Mr. President; Why the Change?

A Historical Perspective.

Before I start, I need to lay a little historical ground work. Please bear with me, the purpose for it will become clear a little latter.

Below is a list nations, sorted by when the current type of government was formed. Please take care reading the list. I'm not talking about how long a country by that name has been around, the list is sorted by the FORM of government. For example, in Iraq the FORM of government was changed with successful invasion and removal of Saddam Hussein. The FORM of government in an existing nation changed. The form of government is distinct and separate for the country, keep that in mind.

A couple of notes to keep in mind, the term “Republic” has a wide range from near anarchy to virtual totalitarian, Parliamentary is similarly wide ranging. Monarchy also ranges from totalitarian to Constitutional. The classification for the Form of the government is only a one word approximation to capture the general form, not specific.

With those notes in mind, pursue the list from the country with the newest Form of Government to the oldest. You might be surprised.

Source: CIA World Fact Book, and various others.

Kosovo	Republic	Independence	2008
Mauritania	Junta	Coup	2008
Thailand	Monarchy	Constitution	2007
Montenegro	Republic	Independence	2006
Serbia	Republic	Independence	2006
Afghanistan	Islamic Republic	Constitution	2004
Iraq	Republic	Regime Change	2003
Venezuela	Republic	Constitution	1999
Albania	Emerging democracy	Constitution	1998
Burma	Military Junta	Coup	1998
Hong Kong	Limited Democratic	Transfer	1997
Andorra	Parliamentary	Constitution	1993
Cambodia	Monarchy	Constitution	1993
Czech Republic	Parliamentary	Independence	1993
Eritrea	Transitional	Independence	1993
Slovakia	Parliamentary	Independence	1993
Bosnia and Herzegovina	Emerging democracy	Independence	1992
Armenia	Republic	Independence	1991
Azerbaijan	Republic	Independence	1991
Belarus	Dictatorship	Independence	1991
Bulgaria	Parliamentary	Constitution	1991
Croatia	Parliamentary	Independence	1991
Estonia	Parliamentary	Independence	1991
Ethiopia	Republic	Regime change	1991
Georgia	Republic	Independence	1991
Haiti	Republic	Coup	1991
Kazakhstan	Dictatorship	Independence	1991
Kyrgyzstan	Republic	Independence	1991
Latvia	Parliamentary	Independence	1991
Macedonia	Parliamentary	Independence	1991
Moldova	Republic	Independence	1991
Romania	Republic	Constitution	1991
Russia	Federation	Independence	1991
Slovenia	Parliamentary	Independence	1991
Tajikistan	Republic	Independence	1991
Turkmenistan	Authoritarian	Independence	1991
Ukraine	Republic	Independence	1991
Uzbekistan	Authoritarian	Independence	1991
Lithuania	Parliamentary	Independence	1990
Namibia	Republic	Independence	1990
Yemen	Republic	Unification	1990
Poland	Republic	Regime Change	1989
Sudan	Authoritarian	Coup	1989
Aruba	Parliamentary	Constitution	1986
Marshall Islands	Constitutional	Independence	1986
Micronesia	Federation	Independence	1986
Brunei	Sultanate	Independence	1984
Saint Kitts and Nevis	Parliamentary	Independence	1983
Anguilla	UK Territory	Constitution	1982
Antigua and Barbuda	Parliamentary	Independence	1981
Belize	Parliamentary	Independence	1981
Vanuatu	Parliamentary	Independence	1980
Zimbabwe	Parliamentary	Independence	1980
Iran	Theocracy	Revolution	1979
Kiribati	Republic	Independence	1979
Palau	Constitution	Independence	1979
Saint Lucia	Parliamentary	Independence	1979
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines	Parliamentary	Independence	1979
Somalia	Transitional	Constitution	1979
Dominica	Parliamentary	Independence	1978
Solomon Islands	Parliamentary	Independence	1978
Spain	Parliamentary	Constitution	1978
Swaziland	Monarchy	Independence	1978
Tuvalu	Parliamentary	Independence	1978
Djibouti	Republic	Independence	1977
Seychelles	Republic	Independence	1976
Angola	Republic	Independence	1975
Cape Verde	Republic	Independence	1975
Comoros	Republic	Independence	1975
Mozambique	Republic	Independence	1975
Papua New Guinea	Parliamentary	Independence	1975
Sao Tome and Principe	Republic	Independence	1975
Suriname	Democratic	Independence	1975
Sweden	Monarchy	Constitution	1975
Timor-Leste	Republic	Independence	1975
Grenada	Parliamentary	Independence	1974
Niue	Parliamentary	Independence	1974
Guinea-Bissau	Republic	Independence	1973
The Bahamas	Parliamentary	Independence	1973
Bahrain	Monarchy	Independence	1971
Bangladesh	Parliamentary	Independence	1971
Qatar	Emirate	Independence	1971
United Arab Emirates	Federation	Independence	1971
