Chapter 2 second letter

Brother Lu: Hello! When I was still hesitating how to continue writing, your reply letter has come, saying that you are very interested in seeing me write, I will give it a try. American freedom is hard to imagine without being there.Once I started to write, I found that to write about the "freedom" of the United States, it seemed that I had to start with its "non-freedom".When I was in China, I felt that people around me believed in essential connection. Well, since the United States is famous for its "freedom", it can be very laissez-faire without any restrictions.I almost entered this country with this concept in mind.However, only a few days after staying here, a girl told me that a good friend of hers had been detained.The day before just happened to be a weekend, and the young man and his friends were boating and fishing in the river at their home.However, they crossed their boundaries and entered the park by water.It turned out that the police found out that they had violated two local regulations, the only one I remember was not having obtained a fishing permit in the park beforehand.In short, the two "crimes" seemed nothing to me at the time.But in the United States, according to the local law, the conditions for detention are fully met, (of course, the detention is time-limited), such violations are not very serious, and you can post bail pending trial, but the stipulated bail is not low, so the young man finally chose Sit in jail awaiting trial.When I first arrived in the United States, this incident really surprised me.

The longer I live in the United States, the more I find that there are far more laws and regulations than in China.Various "laws" are there to take care of the details of behavior in public places, large and small.What is particularly impressive is that the law enforcement here is very strict.Once breaking the law, no matter how insignificant the "law" seems to be "violated" as a new immigrant, there is no room for accommodation.Once caught by the police, no one pleads for mercy or smiles at the police, because it is useless.Not to mention that no one had the guts to hand over money to the police, because the crime of "bribing the police" would be a big deal.Generally, it is business affairs. If you should receive a subpoena, you will receive the subpoena, and if you should receive the ticket, you will receive the ticket.This is also one of the important reasons why a large number of immigrants pour into the United States every day, but they are still able to maintain the "chaos".Because the original legal foundation is very strong, we can quickly bring some "uncertain factors" into the original legal track.In addition to federal laws, each state, city, county, and town has its own laws.From a new immigrant's point of view, everything is quite strict.

I came from a country that is proud of its "alcohol culture". At first, I felt that the contrast was particularly large, and it was the laws about "alcohol".For example, almost all state laws prohibit the sale of alcohol to young people under the age of 21.This is true in New York City.Due to the strict law enforcement, even middle-aged people will be required to show their driver's license when they go to buy alcohol, because there is a date of birth on it, which can determine their age.If the police see a young man under the age of 21 buy a can of beer from you, you must go to court.When a friend of ours was working in a restaurant, he sold a bottle of beer to an "old-looking" young man because of negligence and failed to check his driver's license. He was brought to court and fined $500.Recently, the city where we live has legislated that young people under the age of 18 cannot buy cigarettes.

Of course, this is not to say that there are no young people under the age of 21 drinking alcohol in the United States.Young people of this age are the most rebellious and most want to do something "prohibited". This situation is the same all over the world.But in the United States (theoretical) understanding, because practice not only has the advantages of universality, but also has directness. If they do this, they can't be free from worries. If they are caught by the police, they will have to accept the punishment.Every year on the beaches of Florida, the police can always catch a group of such young people.This summer, we saw some young people like this on TV, after paying a lot of fines, they walked out of the court in great frustration.

In addition, the store is not allowed to sell alcohol after 11 pm from Monday to Saturday, and the store is not allowed to sell alcohol all day on Sunday.There are also two days off per week.People's activities seem to be quite regular. Friday night and Saturday are the time to relax and play, and the traffic flow decreases sharply on Sunday night.Perhaps, when this law was enacted in the first place, it was to let everyone take a rest on this day, take a good rest, and prepare for the work of the next week.In the state where I live, until last year, the law was amended to allow restaurants with alcohol licenses to sell alcohol on Sundays, but other retail stores still cannot.

Also, by law, alcohol is not allowed during working hours, so you don't see Americans drinking beer with lunch at work because lunch is also during working hours.Alcohol is also not permitted by law in many states, so you can only bring non-alcoholic beverages to a picnic in a park.It's even illegal for you to hold an open wine bottle on the street, whether it's empty, full, or half-filled.Likewise, it is illegal to have an opened wine bottle within the driver's reach in a car, even if it is just an empty bottle.Due to the strict law enforcement, most people are very careful. I remember one time, when an American friend of ours was about to move to another state, we got together to send him off.A girl gave him a bottle of good wine, and he opened it on the spot for everyone to taste.It was nearly midnight when we broke up, and he got into the car with the remaining half bottle of wine, but he jumped off immediately, put the half bottle of wine in the trunk of the car, and smiled at us and said, "I don't want to Get in trouble."

