Personal and Blog Notes, June 2026

Personal Notes: I regret having been unable to post as frequently as usual the last several weeks. In addition to an Internet outage and other disruptions, I had been recruited as a historian in late April to help write the history of my county, Berks County, for its 275th anniversary next year, which is an official part of the America 250 celebrations. The publication deadline recently passed. Like other Counties in the original 13 States, Berks contributed to the cause of the American Revolution in various ways. There were prominent patriots, soldiers who fought in the Revolutionary War, and foundries that supplied cannon and shot for the Continental Army. I wrote particularly about the change of architectural and furniture style from Georgian to Federal because of American independence. 

    But one subject I was privileged to write about in particular was one of the Founding Fathers, James Wilson, a Pennsylvanian who had begun his practice as a lawyer in my home city of Reading, our county seat, and became one of only six men to sign both the Declaration of Independence and Constitution, and was among the first Associate Justices of the Supreme Court. He is among the most underappreciated Founders, but Wilson's argument against the authority of the British Parliament over the unrepresented Colonies in America, and his emphasis on the sovereignty of the people and insistence on a single chief executive who is independently elected, made him one of the most influential. Together with his ally James Madison, Wilson was one of the two most brilliant political philosophers at the Constitutional Convention, having received a classic education in his native Scotland before emigrating to Pennsylvania and reading law under Founding Father John Dickinson. His draft of the Constitution became the basis of the final draft, and his speech at the Pennsylvania ratification convention became more influential to the cause of ratification than the Federalist Papers. Wilson also wrote the 1790 Pennsylvania Constitution, the Bill of Rights of which influenced each of the subsequent Constitutions of the Commonwealth.

    As I have posted, studying the American founding by reading about the American Revolution or visiting historic sites is a good way to enkindle enthusiasm for the semi-quincentennial of American independence amidst the threat of authoritarianism, both internationally and domestically, and by the Caesarism of Donald Trump, and to be inspired to defend the vital principles of equality, liberty and representative government. Once the book is published and my contributions to the website posted, I shall post an update. 

Blog Notes: Meanwhile, I take this opportunity to note that the technical glitch that has prevented indentation and line-spacing the last few years, among other problems, continues. Also, remember to visit my account on Bluesky, the Center Right (@thecenterright.bsky.social). Thank you for visiting my blog, or for following or commenting. Please visit regularly to keep informed.