Tag Archives: lieutenant governor

Reply to Cort Wrotnowski

by Dr. Conspiracy on 24. Jun, 2009 in Citizenship, Lounge

Mr. Wrotnowski send me an email, and this is my reply.

We agree that de Vattel writes eloquently espousing his view of natural law. And we agree that de Vattel was known to and likely influential in the minds of the framers of the Constitution.

That said, it would not be at all reasonable that to conclude that de Vattel’s views based on the stable Swiss society would closely fit in every respect the ideas from a fledgling frontier immigrant-driven democracy like the United States. Switzerland and the United States in the late 18th century were not the same kind of place. One had a stable population. The other needed immigrants just to keep the population from declining because of disease (at least this was the case in the southern colonies).

It would be an error to jump from the statement that de Vattel was influential to the statement that de Vattel was influential on issues of citizenship. One needs some additional evidence to make that connection and I do know where you would find that evidence. (more…)

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Naturalization Acts of New York (1770)

by Dr. Conspiracy on 19. Mar, 2009 in Citizenship

newyorkA great deal is made in some quarters about a letter from John Jay of New York to George Washington in 1787 in which Jay suggested that the new US Commander in Chief should be a natural born citizen. What did Jay mean by that phrase? Did he adopt the words from the Swiss philosopher Emmerich de Vattel (with whom he was familiar) or did he perhaps adapt them from the laws of his own state of New York?

Prior to the American revolution in 1776 Americans were British subjects, but it seems clear from the following that natural born subjects were those born in the colony of New York, with no reference to who their parents were.

BE IT THEREFORE ENACTED by his Honor the Lieutenant Governor the Council and the General Assembly and it is hereby enacted by the authority of the same that the before mentioned several Persons and each and every of them shall be and hereby are declared to be naturalized to all Intents Constructions and purposes whatsoever and from henceforth and at all Times hereafter shall be entitled to have and enjoy all the Rights Liberties Privileges and Advantages which his Majesty’s Natural born Subjects in this Colony have and enjoy or ought to have and enjoy as fully to all Intents and purposes whatsoever as if all and every of them had been born within this Colony.

January 27, 1770 (more…)

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Google says: Obama is a Socialist

by Dr. Conspiracy on 09. Jan, 2009 in Associations, Wild & Wacky

Bear with me on this one because it is a bit odd.

Someone typed in Barack Obama’s Chicago address (5046 Greenwood Ave.) into Google and got Google map, labeled with the name Barack H. Obama and a telephone number (415-821-6171). (Don’t bother to try it today, because this won’t happen, but there are images of it on Texas Darlin.) The phone number displayed is strange in that it is a California phone number, not one for Chicago. (more…)

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