Of all the developed countries, the United States probably has the strictest regulation on alcohol.Perhaps, this has something to do with the history of the United States.The first group of immigrants in the United States were Puritans who escaped from religious persecution in the United Kingdom. They paid more attention to the implementation of the "Ten Commandments" and other religious commandments than Catholics.It means that the saints have fully achieved spiritually and pay more attention to "self-cultivation and self-cultivation".Therefore, in the history of the United States, there was a period of total alcohol prohibition.Later, with the development of the times, it was impossible to completely prohibit alcohol, and the law of absolute alcohol prohibition instead created opportunities for those who brewed and smuggled alcohol to get rich.Therefore, it was gradually relaxed.But in contrast, it is still strictly controlled.In modern society, due to the development of highways and automobiles, the speed of people's movement has been greatly accelerated. The strict management of alcohol in American laws has indeed effectively reduced the number of car accidents caused by alcoholism.

Of course, it is not only related to wine that there are so many "laws".The tentacles of American law reach almost every corner.We went to Phoenix last year and stayed with an old friend who is also from China.When I got here, I encountered new problems that I had never encountered before in China.The problem comes from their daughter who is in elementary school. When she was in China, like all the children of dual-earners, she hung a key around her neck and went home to do her homework after school.In the United States, the law stipulates that children under the age of 12 must be supervised at all times to avoid dangers caused by ignorance of children.After leaving school, if the parents cannot take care of themselves, they must entrust others to take care of them.Therefore, there are a large number of nursery schools in the United States. Girls in middle school use their vacations to take care of other people's children, which is also an important part of their "part-time jobs".Our friend was not yet financially well off at the time, and because he was used to China's practice, he felt that it was "unjust enough" to pay the childcare fee.So, decided to take the risk of "breaking the law".Every day after school, when the child walks to the door of the house, he will look around very carefully, and then sneak in.Then, the child complied with the care of his parents and did not open the door or answer the phone, for fear of being found that the child was alone at home.Because if someone finds out, it is entirely possible for Americans to kindly go to the police out of consideration for the safety of their children.In this way, the child will be taken to a special welfare institution and temporarily adopted by the government.It is very difficult to get your child back without going through a laborious legal process.They will worry about this until the child is 12 years old.

This year, the baby of a Chinese student couple was taken away by the government.The baby's mother was on a business trip, and the father was woken up by the child in the morning. While changing the diaper and washing the child, he missed twice and the child fell into the bathtub from his hands.Since then, the child has been crying.At three o'clock in the afternoon, the father saw that the child was still crying and took him to the hospital for fear of injury.The hospital found that the child had fractures and other problems. After understanding the whole process, they immediately went to the police.After the child was treated, he was temporarily adopted by the government on the grounds that he had been abused.In addition to losing the child, the parents of the child may also face prosecution for "abuse".They not only won the sympathy of the compatriots around them, but even the Chinese newspapers in the United States reported the indignation of the Chinese people.It is said that they finally had a son, how could they "abuse".The Chinese concept of "abuse" is highly subjective and active.But in the United States, this is only a legal concept, which does not consider motives, but only looks at behavior and consequences.It has its own "legal logic": a baby was dropped twice, but could not be checked and treated for nearly ten hours. American law believes that this situation can only be called "abuse".In this matter, we can also see the difference between the views of ordinary Chinese and American law.The focus of Chinese sympathy is almost entirely on this pair of "unfortunate parents". They feel that their children have been taken away, and they still have to face a lawsuit. It is indeed extremely unfortunate.However, the focus of American law on this type of issue is almost entirely on the side of children.It also has its reasons: children cannot protect themselves yet, and of course the law must be on their side.

