Happy Birthday, Magna Carta

The Cato Institute's Roger Pilon marks the day:

The liberties we Americans enjoy were hard-won over the centuries. Today we mark a major event in that struggle, the day in 1215 when English barons presented King John with a written list of rights they demanded he recognize. Known ultimately as Magna Carta, the Great Charter, it was a compact between the barons and their king, a political effort by subjects to secure their liberty by placing their ruler under the rule of law, thus limiting arbitrary power.

Read the rest here.

Comments

[Libertymike]

One of the great achievements of Magna Carta was the separation of king and justice.

[Eduard van Haalen]

Better than the English Civil War . . . separation of King and head.

[Progressives]

But we like arbitrary power. How else can you expect our progressive philosopher-kings to solve problems if we can't aribtarily decide what is fair and who gets what?

[ClubMedSux]

Your ideas intrigue me and I wish to donate to the Obama campaign.

[Preening War Chief Barack]

Donate away, my goal is a BILLION dollars of TARP money finding its way into my campaign coffers.

[MFawful]

The whole "place the ruler under the rule of law" thing only works if the Ruler himself has internalized those views. Or if he fears rebellion....

[-]

And it was another half a millennium till the American Revolution. Kind of puts the "I want it now" political tantrums into perspective.

[Preening War Chief Barack]

Internalize? I am concerned with externalities.

[dennis]

The Magna Carta only came about because the English Kings were more powerful relative to the English nobility than Continental Kings were to theirs'. The Magna Carta really only represented the English coming more in line with the continental Europeans.

[Stephan Kinsella]

The same Roger Pilon who thinks the Police America Act is fine and Bradley Manning should be jailed?

http://www.lewrockwell.com/blo.....77185.html

http://www.lewrockwell.com/blo.....18980.html

[Stephan Kinsella]

BTW this worship of the founders and the American revolution and early America as if they are somewhat libertarian has got to end. Instead of referring to them in hushed, reverent tones as the "Founding Fathers," why don't we call them the Centralizing, Power-Grabbing, Elite Property-Owning Racist White Male Christian Protestants?

My English libertarian friend Sean Gabb rightly refers to the American REvolution as "The Slaveholders' Rebellion." And as Samuel Johnson said:

"We are told, that the subjection of Americans may tend to the diminution of our own liberties; an event, which none but very perspicacious politicians are able to foresee. If slavery be thus fatally contagious, how is it that we hear the loudest yelps for liberty among the drivers of negroes?"

The foundres gave us the horrendous Constitution, and have helped to ruin the world. WE are libertarians, NOT Americans!!

[Nike Dunk High]

thanks