WAR The smell of rotting human flesh was heavy in the air. It was a something you'd remember for the rest of your life. War is hell, I've heard. Now I know! The battle against German troops near a quaint, obscure French village had been going on for days. This miserable rain had soaked us to the skin. Every house in the village had grape vines in their yards. Yet there was no one to pick beautiful bunches which seemed to beg to be harvested. The Germans were experts in booby trapping the vines and many who tried to pick grapes paid for it with their lives. It isn't very pretty to see people killed and draped over vines that way. Suddenly, we heard mortar shells headed in our direc- tion. We dove for our foxholes. This was a fierce battle and apparently we had backed the German troops into one of their supply depots. They never were short of ammunition. In a momentary lull, we heard voices. To our amaze- ment, three elderly French people were walking along a road like they were on a Sunday stroll. They paid no attention to the foreboding sounds of the shells and bullets. The roads in this area were built higher than the surrounding ground to prevent flooding during rain storms. This high road bed made them look like targets in a shooting gallery. None of us could believe they hadn't already been wounded or even killed. They were absolutely dazed. Two old women and an old man, in tattered old coats, carrying what they could have of their possessions. Two of us ran toward them, keeping our profiles as low to the ground as we could. They paid no attention to us as we approached. "Please," we pleaded with them in our basic French, "get off this road until the shelling is over. Do you want to get yourselves killed? There has been enough of that here already." They paid no attention to our pleas. They were in a daze and numb. We finally just grabbed them and pulled them into the ditch away from the direction of the shells. "Please, stay here until the shelling stops. We'll let you know when it's safe to go on." The older of the two women finally understood what we were telling them to do. She told the others to stay here with her until it was safe to go on. We returned to our positions certain we had the three safe for now. It was a good feeling we had then. Suddenly the thought hit me. Here we were in the middle of the French countryside making the world safe for democracy. We were killing or being killed. How grand and glorious! Did those three poor harmless old people know we were here to make the  world safe for democracy? It really didn't make much sense to me. Our government had been telling us for years we were fighting an enemy to make the world safe for democracy. The raving of mad men. DEMOCRACY IS THE WORST OF ALL POLITICAL EVILS! This was the consensus of our Founding Fathers. They considered democracy a dirty word. James Madison wrote "[D]emocracies have ever been spectacles of turbulence and contention; have ever been found to be incompatible with personal security or the rights of property; and have in general been as short in their lives as they have been violent in their deaths." (The Federalist Papers, No. 10. All references to 'paper no.' in this book are from The Federalist Papers.) It was an agreement shared by the men who were at the drafting of our Constitution in May of 1787. Where does the notion come from that the United States is a democracy? The word democracy or democratic does not even appear in our Constitution. Nowhere. When did they decide we are a democracy? This sounds ominously like the 'newspeak' which George Orwell spoke of in his book 1984. World War I and II were billed as wars to make the world safe for democracy. What a sham put over on Americans! Look at our pledge of allegiance. "[A]nd to the Republic for which it stands. . ." That doesn't say anything about a democracy, does it? Yet, this is all we hear today. No one ever mentions we are a republic. This has been intentional since as James Madison said, democracies are inconsistent with personal security or the rights of property. The philosophy of the IRS! The word republic is derived from the Latin 'res', a thing, and 'publicus', belonging to the people. Webster defines a republic as a nation in which the supreme power rests in all citizens entitled to vote and exercised by representatives elected, directly or indirect- ly, by them and responsible to them. The people we have elected throughout the years are trying to convince us that our country is now a democracy. That way they no longer need to consider themselves respon- sible to those who elected them. Remember the pay raises? Perhaps they trying to create the dissension and turbulence which James Madison cautioned us about. Another statement heard from government honchos is "We would like to see a democracy established in such and such a country." Just a slip of the tongue? Let's examine some of the notes taken by several people during the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia in 1787. One of the best sources is a government publication titled "Documents Illustrative of the Formation of the Union of the American States". (House Document No. 398, 69th Congress, 1st Session, 1965) Another book which details the deliberations of the  convention is "Notes of Debates in the Federal Convention of 1787" by James Madison. Ohio University Press printed this book in 1966. Two points are recurrent throughout the debates and speeches of the convention. The new government was to be republican and they despised and feared democracy. Note particularly Article IV, Section 4 of our Constitution which states: "The United States shall guarantee to every State in this Union a Republican Form of government . . . ." Governor Edmund Randolph of Virginia presented the first plan to the Constitutional Convention. The above statement was in all three texts of resolutions proposed including those in secret debates. They never questioned the republican concept and it's in the document as we can see. Dr. James McHenry of Maryland agreed saying, "None of the state constitutions provide sufficient checks against democracy." Alexander Hamilton of New York makes the statement that we are now forming a republican government. These were the feelings and convictions of our Founding Fathers. One of their fears was a democracy could easily turn into a monarchy. By looking at the period this is understandable. Hamilton further observes there are "Two principles in which Americans are unanimous, (1) attachment to Republican government and (2) to two branches of legislature." This same thought was often heard from Col. George Mason of Virginia. Neither Gov. Randolph or Col. Mason signed the finished proposed document. Both felt the power given to Congress by the document was dangerous. They wanted another convention to consider the amendments proposed by each state as the Constitution was ratified. Sadly, this never occurred. Col. Mason feared the dangerous power and structure of the government and his conclusion