Sovereigns

King Kong

I'm King Kong, I got so much money,

I can buy anybody who gets in my path.

I'm King Kong, and I'm big and strong,

I can blow up your houses so you better beware.

Who made King Kong "King"?

Man is a tribal animal.  Nations are groups of tribes.  An individual can be in many Nations.  I belong not only to the Nation of the United States but I am also a proud member of Red Sox Nation.  Belonging to one nation ( i.e. the US) , does not mean that all members of the US belong to Red Sox Nation. ( They should, but even I admit that, misguided though they may be, there are Yankee fans.)  Membership in Red Sox Nation is also not limited to US citizens (there are more than a few Dominicans in Red Sox Nation).   A nation has sovereignty.  The nation can choose an individual as its sovereign.  That individual as sovereign might be a(n) :

Dynastic sovereign.  The existing sovereign chooses his successor as sovereign.

Elected sovereign.  The Holy Roman Emperors were chosen by prince electors.  Popes are chosen by the college of Cardinals. If elected, the body choosing the sovereign will be defined, e.g. Prince electors, Cardinals, property owners, baseball writers, etc.

Dominance Sovereign. A sovereign can be challenged by other contenders for sovereign and dominates them by some trait.  Successful nations will have a sovereign whose dominance in a trait is relevant for that tribe.  I.e. the strongest individual may be a Mets fan which does not make him suitable for being a sovereign of Red Sox Nation. The sovereign is expected to act for his nation not himself

A sovereign may pledge fealty to another sovereign.  E.g. Kings may pledge fealty to Emperors.  Barons may pledge fealty to Kings, etc.

A sovereign nation is expected to last longer than the individual that is its sovereign.  A sovereign may die, be deposed, or retire. If a sovereign is an individual, then another sovereign must be chosen for the nation to endure.

Roles of a sovereign

1.     To protect the subjects of that sovereign.

Avenging wrongs against the subject is reactive.  Protection is proactive.

2.     To administer that sovereign’s justice to the subjects of that sovereign. ( this includes enacting and enforcing laws.)

Taking 1 and 2 together, using a superhero movie analogy, the DCEU’s Justice League may be better than the MCU’s Avengers

3.     To equitably distribute benefits to the subjects of that sovereign.

This means distributing benefits to all of the subjects based on their need, not based on their contribution.

4.     To protect and administer the sovereign resources that are needed for production by the sovereign’s subjects.

The availability of common resources without a price may be necessary for production.  Having no price does not mean that the resource has no value.

A sovereign rules through a government.  In the United States the sovereign is the People. It is NOT any of its three branches of government: the President, the Supreme Court, or the Congress.

Individuals that are elected to those branches of government in the US may represent the sovereign, but they are NOT the sovereign.  That, after all is, what a republic, a representative democracy, is all about. Ben Franklin when asked about our the type of government said.  “A Republic, if you can keep it”.  The Republic IS in danger, but the Republic is valuable and we should work to keep it.