Little-Known Constitution

Whose Constitution Was This?

What group might have created this constitution? In what year? What would they have called themselves? Send your guesses to The Progress Report and whoever gets closest to the right answer will win a prize! Guess as many times as you like. (You can tell from the blanks below that the right answer has two words.)

We hold these truths to be self-evident for a modern democratic society:

1. That the function of our industrial order is to produce the most generous quantities of goods and services feasible, and to distribute them to the largest possible number of people.

2. That the individual's share in these goods and services should be determined by his effort in producing them, unless he is physically or mentally unable to do productive work, or unless he is specifically exempted from such work by the group.

3. That the greatest political good is liberty -- that is, the right of the individual to make a free choice in the fundamentals of life, e.g., in his job, his home, his religion, his politics and in goods and services which he will consume.

4. That private monopoly is against the public interest, and in the production or distribution of any important good or service cannot be tolerated in a democracy.

5. That equality of opportunity in securing the essentials of life, health, education, and economic advancement must be provided for all.

6. That the allocation of functions between various governmental units should recognize two basic propositions: (1) in a democracy, governmental powers should be as close to the citizen as is practicable; (2) governmental functions should be performed by the agency -- local, state, or national -- which can best perform each function.

7. That the people should perform through governmental agencies those functions that can be performed in that way more satisfactorily than through private business units.