"There are different types of government." I said, "depending on the needs of a community or sometimes based on avarice, greed, and power, such as a dictatorship. I believe governments are formed on tradition and culture or by specific needs."

"How does tradition and culture define a government?" asked Colleen.

"That's a good question. It's something that many people don't think about."

"A monarchy is based on tradition. Monarchies have one person who is in control. Often that person is a king. Here is some information from Wikipedia."

"A monarchy, from the Greek 'one to rule', is a form of government that has a Monarch as Head of State. A distinguishing characteristic of most monarchies is that the Monarch usually reigns as Head of State for life; in a republic, the Head of State (often called the president) is normally elected for a certain amount of time. There are currently 29 extant sovereign monarchies in the world. . .

Monarchies are one of the oldest forms of government, with echoes in the leadership of tribal chiefs. Many monarchies began with the Monarch as the local representative and temporary embodiment of the deity: (King of Babylon). The Monarch often ruled at the pleasure of the deity and was overthrown or sacrificed when it became apparent that supernatural sanction had been withdrawn: Celestial Emperor of China, Mayan kings, Achaemenid King of Kings of Persia. Other Monarchs derived their power by acclamation of the ruling or of the warrior caste of a clan or group of clans: Kings of the Franks, Roman emperors. Even where law is simply the monarch's will, the king must rule by custom."

"There are also oligarchies. These are governments that are run by a group of people of the same class. For example, Rome is a plutocracy, a government run by the wealthy."

"Like the United States. It costs a lot of money to run for and get elected to office." said Colleen with a smile on her face.

"Yes. You have a point. Another type of government that may be based on culture or tradition is a theocracy, a government where religious leaders rule."

"What about governments defined by necessity?"

"Here is an example. A community begins and they form a government. They have a chief. The community grows. At first, the chief manages the growth. However, as growth continues, it becomes too large for him to handle."

"What should they do? They decided to appoint chiefs to some of the communities that are distant from the main community. The chief from the main community is now the king or given some other name because he is now both the chief of all the communities plus the chief over the other chiefs."

"This growth may continue. "The Roman Empire, which now rule my homeland Celtia, has an emperor, senators, and many other various leaders."

"I understand." said Colleen. In some ways it is like managing a business."

"Yes." I replied. "Government is a form of management. A good government needs to effectively manage its community, country, etc. and ensure that they are providing their citizens the services they require."

"There are many forms of government. There are many choices to be made and many to avoid. Our next few discussions will be about how the American founding fathers formed America's government. It is an interesting discussion of ideas and compromises. It also illustrates the different views that our founding fathers had about government."

"O.K. but you'll have to pay for the coffee." replied Colleen with a grin.

"What was the first type of government?" asks Colleen.

"The first type of government was quite simple - a community elects a chief or a leader. That leader may appoint or ask others to help him."

"Him?"

"At that time, all leaders were men."

"How did the idea of a leader or chief evolve into the system of government that we have today?"

"I am a strong believer that systems evolve and grow as necessary. Here is my scenario."

"A community elects or appoints someone as their leader. The strongest person in that community may take that role by force. Either way, the community has a leader."

"Not too far away another community exists. These two communities meet either through exploration, a request for help, or because of a disagreement. Either way, the two communities need to define some rules and form an agreement to live peacefully, share a water supply, define some rules for trading, and so on. Community A forms an alliance with Community B. Life is peaceful and everyone is happy."

"One day Community B receives a visit from some new neighbors, Community C. They are a nice lot of people. They formed a nice community on the other side of the lake."

"Both communities get along well. They really like each other so the leader from Community B says 'Let's really have a party. Community A, up the road a bit are a really nice group of people. I'm going to invite them to our next get-together.' The leader of Community B says, 'If their women are as beautiful as yours, let's party!' As you can see, somethings haven't changed.

Colleen laughs.

"All three communities get together and have one hell of a party. It lasts for days. Once they are all sober and dressed, Communities A and B ask Community C to join their alliance. Community C agrees."

"As you can see some form of government is a necessity of life."

"It makes sense."

"Let's get some more coffee and we'll talk about the different forms of government."

"Sounds good to me." replied Colleen.

We ordered some more coffee and took time to think. Sometimes you become blind to the obvious, the things that affect your everyday life. We accept things because they are, because they happen. One should always question.

"So what is government?" asked Colleen. "You seem to know the answers." Colleen grinned.

