Welcome to Our New President

When we went to the polls Nov. 8 to make our choices known, one was for the president. Most voters weren’t thrilled with the candidate they settled upon, but pulled a lever, hoping they had selected the lesser of evils. So we go forward from this point still anxious about what the future holds for our country.
As I contemplated writing this column, I started ticking off the number of times our nation was under enormous stress before, wondering how things were going to come out. Problems seem to loom so large as we endure them, but, with the passage of time, we all but forget about them, as we face the challenges of the new day.
Think about the American colonists, as they were contemplating a break from their fellow countrymen in England; the stress was so great that they took up arms against their leader, King George. The gut-wrenching strain was so great that a number of them moved out of the country, some to Canada, some to the islands, and some back to Mother England.
And then almost a century later, the anxieties they felt in our Southern states, as they were roiled about being dictated to by the North over the slavery issue — their hostility was so enormous they didn’t even want to have anything to do with the rest of the country, choosing instead to break away.
I am not playing down the friction we are feeling. In my 70 years, I have not felt anything like it. In fact, these fault lines have been brewing for a century. While I love our Constitution, I admit that it no longer functions as before. In fact, I heard a young person say, “I don’t want to be governed by a 200-year-old document.”
Okay, where do we go from here? Confidently forward, convinced that we would again work our difficulties and differences out. Yes, it may again be bloody, but I am optimistic that it won’t be. Fortunately, our Constitution does not bind us to the thinking of a couple of centuries ago, having made provision to alter it in any way we desire.
Because we are a nation of 50 states, not a monolith of one state, the states can choose to govern themselves as they see fit. If one state wants universal healthcare and the next state doesn’t, it should be that way. Likewise, on freedom of religion, free speech, abortion, social programs, you name it. And individually, if one doesn’t like the way his state is governed, he can move to another.
Currently, with power being evermore centralized in Washington, states have difficulty in choosing for themselves. It doesn’t have to be this way; one size cannot fit all in such a vast and varied nation.  So what do we do? When we broke away from London, each colony established its own constitution, and they then all banded together under our first national constitution, entitled the Articles of Confederation. When shortcomings came to the fore, the states again gathered and drafted our second national constitution, which governs us today.
Nothing on this earth lasts forever. At some point, it will become apparent to the majority that we have to create a third national constitution or significantly alter our current one.  If our present deadlock subsides, that day may be well down the road.  For now, let’s welcome our new president, assured that there is a pathway for a bright future for our children.
Art Hall
From the Bible:  Weeping may tarry for the night, but joy comes with the morning Psalm 30:5