The Case Against U.S. Armed Revolution

     Ever since the founding of the United States there have been factions who exist on the precipice of revolution. These loosely affiliated groups of individuals see any excessive government intrusion into their lives as an impetuous to pick up their rifles and reconstitute the government, by force, to their vision of the constitution. There of course was Shay's Rebellion, the Whiskey Rebellion, the New England states' secession threat during the War of 1812, the South's insistence on states' rights over the continued survival of the Union, et al.
     The revolutionaries of American modernity have suggested that the federal government has overstepped its constitutional bounds, and it is the duty of all freedom-loving citizens to set right, with the use of force, this embattled ship of state. As a constitutional-loving conservative I can well understand the frustration of many with the current state of affairs in this country. But the wise founders of this nation gave us the mechanisms of the constitution so that armed conflict against the government would not be necessary.
     Before all those who are convinced that revolution is the only way to re-secure our Liberty begin to regurgitate quotes from our founders supporting such action, I would implore them to consider the limits of the written language. Words spoken or written by even the most brilliant men are at best a snapshot in time. Many a man has said things, or believed things in his twenties that he did not feel as strongly about in his thirties, forties, or fifties and beyond. And it seems silly to me that with such a beautifully written document as the United States constitution, which has proven itself to be worthy of the best and most libertarian way to organize a society, that there can be those who would turn their backs on such a document and base a bloody revolution on random quotes from the men who framed it.
     The realities of twenty first century America seem to have alluded these modern day revolutionaries, who seem to think they are still domiciled in eighteenth century America. This country is no longer an almost entirely agrarian society based in just the eastern most region of the continent. It has grown in size by a factor of more three times what it was 240 years ago. And the economy has become so diverse and complex that the agrarian lifestyle that men like Jefferson and Madison thought would always be the dominant one in this country, has now become occupied by one of the smallest minorities in this nation.
     Not to mention that any armed revolution by a group of people who somehow think they will gain military support in a war from their fellow citizens, when they are unable to secure political support in peaceful elections, is a fool's errand. What these thousands of wannabe revolutionaries do not understand is that their misguided ambitions will receive no support, only condemnation, from the hundreds of millions of their fellow citizens who see a better way, i.e. the United States constitution.