George Washington once said, “Government is not reason; it is not eloquent; it is force. Like fire, it is a dangerous servant and fearful master,” (“George Washington Quotes”). This is true, government is not reason, since no one actually knows what is “right” versus what is “wrong,” it is just a matter of opinion. The government holding the power of so many lives can be dangerous; the government is definitely a force. This force is made of ideas that make up the government power in nations, including the United States, against the struggles countries face everyday. This “force” or “drive” for what was “right” in early United States is what helped the United States become the strong nation it is today. Despite gaining independence from Britain, the United States faced numerous obstacles that threatened the stability of the fledgling nation. For example, one major obstacle the new nation had to face was the ineffectiveness of the Articles of Confederation. Under the rule of the Articles of Confederation, states had the majority of the power and there was no power associated with a centralized federal government. In order to be successful, a nation needs a strong central government to deal with international affairs, regulate laws, monitor taxes, and handle the national debt. Since all the states had conflicting ideas, opinions, and needs, none of these responsibilities could be met, threatening stability and making the nation appear weak to other world powers. Because of this lack of a national government, most citizens were forced to pay extremely high taxes and, as a result, were extremely enraged. This anger over taxes instigated Shays’ Rebellion, as farmers rebelled against against the outrageous taxes- sometimes greater than ... ... middle of paper ... ...shadowed how strong it would become. During the early development of the United States, the foundation of the new nation showed strength and good morals as to create a successful and supreme nation, which it continues to be, to this day. George Washington was right when saying, “Let us raise a standard to which the wise and honest can repair; the rest is in the hands of G-d,” (George Washington Quotes). Works Cited “George Washington Quotes.” BrainyQuote. Xplore, n.d. Web. 03 Jan. 2014. Moschella, Tairran. “Articles of Confederation and Shays’ Rebellion.” US History I Honors Class Files. Web. 3 January 2014. Moschella, Tairran. “Case Study #6- Western Lands.” US History I Honors. Morris County School of Technology. 3 January 2014. Print. Moschella, Tairran. “Shay’s Rebellion.” US History I Honors. Morris County School of Technology. 3 January 2014. Print.
The unpredictable failure of the Articles of Confederation to the continental congress was a huge problem. The Articles of Confederation was made so the states would have more power, And limit the powers of the national government. Main contributors for this action was the fear that the national government will gain too much power and overstep its authority.This would have a negative effect on the nation, because tensions will start to rise for the ineffectiveness of this new system of government. A Rebellion best known as Shays rebellion, took place shortly after The adoption of the Articles of Confederation. The states, in which shays rebellion has taken place, were becoming unjust/unfair the way in which the state collected taxes. Since the Articles of Confederation was a complete failure
During the American Revolution the not yet established United States, held two Continental Congresses that eventually help defeat Britain. The First Continental Congress informed the local militias to prepare for war. The Second Continental Congress helped end the war and issue the Declaration of Independence. The Second Continental congress sought out to create a national government for our new country named the Articles of Confederation. However, The Articles of Confederation had many problems, for example, Congress and the states shared the right to regulate currency and issue money. This led to an excess of currency, which pushed down the value of currency and created inflationary pressure on the Continental dollar. The downfall of the Articles of Confederation ultimately sparked a political conflict between
The reason that Shays’ led Shays’ rebellion is because that poor farmers could not pay their debts and the government kept on raising taxes so more people were put into to debtors prison. That caused problems with the farmers causing Shays’ Rebellion. Those are also some reasons that Daniel Shays’ had his rebellion which had been caused to solve those problems but had also shown the weakness of the articles of confederation
The Americans after obtaining independence from England needed to establish a form of government. Before the war had ended, the Second Congress of the Confederation called for the drafting of a new government in order to govern this new country, which the Articles of Confederation established. The Articles of Confederation built a government solely based off republican ideals, such as civic virtue, the idea that the states and the people will make sacrifices to the common good in order to benefit everybody. Relying on civic virtue did not pull through as successful for the young country. The Articles of Confederation shone through as successful in organizing and establishing states in the Old Northwest, spreading republican ideals; however, the success of the Articles of Confederation was trumped by its failures. The Articles of Confederation failed to provide a new and young United States with an effective government in its inability to collect tax revenue to pay debts, controlling the mobocratic uprising of upset factions, and dealing with foreign policies; additionally, the failure of the Articles of Confederation revealed the inefficiency and failure of republicanism.
In an effort to limit the power of the national government, Congress created one without enough power to govern effectively, which led to serious national and international problems. One of the main weaknesses under the Articles of Confederation was its incapability to regulate trade and levy taxes. The states controlled all of their “cash flows.” Sometimes, the states were in debt because of tariff wars that they would engage in with one another.
The year of 1776 was a time of revolution, independence, and patriotism. American colonists had severed their umbilical cord to the Mother Country and declared themselves “Free and Independent States”.1 The chains of monarchy had been thrown off and a new government was formed. Shying away from a totalitarian government, the Second Continental Congress drafted a document called the Articles of Confederation which established a loose union of the states. It was an attempt at self-government that ended in failure. The Articles of Confederation had many defects which included a weak central government that lacked the power to tax, regulate trade, required equal representation and a unanimous vote to amend the Articles, and had only a legislative branch. As a result the United States lacked respect from foreign countries. These flaws were so severe that a new government had to be drafted and as a result the Constitution was born. This document remedied the weak points of the federal government and created one that was strong and fair, yet still governed by the people.