There are many things that we are used to in China, which are "illegal" here.For example, if a child is crying, it is illegal for parents to slap it; if there is a dispute in a public place, Ronald is "Mahadeva Govind Ronald". , is also illegal.If this happens, people who see it are likely to call the police immediately.Perhaps, because of this, we have been here for so many years, and we have never seen such a situation in a public place once. So, for a typical capitalist society like the United States, is being a boss very free?Let me give you an example: If you are looking for a job for an interview, it is illegal for the employer to ask your age; it is illegal to ask if you have any disabilities; it is illegal to ask your marital status; it is illegal to ask your birthplace and It’s illegal to ask about your immigration status; it’s illegal to ask if you have children; it’s illegal to ask if you’ve been arrested… and so on.That is to say, when we enter a work unit in China, we fill in a normal form, which always includes age, place of origin, gender, ethnicity, personal identity, family identity, when we joined the Communist Youth League, when we joined the party, when and where What kind of punishment and other terms have you received? If an employer in the United States hands you such a form, you can take it and say "see you in court" to him.What's going on here?

These first stemmed from the Civil Rights Act of 1964.The 1960s was a time when the whole world was in turmoil.For the United States, the 1960s is almost a historical dividing line.America before and after was very, very different.The result of the civil rights movement in the United States in the 1960s was not only to legislate the abolition of racial segregation, it also made liberalism popular.Before the 1960s, in the United States, employers had the final say.However, since then, the concept of protecting everyone's equal rights has surfaced, especially the vulnerable groups in society, such as ethnic minorities, women, disabled people, etc., and their rights have received unprecedented attention.It was against this background that civil rights law emerged. The provisions on employers in the Civil Rights Act of 1964 covered all enterprises with more than 25 employees. The law prohibited the claim that inaction is the root of all things because of the race, religion, and color of the employees; , gender, and his immigration background (country of origin) to discriminate in terms of employment and working conditions.Therefore, if the employer asks these questions, the real reason for his refusal to hire you may be "immigrant discrimination", "racial discrimination", fear of women having children will affect the work...etc, and depriving a person for these reasons The right to work is illegal.Therefore, the law simply stipulates that these questions are not allowed to be asked. The "Employee Age Discrimination Act" in 1967 also stipulated that citizens over the age of 40 should not be discriminated against in employment. Since then, employers can no longer even inquire about their age. In 1972, the United States enacted the famous "Affirmative Action Act", which stipulated that all government agencies and private companies with more than 15 employees must give disadvantaged groups a certain proportion in terms of recruitment, technical training, promotion and other opportunities .Otherwise, it is illegal.Incidentally, affirmative action also extends to college admissions.For example, there is no physical examination for college admissions in the United States. Under the protection of the affirmative action, young people with disabilities are more likely to enroll than ordinary young people.I mention this in particular because when I was taking the university entrance examination, there was a young man who worked with me. He did very well in the examination, but he failed because of a slight disability in one hand. I don’t remember his name, but I can’t forget it. His gaze on the day the admission notice was issued.This is really unfair, Hua Luogeng has a disabled foot, so why can't he go to school.Enforcement of this bill also raises many problems, which I want to introduce to you later. In 1990, the United States passed the disability law, which not only covers people with physical and mental disabilities, but also covers people with infectious diseases.Employers are not only required not to discriminate, but must provide them with jobs within their capabilities, and are also required to provide necessary conditions and equipment.Such as hearing aids, reading aids, etc.For example, if an employee is found to have