Fiji	Republic	Independence	1970
Oman	Monarchy	Legal reforms	1970
Tonga	Monarchy	Independence	1970
Bermuda	UK Territory	Constitution	1968
Equatorial Guinea	Republic	Independence	1968
Mauritius	Parliamentary	Independence	1968
Nauru	Republic	Independence	1968
American Samoa	US Territory	Constitution	1967
Barbados	Parliamentary	Independence	1966
Botswana	Parliamentary	Independence	1966
Guyana	Republic	Independence	1966
Lesotho	Parliamentary	Independence	1966
Cook Islands	Parliamentary	Assoc. with NZ	1965
Gambia	Republic	Independence	1965
Maldives	Republic	Independence	1965
Singapore	Parliamentary	Independence	1965
Malawi	Democratic	Independence	1964
Malta	Republic	Independence	1964
Tanzania	Republic	Independence	1964
Zambia	Republic	Independence	1964
Alegria	Republic	Constitution	1963
Kenya	Republic	Independence	1963
Burundi	Republic	Independence	1962
Jamaica	Parliamentary	Independence	1962
Monaco	Monarchy	Constitution	1962
Rwanda	Republic	Independence	1962
Samoa	Parliamentary	Independence	1962
Trinidad and Tobago	Parliamentary	Independence	1962
Uganda	Republic	Independence	1962
Kuwait	Emirate	Independence	1961
Sierra Leone	Democratic	Independence	1961
Akrotiri	UK Territory	Constitution	1960
Benin	Republic	Independence	1960
Burkina Faso	Parliamentary	Independence	1960
Cameroon	Republic	Independence	1960
Central African Republic	Republic	Independence	1960
Chad	Republic	Independence	1960
Cote d'Ivoire	Republic	Independence	1960
Cyprus	Republic	Independence	1960
Democratic Republic of the Congo	Republic	Independence	1960
Gabon	Republic	Independence	1960
Madagascar	Republic	Independence	1960
Mali	Republic	Independence	1960
Niger	Republic	Independence	1960
Nigeria	Republic	Independence	1960
Republic of the Congo	Republic	Independence	1960
Senegal	Republic	Independence	1960
Togo	Republic	Independence	1960
Cuba	Communist	Revolution	1959
Guinea	Republic	Independence	1958
Malaysia	Monarchy	Independence	1957
Morocco	Monarchy	Independence	1956
Tunisia	Republic	Independence	1956
Ghana	Democratic	Independence	1955
Libya	Authoritarian	Independence	1951
Nepal	Republic	Invaded	1950
China	Communist	Constitution	1949
Hungary	Parliamentary	Constitution	1949
Laos	Communist	Independence	1949
Israel	Parliamentary	Independence	1948
Sri Lanka	Republic	Independence	1948
India	Republic	Independence	1947
Pakistan	Republic	Independence	1947
Jordan	Monarchy	Independence	1946
Philippines	Republic	Independence	1946
Syria	Authoritarian	Independence	1946
Germany	Republic	Regime Change	1945
Indonesia	Republic	Independence	1945
Italy	Republic	Regime Change	1945
Japan	Parliamentary	Regime Change	1945
Korea, North	Communist	Independence	1945
Korea, South	Republic	Independence	1945
Vietnam	Communist	Independence	1945
Lebanon	Republic	Independence	1943
Saudi Arabia	Monarchy	Unification	1932
Holy See	Ecclesiastical	Independence	1929
San Marino	Republic	Electoral Law	1926
Turkey	Parliamentary	Independence	1923
Egypt	Republic	Independence	1922
Honduras	Democratic	Independence	1921
Ireland	Parliamentary	Independence	1921
Liechtenstein	Monarchy	Constitution	1921
Mongolia	Parliamentary	Independence	1921
Austria	Republic	Constitution	1920
Iceland	Republic	Independence	1918
Finland	Republic	Independence	1917
Taiwan	Democratic	Chinese Revolution	1911
Portugal	Republic	Republic proclaimed	1910
South Africa	Republic	Independence	1910
Bhutan	Monarchy	Independence	1907
New Zealand	Parliamentary	Independence	1907
Norway	Monarchy	Independence	1905
Panama	Democratic	Independence	1903
Australia	Parliamentary	Independence	1901
Switzerland	Federation	Constitution	1874
Luxembourg	Monarchy	Independence	1868
Canada	Parliamentary	Independence	1867
Argentina	Republic	Constitution	1853
Denmark	Monarchy	Constitution	1849
Liberia	Republic	Independence	1847
Dominican Republic	Republic	Independence	1844
United Kingdom	Parliamentary	Reform Act	1832
Belgium	Parliamentary	Independence	1830
Greece	Parliamentary	Independence	1829
Bolivia	Republic	Independence	1825
Uruguay	Republic	Independence	1825
Brazil	Republic	Independence	1822
Ecuador	Republic	Independence	1822
Costa Rica	Republic	Independence	1821
El Salvador	Republic	Independence	1821
Guatemala	Parliamentary	Independence	1821
Nicaragua	Republic	Independence	1821
Peru	Republic	Independence	1821
Netherlands	Monarchy	Constitution	1815
Paraguay	Republic	Independence	1811
Chile	Republic	Independence	1810
Colombia	Republic	Independence	1810
Mexico	Republic	Independence	1810
France	Republic	Regime Change	1790
United States	Republic	Independence	1776

