tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13617569.post3070275364190451091..comments2024-03-27T02:13:58.088-07:00Comments on Integral Options Cafe: Founding Faith: Providence, Politics, and the Birth of Religious Freedom in America, by Steven Waldmanwilliam harrymanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06981478282688361274noreply@blogger.comBlogger1125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13617569.post-65407324631374666722008-04-13T13:13:00.000-07:002008-04-13T13:13:00.000-07:00I am a descendant of Charles Carroll of Maryland, ...I am a descendant of <A HREF="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_Carroll_of_Carrollton" REL="nofollow">Charles Carroll of Maryland</A>, who for six years was the last living signer of the Declaration of Independence after Adams and Jefferson both died on 7/4/1826; was perhaps the richest American of his time; and was the sole Catholic among the Fathers.<BR/><BR/>Being a Catholic, he was barred from many political offices, practicing law, and voting!<BR/><BR/>I have doubts about Waldman's viewpoint, but I'll be eager to read his book [after first checking a hoped-for index in the book for Carroll references]. There is a so-called "<A HREF="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Whig_history" REL="nofollow">Whig view</A> of American history," that claims that America was all about a new vision of freedom, emancipating us from Old World orthodoxy. I'm unclear if Waldman is Whiggy or not, but there are cases to be made for wholly different, fully-as-well-documented perspectives of the flow of what The Fathers wanted.<BR/><BR/>So far as I am concerned, unless you're a justice on the Supreme Court, America belongs to the 21st Century now and discussions along these lines are only of academic interest. Attaching ourselves to what the Fathers wanted is a bit of magically thinking that persists.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13718601770472939313noreply@blogger.com