HIV, as long as his illness does not affect his work, the employer must not dismiss him, and must provide him with necessary conditions to prevent infection.Otherwise, it is illegal. In 1991, the United States once again enacted a new civil rights act.Put the burden of proof on employers and employees in civil rights lawsuits back on the employer.What's going on here?For example, if an employee sues an employer for gender discrimination, then a new theory is established, which becomes the main opponent of Confucianism.He led his apprentices to Qi, Lu, Song, and so on. Of course, the court needs evidence.There are two aspects of evidence, one is that the employee presents evidence of being discriminated against, and the other is that the employer presents evidence of not discriminating against the employee.If the law stipulates that the burden of proof is on the employee, then if the employee fails to produce sufficient evidence of discrimination, the employer should be acquitted.However, if the law stipulates that the burden of proof is on the employer, then the employee does not have to provide sufficient evidence, but the employer must produce sufficient evidence to prove that he did not discriminate against the employee. As long as the employer cannot produce such evidence, then the court can find that You are discriminatory.Of course, whichever side the burden of evidence is on, that side has higher requirements and is more unfavorable. In the 1980s, when the Supreme Court judged such cases, it was more inclined to protect the interests of the employer, and the burden of evidence was also required to be on the side of the employee. The Civil Rights Act of 1991 corrected this tendency in the form of legislation.The most powerful move is that this law stipulates for the first time in the history of the United States that if an employee is discriminated against because of his race, gender, age, religion, etc., he can claim punitive compensation for mental injury from the employer.Later, it happened that all the female employees of an insurance company united to sue the boss for gender discrimination in promotion. After winning the lawsuit, the compensation amount was almost astronomical.A few days ago, another manager of an auto parts company who weighed more than 300 pounds sued his boss for weight discrimination after being fired, and won a high amount of compensation after winning the lawsuit.Due to the strict law enforcement, it does not seem to be "free" after becoming a boss in the United States. When they were in China, people were deeply impressed by the "sexual openness" and "sexual freedom" of the United States.But little is known about the other side of America.Therefore, I would like to introduce to you some regulations on "sexual harassment" in the United States.Prohibition of sexual harassment is also part of civil rights law.If you work in an American company, especially some large companies, there are some strict codes of conduct in the workplace.When you see this, you may think that a very serious "harassment" is called "sexual harassment". In fact, from a Chinese perspective, this does not seem to be the case.I once read the rules and regulations of a large company, which is a thick book, in which there are many regulations prohibiting "sexual harassment" in the workplace formulated in accordance with civil rights laws.For example, posting nude photos in the workplace is not allowed.Americans are very accustomed to putting some private photos and decorations in their working environment. In general offices, the owner will put all kinds of enlarged family photos, as well as various decorative paintings and photos that he likes. There are all kinds of things. Have.But if a nude photo is posted, it falls under the scope of "sexual harassment".This rule is even so strict that if you post nude photos on the inside of your locker, you are banned.For another example, swearing in the workplace also falls within the scope of "sexual harassment", even if it comes out of the mouth.There are also clear boundaries for joking. The rules and regulations determine that different genders have different feelings and understandings for a joke. Whether a "joke" is "sexual harassment" is determined by listening to the feelings of the "joke" party as standard.That is to say, when you make a joke, no matter how "indifferent" you think it is, as long as the person listening to the joke feels uncomfortable and thinks you are "sexual harassment", you can confirm that you are "sexual harassment" . The requirements for managers are particularly strict. If they date and fall in love with the staff