Yep, that's right the United States has the oldest form of government currently on the planet.

That's important, but first let's deal with a few of outliers on the list, that could be used to argue the point.

Oman:

It's been a hereditary Monarchy since 1650. I will agree at high level the system in Oman has been in place longer than ours. But my counter argument would be when the law is embodied in the person of a Monarch, that the form of the government is therefore dependent upon that person, the character of the government results from a person, not a body of law, and changes depending on the morals, character, goals and actions of the monarch.

San Marino:

Gained Independence in 301, and lays claim to the title of oldest Republic. San Marino has been occupied on at least 3 occasions. In 1906 the Arengo (council) met and took positive steps toward democracy. During the period leading up the WWII Fascism took over the government of San Marino. San Marino held to a turbulent neutrality during the the war. In the post war era the communists gained control until 1957 when they fell from power.

Switzerland:

The Swiss Confederation was founded in 1291. During the reformation a heavy theocratic influence held sway in the government. Napoleon conquered Switzerland and made it part of the Helvetic Republic in 1789, regaining independence in 1815. In 1847 a civil war broke out Catholic and Protestants, as a result a Federal Constitution was adopted in 1848 and modified in 1874.

Sweden:

Gained its independence in 1523. With the reign of Gustav Adolphus Sweden established a dominated empire in the region until its collapse in 1721. In 1809 the Eastern portion of Sweden was lost to Russian, at the same time Gustav IV Adolf was deposed in a Coup d'etat. In 1866 parliament was reformed into the current form. The Constitutional Monarchy adopted in 1975

United Kingdom (England):

Since the Magna Carta to recent times England's government has been slowly evolving from pure monarchy to Parliamentary with a figure head monarch. The monarchy as we now consider it could be said to have started with the Tudors. However the form government in England needs to be understood in the relationship between the Monarch, the Parliament which consists of the House of Lords and House of Commons. The English Civil War of the 1640's led to the establishment of the Commonwealth of England in 1649 under Oliver Cromwell with the Parliament having little real power, and the House of Lords being abolished. In 1660 the house of Lords and the Monarchy was restored. Throughout the 19th Century the balance of power remained in flux between the monarch and the houses. In 1784 the Prime Minister emerged as the “First among Equals” with William Pitt the Younger. In 1830 the first “modern” prime minster Lord Grey took office and what followed was “The Great Reform Act” in 1832, followed by two more reform acts which settled the democratic tradition into English politics. Power struggles continued into the 20th Century between the houses of Parliament.

It's difficult to place a date on Englands current form of government, suffice it to say it settled into it's current form between 1832 and the 1911.

