National Chairman's Letter
Platform - Unalienable
Rights
July 2003
Dear Independent American friends,
I wish to comment on the Unalienable Rights section of our IAP National
Platform. The fourth belief point of the Introduction section of our Platform
says:
4. [Unalienable Rights] We believe that God has endowed men with certain
unalienable rights, such as life, liberty and property; that these rights
are guaranteed by the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution; and
that it is the function of government to protect these rights.
But these rights are in grave jeopardy today in America. They are shunned by
legalized abortion, Homeland Security, and oppressive taxation.
The Unalienable Rights or fourth numbered section of our Platform,
includes the subtopics Life, Liberty and Property, and begins:
4. UNALIENABLE RIGHTS
Life. We affirm that life begins at conception, and that the fetus is
a human being with the same unalienable rights as all mankind. We are
opposed to abortion with rare exceptions. We are opposed to partial-birth
abortion, which is clearly infanticide. We advocate the security and
protection of all human life, including the unborn, disabled, infirm, and
aged. We oppose cloning of human life. We oppose the distribution and use of
all abortion-type pharmaceuticals.
The paramount responsibility of our government is to protect the life and
all other rights of each person within its jurisdiction. We oppose
government funding and support, at any level, of any organization or entity,
foreign or domestic, which advocates, encourages or participates in the
practice of abortion.
Abortion has become America's means of birth control. It is our response to a
breakdown in moral values. It is our echo to Hitler’s "Final
Solution" for the unwanted. It is our exceedingly great national shame. A
government that shuns the protection of human life, will ultimately eschew all
of our rights.
Many argue that abortion is at least an option for an unwanted pregnancy. And
that is true. But so is suicide. Both of these options destroy human life. Both
are evil choices.
For every three births in the United States, there is an abortion. That
equates to 28,000 babies butchered in the womb each week, equal to half our
losses in the entire Viet Nam war. Since Roe v Wade, 40 million babies -- more
than 13,000 "nine-elevens" -- have been sacrificed to "the god of
choice."
Liberty.
We claim the inherent and individual
right to keep and bear arms, as guaranteed by the 2nd Amendment, is
fundamental to safeguard life, liberty, and property, to discourage and
defend against tyranny, and to preserve the security and independence of
person, state and nation.
We support the religious liberties of all people and of all religious
persuasions. We support the rights of private organizations to determine
their own membership, volunteers, and employment based on their oaths and
creeds.
We oppose legislation that allows the federal government to suspend our
God-given Rights or that prevents the people from suing government agents
for violating citizens' civil or fundamental rights during times of war,
national disasters, national emergencies, or declarations of martial law,
etc. We favor the repeal of the 1933 War Powers and Emergencies Act.
There are two kinds of liberty: the enduring freedom that our Founding
Fathers envisioned; and the short-term freedom that most libertarians have in
mind. The first comes, not from the right to choose, but the making of
right-choices. The second is wrought with negative consequences that ends with
individual loss of life or liberty, or the captivity or destruction of a nation.
With free agency, one has the freedom to sin. But that "freedom"
becomes short-lived when one destroys his health, happiness, life or soul, or
collectively his nation through immorality, drugs, and general unrighteousness.
The scriptures say "Where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is
liberty" (2 Corinthians 3:17) and "Blessed is the nation whose God is
the Lord" (Psalms 33:12). As a Christian and generally righteous nation,
the Lord fought our battles, and blessed our land with peace, joy, prosperity
and freedom. But now as an increasingly pagan and immoral nation, we stand to
lose His promise and be swept off this land.
Property.
We deem it a violation of the right
of private property guaranteed under the Constitution for government to
forcibly deprive citizens of their property through taxation or otherwise.
We assert that our 5th Amendment property rights limit the federal power
of an eminent domain solely to the purchase of private property at fair
market value for legitimate public use, and not for purposes such as urban
renewal, environmental protection, or historic preservation.
We maintain that government must be strictly limited in its powers to
intrude upon the private property of individual citizens, and that there be
no search or seizure of persons, places or things without due process of
law.
Americans today are in financial bondage. Our personal wealth is being eaten
by high usury on personal loans, excessive taxation, and inflation. We are
ravaged by an Internal Revenue Service, a system of fractional banking, and
government forfeiture of property.
Our national wealth is being eaten by deficit spending, interest on the
national debt, and the selling of America to foreign creditors. It took over 200
years for our national debt to reach the $1 trillion mark; and another 20 years
to multiply that more than six-fold. Two percent of the people control ninety
percent of the wealth in America.
The Communist Manifesto called for "A heavy progressive or graduated
income tax" and "Centralization of credit in the hands of the State,
by means of a national bank with State capital and an exclusive monopoly."
We got these with the 16th Amendment and Federal Reserve Act.
May we fight hard to restore our God-given rights of life, liberty and
property for all Americans.
For God, Family and Country!
Bruce Bangerter
IAP National Chairman