was "that it would end either in monarchy, or a tyrannical aristocracy; which, he was in doubt, but one or the other, he was sure." A tyrannical democracy would be closer to the truth today. On page 952 of Documents Illustrative of the Formation of the Union of the American States, we find the following interesting little story which happened when the convention was completed: (punctuation added) A lady asked Dr. Franklin, "Well Doctor, what have we got? A republic or a monarchy?" "A republic," replied the Doctor, "if you can keep it." His admonition was prophetic. We haven't been able to keep it. Webster defines a democracy in part as majority rule. That's precisely what we have today. The majority has found they can get our elected representatives to violate their oaths. They pass laws to take money out of the public treasury to give to those who produce nothing. Democracy  then reigns. When did this turn about? There is NO authority to dispense public funds beyond the permission which we entrusted when we agreed to this business of government. The supremacy clause is verification . . . "This Constitution, and the Laws of the United States which shall be made in pursuance thereof . . shall be the supreme Law of the Land;" There it is in a nutshell. ALL laws made have to comply with the warrant we granted in the basic document or they are not laws. This is what makes the command of due process of law so important. If any law goes beyond the grant of power, there is no due process of law! And we are not required to obey such a law. To hold the feet of the people working for the federales to the fire, we included the requirement that all elected Senators and Representatives, as well as anyone who works for government, take an oath to support the supremacy of the Constitution. (Art VI, Sec 3). In paper No.51, Madison states that it is of great importance in a republic to guard the society against the oppression of its rulers. It is equally important to guard one part of society against the injustice of the other part. We now have part of society not protected against oppression by rulers or from the injustices of another part of our society. Another warning not heeded. Let's take another look at paper No. 57 by Madison: The House of Representatives are restrained from oppressive measures in "that they can make no law which will not have its full operation on themselves and their friends, as well as the great mass of society . . It creates between them that communion of interests and sympathy of sentiments of which few governments have furnished examples; but without which every government degenerates into a tyranny. If it be asked, what is to restrain the House of Representatives from making legal discriminations in favor of themselves and a particular class of society? I answer: the genius of the whole system; the nature of just and constitutional laws; and, above all, the vigilant and manly spirit which actuates the people of America -- a spirit which nourishes freedom, and in return is nourished by it." "If this spirit shall ever be so far debased as to tolerate a law not obligatory on the legislature as well as on the people, the people will be ready to tolerate anything but liberty." It's common knowledge today that Congress passes all sorts of laws but exempts themselves and their staff from any requirement to be held accountable. What horse manure! Madison said the vigilant and manly spirit which inspires Americans and in turn is nourished by freedom. This is the spirit which needs to be awakened and rekindled to restore our Republic. In the beginning of our history, the republican theory was alive and well in all branches of government. Even  decisions by the Supreme Court referred to our government as a republic. Justice Joseph Story summarized it well when he wrote in about 1837: "The founders of the Constitution laid the cornerstone of our national republic." The farther our government strayed from the specific powers we granted, the idea was spread that America is now a democracy. Big brother has convinced the people of this nation that they are doing what is best for us. They are even going to determine what goes into our pizza or how much television cable companies can charge customers. They are showing us they are the hallmark of a great democracy and thereby gain support for specific welfare and free cheese. And, they are doing it, getting away with it and we go along with it. Apparently, it shows our approval. The introduction to our Constitution shows the objec- tives for our country when it was established. These objectives illustrate the spirit and ideals of another great document, the Declaration of Independence. This introduc- tory statement is the antithesis of democracy. Search for the domestic tranquility they sought. We won't find it at Kent State University or at hundreds of other oppressive situations which occur throughout our land each month. Look at the wanton stealing by the IRS with their audits and seizure of property. Is this promoting the general welfare? Our elected and appointed officials have decided power and might are now a right. The people and the Constitution be damned! Dr. Benjamin Franklin, on signing the proposed document, said any government could turn into despotism. This would happen when the people became so corrupted they would be incapable of any other. (House Document No.398) We are almost at that stage today. Are the people so corrupted we are incapable of anything but a despotic government? Despotism is an absolute power or influence of any kind. Americans are not so corrupted that today we are incapable of receiving anything but a despotic government. There is a problem however. We have lost the true purpose of our republic. This has been intentional on the part of some people in our government. We must reverse this tendency and wake Americans to the pitfalls of democracy and to their birthright of our republic. If we do not reverse this, we will lose our republic by default! The road to slavery is devious and slippery. If we are not watchful, we could wake some morning to find we are now called the Sovereign State of the United Nations. Are we already receiving our mental conditioning on TV for that possibility? Conditioning to become part of the 'New World Order'? The principles and ideals established in the preamble were to be for us and for our posterity. Posterity means all future generations. What will it be like for our children or grandchildren should we allow this idea to perpetuate? Will the distress and conflict of a democracy  continue and increase? One of our duties as a citizen is to make certain our republican form of government continues. For evil to continue, good men and women only need to do nothing. People don't want to get involved. People will be forcibly involved someday when they have to line up to have their number tattooed on their arm. Slaves or a free people? The choice is ours! SUPPORT THE SHAREWARE CONCEPT . . REGISTER WITH THE AUTHOR . . ONLY $19.95