they manage, the company stipulates that one of them must be transferred to work in another department, and expressly warns that such a situation may affect the future of the managers.At the same time it is a universal spirit, the Absolute.It is not only an idea, but also has a purpose and will. The system also has instructions on how to complain to the "harassed" after the occurrence of "sexual harassment", and designate a certain department and person in charge to file a complaint.The recipient of the notification is obliged to keep it confidential, and must give a response to the investigation and handling within the specified number of days.However, if it has been brought to court, the company no longer has the duty of confidentiality. A friend of mine works on the assembly line in a factory, and she told me what happened in her workshop.One day, the work was very busy, and the female workers complained about their backs and backs. A male administrator stood behind a female worker, and he squeezed her shoulders for the female worker. Usually, this was just a friendly gesture.Afterwards, the administrator was brought in by the supervisor for a conversation, and he was charged with "sexual harassment."Of course he defended himself, and the supervisor showed him the company's regulations. According to the regulations, it was suggested that all staff should "no physical contact".Because "unwilling contact" is a very important item in the crime of sexual harassment, in order to avoid this, it is easiest to simply "no contact".This is not only a problem between the opposite sex, but also between the same sex, because there are homosexuals in society.In fact, Americans are far more sensitive to "contact" than Chinese.The concept is also different.After a long time, we are also used to hugging with American friends when we meet and break up. Regardless of gender, everything feels natural.However, Americans are fairly demanding of personal space among people they don't know well.On the first day I arrived in the United States, I noticed that they were already saying "sorry" to me when they walked past me, often two feet away.Because, he feels like he has invaded my space.When queuing at the post office, the distance between people will also be widened.Of course, in the subway, especially the subway in a big city, it is impossible to increase the distance, but as long as it is possible, the distance will be increased naturally and immediately.Not to mention "touching" each other. For Americans, these laws and regulations are a convention that people in different regions live together. Changes in local laws often require local referendums.Some major issues of public concern should be decided by legislation.For example, whether a lottery can be issued.When we first arrived in this state, the law here did not allow the issuance of lottery tickets. Later, the governor proposed a bill to issue lottery tickets to raise funds to improve education, which was strongly opposed by another group of people. After a lot of publicity and counter-propaganda.The common people have listened to both opinions for more than a year. Finally, the referendum passed. Since two years ago, the state has amended the law, and then began to issue lottery tickets. When you enter a region to live, you must abide by the convention of the local people. If You don't like it, you can have the freedom to move.But there is no "freedom" to break the law locally. Under the plethora of laws in the United States, we find that when Chinese people often use words such as "good", "not good" and "bad" to make moral judgments, it is the philosophical works of Leola.Written between 1895 and 1904.Divided into four parts, before, here is often try to bring it into the scope of the law through legislation, and make it deeply rooted in the hearts of the people.So, when I first came here, chatting with Americans, I immediately found that there was a big difference between us and them, that is, when we commented on the "good" and "bad" things, they often simply said: "It's legal" and "It's illegal". One thing stands out to me.A few years ago, we chatted with a Beijing friend from Chicago. He said that some Chinese bosses here are quite stingy, and sometimes workers do not pay overtime pay for overtime work.At this time, his 12-year-old daughter, who had only been educated in American schools for two or three years, immediately shouted instinctively in English after listening to her: This is illegal!We were stunned when we heard it. Soon, we gradually got used to this way of thinking.I remember that time when I came back from the Grand Canyon, I