The Articles of Confederation was the United States first attempt at creating a democratic government. Instead of giving power to the central government they divided it up among the states (Kelly). This fact left the Articles with many weaknesses that ultimately led it to fail. The lack of a strong central government led to economic disorganization, no central leadership and an ineffective legislative, all which led to its downfall (Brackemyre). Leaving power to the states left the nation in a state of economic disorganization. Without the national government having the power to levy taxes, it was left with the states (Murphy). The legislature only had the right to request taxes, and it was left up to the states how they wanted to raise them, but they oftentimes weren't (Brackemyre). There was also no uniform system of currency which made trade between states difficult. The fact that states instead of Congress regulated trade led to a lack...
During and after the turmoil of the American Revolution, the people of America, both the rich and the poor, the powerful and the meek, strove to create a new system of government that would guide them during their unsure beginning. This first structure was called the Articles of Confederation, but it was ineffective, restricted, and weak. It was decided to create a new structure to guide the country. However, before a new constitution could be agreed upon, many aspects of life in America would have to be considered. The foremost apprehensions many Americans had concerning this new federal system included fear of the government limiting or endangering their inalienable rights, concern that the government’s power would be unbalanced, both within its branches and in comparison to the public, and trepidation that the voice of the people would not be heard within the government.
The above statement is one that seems to be very true when looking back upon the history of the United States. From the years 1877 to 1933, this country went through many changes and transitions in the areas of politics, economy, society, and culture, which resulted in the birth of a new nation.
In the Summer of 1787, fifty-five delegates representing 12 out of the 13 states in Philadelphia to fix the Articles of Confederation. They met in philadelphia because the Articles of Confederation was too weak. Shay’s rebellion was the end of the Articles of Confederation bringing down the whole network calling for a change of government. They did this to prevent a tyrant or tyranny. A tyrant/tyranny is when someone or a group abuses their power.
During the construction of the new Constitution, many of the most prominent and experienced political members of America’s society provided a framework on the future of the new country; they had in mind, because of the failures of the Articles of Confederation, a new kind of government where the national or Federal government would be the sovereign power, not the states. Because of the increased power of the national government over the individual states, many Americans feared it would hinder their ability to exercise their individual freedoms. Assuring the people, both Alexander Hamilton and James Madison insisted the new government under the constitution was “an expression of freedom, not its enemy,” declaring “the Constitution made political tyranny almost impossible.” (Foner, pg. 227) The checks and balances introduced under the new and more powerful national government would not allow the tyranny caused by a king under the Parliament system in Britain. They insisted that in order achieve a greater amount of freedom, a national government was needed to avoid the civil unrest during the system under the Articles of Confederation. Claiming that the new national government would be a “perfect balance between liberty and power,” it would avoid the disruption that liberty [civil unrest] and power [king’s abuse of power in England] caused. The “lackluster leadership” of the critics of the new constitution claimed that a large land area such as America could not work for such a diverse nation.
The states are battling and not agreeing with each other on anything. Shay’s Rebellion helped to bring the new country’s problems into focus. This closed the courts in three counties in Massachusetts. The government was to weak to do anything to hold the new country together. There was hardly any sense of national identity. The states taxed each others goods and national commerence was very difficult. Politics in the states were chaotic. “ By the mid 1780s for example, state legislatures were printing paper money and passing acts on behalf of debtors.”(Davis Pg. 93) The legislatures went past their authority and assumed executive and judiciary responsibilities, like directing military and decisions of courts. The weakness of the central government was beginning to threaten the existence of the new nation. “The delegates were in agreement that the situation
The American Revolution stirred political unity and motivated the need for change in the nation. Because many Americans fought for a more balanced government in the Revolutionary War, they initially created a weak national government that hampered the country's growth and expansion. In the Letter from Abigail Adams to Thomas Jefferson, Mrs. Adams complained about the inadequacy of power that the American government had to regulate domestic affairs. The Articles of Confederation was created to be weak because many had feared a similar governing experience that they had just eliminated with Britain. The alliance of states united the 13 local governments but lacked power to deal with important issues or to regulate diplomatic affairs. Congress did not have the power to tax, regulate trade, or draft people for war. This put the American citizens at stake because States had the power to refuse requests for taxes and troops (Document G). The weakened national government could not do anything about uprisings or small-scale protests because it did not have the power to put together an army. The deficiencies of the confederation government inspired the drafting of the American Constitution. The document itself embodied the principle of a national government prepared to deal with the nation's problems. In James Madison's Federalist Paper, he persuades the American public to adopt the Constitution so that the government can protect humans from their nature and keep them out of conflicts.
After winning the Revolutionary War and sovereign control of their home country from the British, Americans now had to deal with a new authoritative issue: who was to rule at home? In the wake of this massive authoritative usurpation, there were two primary views of how the new American government should function. Whereas part of the nation believed that a strong, central government would be the most beneficial for the preservation of the Union, others saw a Confederation of sovereign state governments as an option more supportive of the liberties American’s fought so hard for in the Revolution. Those in favor of a central government, the Federalists, thought this form of government was necessary to ensure national stability, unity and influence concerning foreign perception. Contrastingly, Anti-Federalists saw this stronger form of government as potentially oppressive and eerily similar to the authority’s tendencies of the British government they had just fought to remove. However, through the final ratification of the Constitution, new laws favoring state’s rights and the election at the turn of the century, one can say that the Anti-Federalist view of America prevails despite making some concessions in an effort to preserve the Union.
The Articles of Confederation was the first government of the United States. The Articles had created a very weak national government. At the time the Articles were approved, they had served the will of the people. Americans had just fought a war to get freedom from a great national authority--King George III (Patterson 34). But after this government was put to use, it was evident that it was not going to keep peace between the states. The conflicts got so frequent and malicious that George Washington wondered if the “United” States should be called a Union (Patterson 35). Shays’ Rebellion finally made it evident to the public that the government needed a change.