"That is easy." I answered. "Government is a group of people that manage a community. It can be a town, state, country, or an empire. Usually, governments are elected or chosen on a voluntary basis but not always. There are conquerors and dictators that take land or the existing governments by force. Governments exist to organize and manage communities."

"Why do we need governments to organize and manage communities?" asked Colleen.

"Good question. That is a question that many philosophers have asked. What do you think?"

"I asked you?"

"O.K. I believe that every community needs some structure or organization. Each community must work together to survive. They need some basic laws."

"Sounds like poppycock to me?"

"What?"

"Nonsense."

"Why are communities working together and the need for some basic laws, as you say, poppycock?"

"Because nobody cares."

"This is a strange society I'm visiting. Your politicians don't care and you citizens don't care."

"It's not that bad."

"Does somebody care?"

"I care."

"Good. That's a start."

"What do you care about?"

"I care about the environment."

"Good. When someone does something bad to the environment, what do you do?"

"I write letters to newspapers, blog, send email, and so on."

"Does that fix the problem?"

"Some politicians listen and try. They try to pass laws to help protect the environment."

"So we do need laws." I said with a smile.

"For the environment it's obvious. Everyone needs to respect the environment!"

"Everyone needs to respect everyone's rights. That is why we have laws. Without laws, anything goes."

"Makes sense."

"What else is important to your community besides the environment?"

Colleen thought a moment.

"Schools, a nice community, city layout."

"When there is a problem in your community do you speak to your community politicians."

"Yes."

"Do they listen?"

"Sometimes."

"What do you do when they don't?"

"We protest."

"Who is we?"

"My friends and some neighborhood groups that get together to work on these issues."

"So the people in your community work together." I said with a smile.

"Yes we do."

"So we are beginning to get a basic understanding of the need of some form of government. Let's take some time to think about this issue some more."

Colleen met me at Starbucks as planned. After ordering coffee I began our conversation.

"Why don't you believe that your politicians care?"

"They don't represent us?"

"Give me some examples."

"They talk about doing things but don't do anything."

"Doing what?"

"They don't do anything about the environment, about the land, air, and our general well-being."

She had a point. It was quite obvious to someone from Ancient Celtia to see that the environment was is quite a different shape than from my time.

"Any other things that they are not doing?"

"Health care, education, jobs, wages."

"Is it your government's responsibility to provide those things?"

"Yes, I see that you are a conservative."

"No. I'm just trying to understand what government is suppose to do."

"They provide for its citizens."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes . . . I think."

"Let's think about that question. What are the responsibilities of government? Why do we have government? Why do we choose to be governed?"

I learned that today is a day of contemplation. For those following this journal I am a Celtic who through time travel am living in the 21st century. I'm here to research and write about the American Presidency.

While using the Internet, I've learned of the tragedy that occurred on September 11, 2001. It seems that violence is a constant in all ages and all cultures. Regardless of the culture or time period, violence is wrong; violence is never the answer.

From what I've learned, some people take a fanatical belief in what they believe is right and forget to respect the beliefs of others. There is never one right way.

As my visit into your time period is teaching me, and I hope my presence teaches you, all cultures make this world better. Regardless of the God or Gods that you believe in, you help define the world you live in and the future that your children will inherit.

I have the benefit of seeing how the future has judged and written about the culture I am part of. I am happy that the future has judged the Celtics in a positive light. As one who is having the rare opportunity to visit the future, think about what you want your culture's legacy to be.

Sincerely,
Avram Beag

As I promised in my previous post I'll now explain the basics of Celtic government. I'll begin by quoting information from Wikipedia and then I will add my own thoughts about our system and the U. S. Presidential system.

We are a people of laws. Our citizens abide by the Brehin Laws. These laws are a code that affects our everyday life. According to Wikipedia,

"The laws were a civil rather than a criminal code, concerned with the payment of compensation for harm done and the regulation of property, inheritance and contracts: the concept of state-administered punishment for crime was foreign to Ireland's early lawmakers. They show Ireland in the early medieval period to have been a hierarchical society, taking great care to define social status, and the rights and duties that went with it, according to property, and the relationships between lords and their clients and serfs."

