The Foundation of Unity

Point to that unifying force and you have a chance at unity.
Point to anything else, and you are just trying to get your way.                                                        

Unity. There is a desire for unity in this nation.   

 

Yet it will not come as a proclamation, or a demand. It won’t even come as a request. It will not come as a plea for peace and mutual understanding from some leader – religious, governmental, inspirational.   

 

It won’t come from any dogma, policy or political stance.

 

It will not come from the right. It does not come from the left.

 

And it does not even come from standing in the “middle” as some may mistakenly believe. And broadcast.

 

Unity arises from the foundation on which we all stand.

 

For those cheering on a football team, they needn’t “half-heartedly” root on the other team in order to remain unified with the sport of football. For those in a boxing match, they needn’t try a little less and allow the other boxer to get some advantage in order to remain unified with the opponent. 

 

Opponents are opponents. Having various sides of a sport, an argument or a political spectrum is natural and part of what could be seen as a harmonious whole … as long as … there are underlying principles, rules of engagement and a justice system.

 

In football, there is the integrity of the game – rules and impartial referees.

 

In boxing, there is the integrity of the match – rules and an impartial referee.

 

As long as there is no special treatment favoring one team or another, such a balance keeps everything unified, even if there are fans and participants on polar opposites of the equation. With a unified foundation, the love of the overall sport can be secure and celebrated.   

 

So when baseball’s Houston Astros cheated and screwed with the rules in the recent past, they were completely disrupting the game – the entire game – because it took away the foundation that makes the sport what it is. And a lot of people were understandably upset, mostly because there didn’t appear to be a real consequence from a fair system of justice.

 

In our nation, we may not have rules and referees but there is the promise of a Republic – holding law and order, and an impartial checks-and-balance system of justice, with judges only looking at the law and not personalities, platforms or platitudes.

 

It’s a promise only powerful when it is kept and held to account. By everyone.

 

Everyone. 

 

If anyone in our nation wishes for unity, do not look left, do not look right, do not move towards the middle. Look beneath us all. If you want to unite or reunite around something, why not start with the foundational principles of liberty, life, inalienable rights, the pursuit of happiness, equal protection under the law, and the US Constitution?

 

Let us pledge – as all our public servants have pledged, from the President to our law enforcement – to defend and protect the Constitution of the United States, so help us God.

 

There is our true common ground.   

 

There is our integrity with a foundational force.   

 

There is our unity.

 

James Anthony Ellis is a writer found at www.LegacyProductions.org.