A note on France, since the French and America Revolution are often compared. Although the revolution occurred in 1790 shortly after that the Neoploenic era began and the Second Republic was established in 1848.

Another point of historical interest and comparison; the Greek democratic era lasted about 500 years, the Roman Republic lasted around 450 years.

Sources: Various.

So here we are at 233 years, longest continuously existing form of government currently on the planet.

Historical context is important, it's a trait of conservatism to look back at history, and study the lesson contained therein.

Which brings us in a round about way to President Obama and Change.

His campaign theme was Hope and Change, below are just a few quotes.

Change will not come if we wait for some other person or some other time. We are the ones we've been waiting for. We are the change that we seek.

"I’m in this race not just to hold an office, but to gather with you to transform a nation."

Hope is what led me here today--with a father from Kenya, a mother from Kansas; and a story that could only happen in the United States of America. Hope is the bedrock of this nation; the belief that our destiny will not be written for us, but by us; by all those men and women who are not content to settle for the world as it is; who have courage to remake the world as it should be.

It's not just enough to change the players. We've gotta change the game.

Whatever we think of the past, we must not be prisoners to it.

If we want this country to succeed in the 21st century, we've got to lay a new foundation for lasting prosperity.

… [The Constitution] didn't break free from the essential constraints that were placed by the Founding Fathers in Constitution at least as it has been interpreted and the Warren Court interpreted it generally in the same way that the Constitution is a document of negative liberties it says what the States can't do to you, [it] says what the Federal Government can't do to you, [it] doesn't say what the Federal Government or State Government must do on your behalf.

We remain a young nation, but in the words of Scripture, the time has come to set aside childish things. The time has come to reaffirm our enduring spirit; to choose our better history; to carry forward that precious gift, that noble idea, passed on from generation to generation: the God-given promise that all are equal, all are free, and all deserve a chance to pursue their full measure of happiness.

Obama see our founding document as flawed, that we are a young country needing to set aside childish things, that fundamental change and transformation of our government, economy and cultural is required to remake the world as it should be.

In retort to the President I would ask:

Mr. President Why the Change?

The success of that form of government is inarguable. Pick virtually any metric and in those 233 years we've become the worlds leaders. We dominated the world economy, provide uncounted scientific and commercial advances. Our culture is admired (and reviled) worldwide, but you can go to even remote corners of the world and find American culture.

Our military has a historically unmatched dominance, which hasn't been used to enrich us, it's been used to liberate others. Look up at the list, see that cluster of independences occurring around 1991? That was us, without firing a shot, 10's of millions liberated. 1945? A continent liberated, and all we ask for “was ground to bury our dead.”

Domestically we have unmatched liberty, standards of living, or just about anything else you can think of. Bill Whittle asked “which way are the rafts headed?” How many leave America for greener pastures compared to the number who risk everything to come here?

Look again at the list, how many Republics, Parliaments, or Democracies existed in 1776? The world for the last 233 years has been following our lead. Throwing off all other forms, to in various ways follow our lead.

We lead the world politically, economically, militarily, socially, culturally, not through conquest, force, coercion, and certainly on through empire. We lead because of who we are and what we represent and because other desire what we have attained and choose to follow.

Our government that has lasted for 233 years, where the executive power has changed hands 43 times, twe continually seeks to improve itself, and have repeated done so from elimination of slavery to civil rights. Such a Government is undeniably a success.

Simply put, we have be doing the whole government, economic and social, “thing” longer and better than anyone else. I would argue socially also, but social mores are more a matter of taste.

Yet President Obama sees little of this insisting on changing the foundations of our Republic.

We are not perfect, but always seeing a more perfect union. But that that perfecting doesn't not come through wholesale fundamental change it comes through improvement. “Prudence, indeed, will dictate that Governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes;” Perfecting, improving, and yes even change can be undertaken with prudence, but systems long established should not be changed for the small things.

And that's what we are faced with, the small things, the light and transient. No one's fundamental liberties are usurped, there is no pressing crisis that would shake the foundations of the nation. There is nothing to support President Obama's call for fundamenta transformation and change.

In fact history, events and prudence dictate just the opposite. A reasonable, thoughtful, consider evaluation of the issues and problems, and thorough examination of the possible effects and consequences , and then improvements made in increment steps, evaluating at each step.