Our king leads us. The aristocracy chooses the king. Only men are eligible for leadership positions. From Wikipedia,

"The basic unit of political organisation provided for was the tuath (tribal or petty kingdom), headed by a rí (king). Kingship of a tuath was not inherited by primogeniture: a new king would be elected by the aristocracy of the tribe (the derb-fine or close kinship group up to and including second cousins) from a number of eligible candidates. Any adult male who was the son, grandson or great-grandson of a previous king, in direct male line, was eligible. Often, a king would choose a tánaiste (heir apparent, literally "second") who would be best placed to succeed at his death. Kings were themselves subject to the law and had little power to create laws or issue edicts except in emergencies." - en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brehon_Laws#Kingship

So what can I say about our leadership? How can I compare it to the U.S. Presidents?

There is no doubt that we Celtics have a good way of life. Until recently it was the only way I knew. However I do like the presidential system. From my quick surfing of the Net as seems to be the term you use, I've learned about your electoral system. I like the concept that anyone can run for president. In our system, while the aristocracy elects a king, the candidates are related. Sometimes this is good - you are lucky to have a king from a strong and educated family, but other times they are not. There have been some times when I new a person from another family would be a better king.

I also like your system where everyone is eligible to vote. In Celtic society only the aristocracy votes. My only concern with this is do people in all levels of your society understand the importance of voting? Many Celtics believe that since the aristocracy is the most educated, they understand how and who to vote for.

Do Americans understand the importance of voting? Do they know who to vote for? I remember Colleen saying that the president, senators, and other elected official don't listen to the people, that they really don't represent them. If this is so, are Americans voting for the right people?

How does Colleen decide who she will vote for? What does she do before she makes a decision? I must remember to ask her when I see her tomorrow.

I decided to use my newly acquired knowledge of the Internet to gather some information for Colleen about the Celtics. The first thing I learned is that the Celtics are a basketball team from Boston. They pronounce our cherished name with a soft C sound (Seltics). Search engines are not perfect! I continued my search and found some useful information.

We Celtics are a mixed group of people. We are from Brittany, Cornwall, Ireland, the Isle of Man, Scotland, Wales, and Galicia (in northwest Spain). I found this and other information on the user-written encyclopedia, Wikipedia. With the benefits of time travel and Wikipedia I could immortalize some of the things my neighbors have done. If you only knew!

Back to the Celtics! The Wikipedia article, Celt provides some good background information. Like all nations we had our share of problems. History has treated Julius Ceasar in a positive light but I tell you no true Celt will put him on their Christmas list. He invaded our land and forced us to live under Roman rule. I like the Romans but couldn't we coexist in peace. Why did we have to accept their ways! I wonder if any of the American presidents forced other nations to live the American way of life?

Here's what Wikipedia has to say about Ceasar and his invasion.

"Under Caesar the Romans conquered Celtic Gaul, and from Claudius onward the Roman empire absorbed parts of the Celtic British Isles. Roman local government of these regions closely mirrored pre-Roman 'tribal' boundaries, and archaeological finds suggest native involvement in local government. Latin was the official language of these regions after the conquests.

The native peoples under Roman rule became Romanized and keen to adopt Roman ways. Celtic art had already incorporated classical influences, and surviving Gallo-Roman pieces interpret classical subjects or keep faith with old traditions despite a Roman overlay." - en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Celt#Roman_influence

So we have a new way of life and a new language. This new way of life even forced us to accept a different religion - Christianity. Christianity is a fine religion but us Druids are also quite cool. Why did we have to accept another system of belief?

Well I've gotten myself into a bit of a tizzy. Time to relax. My next post will explain a bit about the Celtic system of government.

How shall I explain the U.S. Presidents? I need a frame of reference. I've travelled thousands of years, became a Starbuck's addict, and learned the Internet all in a moment.

Information in this new world is instant. I'm not use to this speed. I need a way, method, or form to take this new information into context.

What do I know about government? I know the Celtia form of government. I know how the Celtics rule. Why don't I compare the U.S. Presidents to the Celtic rulers. This will help me explain my ideas to Colleen.

Damn this Starbucks coffee is good!

Sincerely,
Avram

"Are all the presidents from one part of the country?" I asked. Is there one part of the country where the ruling class are bred?"

"A president can be from any of the 50 states. I don't know if one state has given us more presidents than the other states. We can quickly find out."

Julius entered more info into Google and I created the following spreadsheet.

Julius and I continued our search about the Presidents of the United States. I learned that there are 43 presidents. I also became introduced to the concept of political parties. They are groups of people that fight with each other.

Julius showed me how to create a list of the presidents and their parties using a spreadsheet