happily talked about my trip to the Grand Canyon with a large group of Americans.They also happily joked with me: such a deep canyon, what a pity not to do anything!Didn't you drop a coke can?I blurted out: that's illegal!Everyone was even happier, because they found that I was finally getting used to using such words.Seeing this, you may not be able to help but ask, the United States is so "unfree" after a long time of trouble, so where is the "freedom" of the United States reflected?Why is America the freest country in the world? In the United States, all local laws cannot be contrary to the spirit of the Constitution.Its constitution establishes a democratic system, and the amendments to the constitution, especially the first ten articles of the amendment, are often called the Bill of Rights. The empiricism of doctrine cancels the existence of the objective material world, which is fundamentally wrong.Only, it guarantees that the most basic rights of every "individual" in the United States are not violated.Americans believe that if a person's most basic rights can be guaranteed, he is free.You can think freely without worrying about being prohibited or suppressed; you can freely acquire all kinds of knowledge and information without worrying about being restricted; you can express your opinions freely without worrying about being threatened; you can create freely without worrying about being restricted ; to be free to live on one's own land without fear of invasion and destruction of one's homeland; The protection of the law, and even the right to pick up a gun to defend one's freedom. Therefore, ordinary people educated in the United States are very sensitive to civil rights.On the one hand, they accept a very strict concept of "legal" and "illegal", on the other hand, they are most concerned about which rights they have guaranteed by the laws in this country, and they actually enjoy these rights in real life.Because for them, this is the guarantee of freedom.If anyone, including the US government, tries to violate their rights, they will kill you.Therefore, we have seen that all cases about civil rights, that is, those involving individual freedoms protected by the Constitution, are very serious. Often, the case of a small person will cause national debate and even alarm the Supreme Court. So, it seems that if I want to talk about American freedom, I must introduce what rights Americans have. The easiest way is to introduce the patron saint of American freedom - the Bill of Rights.These bills are nothing new to the Chinese. I remember when we were in China, we all read these bills. At that time, these bills had been translated and introduced to China together with some other important historical documents of the United States.However, for us at that time, these were just some simple provisions on rights written on paper, which seemed to have no practical significance.After coming to the United States, the biggest difference is seeing how these lifeless provisions "live" in American life.Seriously, it's been a lot of fun watching these provisions come to life.What I want to talk to you about are those "live" clauses. To talk about the famous Bill of Rights, I have to mention the founding process of this country, because the founding of the United States is very special.You know America had a long colonial history before its founding, when most of it was just British colonies.Later, the people here became more and more dissatisfied with the British policy towards the American colonies, pointing out that both nature and society are full of contradictions, and it is a common phenomenon to divide them into two. What aroused great public indignation was that the British legislation did not allow the common people in America to have freedom of assembly, and allowed the local garrisons to occupy houses, which infringed the private property of the people, resulting in frequent conflicts.Whenever there was a conflict, they always faced the suppression of the well-armed and well-trained British regular army, so they felt that this was an unfair game. It's interesting to think that what ended up sparking what is called the "War of Independence" is actually not unlike many of the colonial wars that have followed around the world for independence.Because America's "War of Independence" lacked the nationalistic overtones such wars usually have.On the American continent at that time, most of the residents came from the United Kingdom, and many people had a short immigration history. They not only had inextricable ties with the United Kingdom, but even had a strong sense of identity.And they just