granted by any government. Governments are instituted by people to secure their God-given rights; all just powers wielded by governments are derived from the consent of the governed.

In Part 2 of this series (link coming soon), we'll explore past and present threats to our Constitution, the damage it has endured, and how these should be addressed going forward.

"Knowledge will forever govern ignorance; and a people who mean to be their own governors must arm themselves with the power which knowledge gives." --James Madison

"Democracy is the road to socialism." --Karl Marx

"In 1987, 45 percent of adult respondents to one survey answered that the phrase 'from each according to his ability, to each according to his needs' was in the Constitution (in fact, it's a quote from Karl Marx)." --Jonah Goldberg, in The will of the uninformed