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Conserving Order, Justice, and Freedom [Russell Kirk]
The Russell Kirk Center | Classic Kirk: a curated selection of Russell Kirk’s perennial essays ^ | Russell Kirk

Posted on 05/08/2022 11:53:04 AM PDT by SunkenCiv

The Constitution of the United States was and is rooted in the experience and the thought of earlier times—which is a major reason why the American Constitution has not perished or been supplanted by some different political system. No civilization could survive for a great while if somehow its political constitution should be swept away and no tolerable new constitution substituted. Deeply rooted, like some immense tree, the American Constitution grew out of a century and a half of civil social order in North America and more than seven centuries of British experience...

The aim of a good constitution is to achieve in a society a high degree of political harmony, so that order and justice and freedom may be maintained. No commonwealth ever has attained perfect order, justice, and freedom for everybody, and the Framers did not expect to achieve perfection of human nature or government. Yet they did expect “to form a more perfect union” and to exceed other nations of their time, and of earlier eras, in establishing a good political order...

But humankind being restless and quarrelsome, and because for the past three centuries the conditions of society have altered mightily in many countries, few constitutions have lasted a great many years.

(Excerpt) Read more at kirkcenter.org ...


TOPICS: Constitution/Conservatism; US: Michigan
KEYWORDS: constitution; michigan; russellkirk
Mecosta is a tiny place, for those who haven't been there, yet it has the best bookstore I've ever visited.

1 posted on 05/08/2022 11:53:04 AM PDT by SunkenCiv
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To: AdmSmith; AnonymousConservative; Arthur Wildfire! March; Berosus; Bockscar; BraveMan; cardinal4; ...
Have a great day, all.

2 posted on 05/08/2022 11:53:41 AM PDT by SunkenCiv (Imagine an imaginary menagerie manager imagining managing an imaginary menagerie.)
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To: SunkenCiv

You and I must have been neighbors. Been to Piety Hill many times. Annette Kirk is a very wonderful lady carrying on her late husband’s legacy. Mecosta does have a great book store, at least it did 15 years ago...


3 posted on 05/08/2022 11:56:29 AM PDT by Rural_Michigan
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To: SunkenCiv

For an understanding of the modern conservative movement you have to start with two writers. Russell Kirk and Whittaker Chambers.


4 posted on 05/08/2022 12:18:49 PM PDT by KC Burke (If all the world is a stage, I would like to request my lighting be adjusted.)
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To: Rural_Michigan

In rural Michigan, neighbors are anyone in a ten mile radius. ;^) I’ve only visited Mecosta, hmm, twice? The bookstore proprietors had their earlier place in Grand Rapids.


5 posted on 05/08/2022 12:25:03 PM PDT by SunkenCiv (Imagine an imaginary menagerie manager imagining managing an imaginary menagerie.)
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