wanted to be independent from the Emperor.Therefore, rather than saying that this is a war against the colonists, it is better to say that this is a civil war that demands local independence and self-government.In fact, there were indeed many American royalists who sided with the British army at that time, which made the war more civil war. I say the establishment of this country is very special because I found that if you strictly pursue it, you can't be sure when this country was established.Americans now celebrate National Day every year on July 4th, which is the day when the United States issued the Declaration of Independence in 1776.The founding of the United States is counted from that year.However, at this time, the eight-year "American Revolution" that attempted to break away from British rule had just begun for one year. The United States had only announced its goal of independence, and there was still a long way to go before true independence.Therefore, the United States at that time did not have a decent government, no president, no constitution, and many things that seemed necessary as a country. America's founders hadn't even brought America down. The Declaration of Independence was issued by the so-called "Continental Congress".This "parliament" was just a "meeting" temporarily gathered together by representatives from various regions of the British American colonies at that time.This "Continental Congress" is not really a government, and its first meeting was not the year of the "Declaration of Independence". The ideal was in 1774, two years before the Declaration of Independence.See "Taoism". , it has held a meeting and decided to "rebel".It's just that most of them decided to "anti" at that time, and it was only "anti" unreasonable decrees of the emperor. The goal was not independence, but to fight for the freedom of the colonial people.Two years later, when they met again, after a period of war with the Emperor's garrison, they agreed that they could not be free without getting rid of the Emperor's rule.Only then did the idea of ​​independence arise, and the "Declaration of Independence" came into being.Therefore, strictly speaking, at this time, the founders of the United States only declared that they wanted "independence", but the world was far from being conquered. Perhaps, in the concept of Americans at that time, they were already "free and independent America".In their view, the president is not a necessary condition, and the central government is not a necessary condition. Their ideal of a free and independent United States is a necessary condition.They believed that America was built the day they declared their ideals to the world. After all, they were once the subjects of the Emperor, and independence was actually the overthrow of the legitimate Governor-General's government sent by the Emperor in the American colonies.In the history of any country, rebellion is not new. In China, there are also peasant uprisings. The winner is the king, and the loser is the bandit.However, the founders of the United States seem to be different from all the leaders of peasant uprisings in Chinese history. What they want is not to "pull down the old emperor and I will be the new emperor."They think that they are pursuing an ideal that belongs to human beings. They said in the "Declaration of Independence" that their requirement is to grow equality, freedom and happiness on this land. Therefore, in the "Declaration of Independence", they very interestingly denied the rationality that they themselves must sit in the country after they have conquered the country.They don't seem to see any logical connection between "fighting the country" and "sitting on the country". Then, what is the "rationality" of establishing a government?They said in the "Declaration of Independence": "We hold these truths to be self-evident: The knowledge that all men are created equal is an independent reality. deprived of the rights, among which are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness, for the protection of which governments are instituted among men." Therefore, "the just rights of government derive from the consent of the governed ".The founders of the United States made it clear through this declaration that the government was organized by the people to protect their natural rights. Once "any form of government is destructive to these ends, the people have the power to change and abolish it." All of this happened before the country was conquered. In fact, it took seven years of the "War of Independence" after that.It was not until 1783 that they won the war, waged in the name of "life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness."Britain finally signed to recognize the independence of the United States.However, is the American people guaranteed to be free after independence?I think this is certainly not inevitable.In history, all the forces that tried to overthrow the old regime had a slogan that was absolutely beautiful to the common people.The reason is simple, the common people must fight together, without the support of the people, no reckless force can compete with a ready-made government.When the day of victory comes, when the heroic spirit of the victorious general reverberates, a question mark often quietly climbs up behind the original sounding declaration.When the War of Independence was won, for the victorious generals, it should be the best moment to seize power at once, because the hearts of the people at this moment are full of admiration for their heroes, especially for a military commander like Washington.However, this hero and commander, as well as all the heroes of American independence, like their soldiers, dispersed as soon as the battle was over, and they all went home to do what they should do!The "left behind" America still doesn't have a decent government.It seems unimaginable that this matter will be spread on the head of any country. Do you think the founding of the United States is very special? I don't know if the world's great people who have made the same achievements as Washington can understand Washington and his partners.At least once I suspected their "abnormal" behavior because they were country bumpkins on the wild continent, without the "temperament and courage" of leaders.Because I always find it strange to see Washington in the history of American gardens.华盛顿酷爱田园生活，所有介绍美国园林史的书籍，都要提到他和他这一辈人对美国园林的影响。在独立战争中，他还念念不忘写信回家，对庄园的种植进行安排，并且从英国邮购各种植物的种子。战争一结束，他就迫不及待地回到他的庄园，忙在他的土地上，致力于改良品种，终日与牛马为伍，尽情享受着归隐田园的乐趣。以至于在1783年英国承认他们独立之后，美国似乎还是没有“建国”。依然没有总统，没有统一的税收，没有一个政府应该有的许多东西，一点不象一个正儿八经的“国家”。 所以，当这批最初的建国者打下江山的时候，看上去他们好象就跟他们手下的士兵一样，松下一口气，说：这下好歹摆脱那该死的中央政府逻辑学德国黑格尔的哲学代表作之一。又称《大逻辑》，，可以自由了。所以，独立后的美国非常松散，他们甚至把这个应该是国家的东西叫做“友好联盟”。各州纷纷通过他们自己的州宪法，在这些州宪法里，很多都包含了今天的“权利法案”的内容，即以法律的名义保护个人的自由。独立第二年，当时的“大陆国会”还通过了一个文件，以确认各州可以保持他们的“主权，自由和独立”。不管这事情看上去是多么荒唐，但是有一点是可以肯定的，美国的建国者确是一批真正热爱自由的理想主义者，他们的作为，尤其是他们在得到这个国家之后的作为，为美国成为一个自由国家奠定了基础，为美国人和千千万万个即将来到这个国家的移民的自由，奠定了基础。 此后，几年的实践证明：美国作为一个主权国家，如此薄弱的政府体系实在挑不起类似协调金融贸易，调节市场流通，保卫边疆之类的重担。于是，在美国独立宣言发表十一年之后，在独立战争结束4年之后，1787年，美国的各州代表才被迫重新聚集在一起，讨论起草一个宪法，以试图建立一个强有力的政府，即美国联邦政府。 但是，这些建国者们似乎对英国政府统治下的前车之鉴尚且记忆犹新，而且深痛恶绝。对于“中央政府”这个玩意儿依然疑虑重重，他们生怕逃出虎穴又落入狼口，生怕美国人民重新丧失他们刚刚得到的自由。也许你会说，这回该是轮到他们自己建立政府了，只要他们自己下定决心“施仁政”，不就得了，有什么可犯难的。但是，他们似乎认为事情并不那么简单。他们认为，国家机器自有它自己运转机制。只要建立起来，它就会成千上百年地运转下去。万一走上歧途，小小百姓根本很难与之匹敌。 他们从与英政府打交道的过程中深有体会，政府是可以随时调动包括军队在内的强有力手段的，而人民是势单力薄的；政府是由一大批精英组成的，而人民松散的，水平参差不齐的；政府是可以调动上千亿来自税收的财富的主义和整个现代实验科学的真正始祖”（马克思）。反对阻碍，老百姓手里的小钱是干不了什么的。如果没有一种制度上的保证，那个原本期望是为人民效力的联邦政府，轻而易举地就可以做到金蝉脱壳，变成一个临驾于人民之上的怪物。到了那个时候，再想要“扭转乾坤”就太吃力了。因此，在制造这个巨兽之前，他们只觉得自己是在面临一场巨大的挑战。 美国的建国者依然面对他们原来的问题：如何虎口余生--如何制造一个强大的国家机器而人民的自由又不给它一口吃掉？对于他们来说，有一个思路是非常确定的，他们认为，所谓人民的自由不是什么抽象的东西，它就是具体的一个一个“个人”的自由，而对于这种自由最大的威胁，就是一个有组织的，有财力的，有执法权的巨大力量。因此，如果能限制联邦政府的权力，如果能在联邦政府的巨大威胁之下立法保护每一个具体的美国人的个人自由，那么，抽象的“人民自由”就已经实现了。 鉴于上述思路，他们在起草美国的宪法的时候，也就是在确立一个政府框架，制造美国的国家机器的同时，决定同时制定一些限制联邦政府权力，保护个人自由的条款，作为整个宪法的一部分。这就是著名的“权利法案”。在确定宪法的过程中，有两种意见发生了激烈的争执，一派的意见是这些保障人民自由的条款，必须与宪法的其它条款一起通过；另一派则希望政府能够早日进入工作状态，他们的意见认为，先通过宪法把政府建立起来，然后再讨论权利法案的条款，把它作为宪法修正案加上去。结果后一种意见占了上风。实际上，他们并没有什么大的分歧，他们都确认权利法案的重要性，分歧只是一个时间先后的问题。权利法案就是在这样的情况下诞生的。它旨在限制联邦政府权力的无限扩张。防止联邦政府干涉和剥夺美国人民的自由。从此由宪法所支撑的美国变成了一个设计精巧的结构。政府和人民时时处于互相制约的状态之中。这个运转结构也是美国稳定的原因之一：政府时时处于强有力的监督之下，它就不容易在错误的道路上走得太远，甚至发生大滑坡；同时，人民有了充分的自由，他们有了表达意愿的渠道以及宣泄情绪的出口，也就不容易积怨至深从而产生爆发性的破坏力。美国的政府结构也是很有意思的，以后有时间再聊。 到1789年，美国的宪法前一部分才被通过。也就是说，美国打赢独立战争的6年之后，美国人法定的建国日13年之后，美国政府才开始工作庸俗进化论19世纪末20世纪初西方各国的一种反辩证，美国才刚刚通过民主选举，选出他们的第一届总统华盛顿。这个时候，美国大概可以说正式建立起来了。正是这一年，法国大革命爆发，法国人攻下了巴士底狱。整个世界都为之震动，把法国革命看做是平等自由的先驱。而在当时人们不屑一顾的蛮荒之地美洲大陆，一个民主的制度，一个自由的国家已经在非常理性的思考下悄悄建立起来了。即使我们在今天以挑剔的眼光，审视这份200年来一个字都没有被修改过的美国宪法，都会被它所表现的人类智慧和理性所折服。 权利法案，即宪法修正案的前十条，是在1791年依法被大部分州通过之后，成为美国宪法的一部分的。 以上我所谈到的历史部分，你可以轻易地从美国的中学课本中找到，宪法教育是他们中学教育中很重要的一部分。我看到过一本中学课本，一张卡通画形象地表现了他们前辈的思考：画上的一个人拿着一份宪法草案说“我们需要一个有力的国家政府！一个惊叹号，另一个人则激动地争辩：“你这文件上没有列出我们的权利！ ! ! ”三个惊叹号。画得十分生动。 美国的自由就是这么开始的。但是，我会在后面向你介绍，美国人追求自由的过程实并不是一帆风顺的，权利法案在两百多年来的实践中，它简洁的条文必须面对复杂而且活生生的现实生活“异”概念的确定性。认为一切都是相对的，万物都在变化之，它纸面上的立法必须逐步打破甚至已经存在了几百年的习惯势力(如种族偏见)，去真正确立人的尊严。它不断受到不同时代特点的挑战，而且在将来肯定会遭遇更为严峻的考验，人们为此所支付的沉重代价会一次次动摇自由的信念。所以，看到了美国的自由之后，我们常常说，自由实在不是什么罗曼蒂克的东西，这只不过是一个选择，是一个民族在明白了自由的全部含义，清醒地知道必须付出多少代价，测试过自己的承受能力之后，作出的一个选择。 而且，这并不是一锤定音的终极选择。自由除了质的定义，还有量的测度。在不同的时代，自由所经受的冲击和支付的代价是不同的，人们的认识程度和承受能力也是不同的。当必须支付的代价超过了承受能力，人们往往会选择放弃一部分自由。自由和代价是两个分不开的话题。 今天写得够长的了，下回再接着写吧。 盼来信！ Linda