The 5000 Year Leap: A Miracle That Changed the World

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The 5000 Year Leap: A Miracle That Changed the World

4.29 of 5 stars 4.29 · rating details · 3,367 ratings · 753 reviews

This is the best-selling Original Authorized Edition regularly featured by Glenn Beck to Fox TV viewers as a Must Read! The nation the Founders built is now in the throes of a political, economic, social, and spiritual crisis that has driven many to an almost frantic search for modern solutions. The truth is that the solutions have been available for a long time -- in the...more

Paperback, 337 pages

Published June 1st 2006 by National Center for Constitutional Studies

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Sep 09, 2008 Jodi Z rated it 5 of 5 stars Recommends it for: All Americans

Shelves: reference, rs-book-group

Should be required reading for every American. A great place to start your study of the ideas of our nation's founders.

This was an eye-opening introduction to what went into creating our government system. I am all the more convinced that those who think the founders' ideas are quaint and outdated have not done nearly the research that the founders' themselves did. It has been said that we should not try to do what great men did but instead strive to see what they saw. The 5000 Year Leap does a...more

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Nov 22, 2009 Scott Zuke rated it 3 of 5 stars Recommends it for: anyone who is willing to give it a fair, but not uncritical reading.

For such a small and plainly written book, readers will take away very different messages from The 5,000 Year Leap depending on their already-held beliefs. The author, Cleon Skousen, was an extremely conservative Mormon and a highly vocal critic of communism, as well as a cyclically successful author.

My best guess for why this particular book has found success above all of his other books is that he hides his views in the background, creating the illusion of an objective historical textbook. On...more

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Dec 30, 2012 Gina rated it 2 of 5 stars

To be honest, I read this to confirm to myself that is was as bad as I thought it would be, and I just like to see what Glenn Beck folks are reading these days. The book is basically strung together quotes from founding fathers and HEAVILY from de Tocqueville supporting some principles that Skousen claims are the foundation of our nation. The conclusions are unwarranted and sweeping (I chuckled over one section heading "European philosophers were wrong"). I think books like this are a little dan...more

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Jan 30, 2008 Shannon rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: Anyone who loves freedom

This book is soooo good! It's awesome because it gives you insights on many of the founding fathers opinions while at the same time answering so many questions that arise today. Such as, is the Constitution outdated? In the back of my mind I knew it wasn't, but I couldn't have explained why until I read this book. The Constitution deals with principles, wich are timeless. It also deals with human nature, and though our way of living may have changed, our nature never will.

Another question is, S...more

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Jul 21, 2009 Temple rated it 1 of 5 stars

worst book ever. seriously. academically and logically flawed from cover to cover, miserably written, and extra creepy when you realize it's just mormonism for the masses. sorry, mormons...don't get me wrong: I loathe and resent all religions...but joseph smith was flippin whacked. And so is this book.

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Jan 11, 2011 Robbie rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: politics, history

The 5000 Year Leap is a profound piece of work on the 28 principles on which this nation was founded. Skousen uses the direct words of the founders and others of that time to lay out how the founders structured the constitution and this country. He does not use quotes to back up his ideas but lets these quotes from the great men of our nation's beginning state their own ideas and backs them up with brief explanations of his own.

I was astounded by the prophetic nature of their words. Much of wha...more The 5000 Year Leap is a profound piece of work on the 28 principles on which this nation was founded. Skousen uses the direct words of the founders and others of that time to lay out how the founders structured the constitution and this country. He does not use quotes to back up his ideas but lets these quotes from the great men of our nation's beginning state their own ideas and backs them up with brief explanations of his own.

I was astounded by the prophetic nature of their words. Much of what they tried so hard to warn against and prevent, we are dangerously close to now or has already come to pass.

Everyone should read this book.

On the redistribution of wealth: "The utopian schemes of leveling (redistribution of wealth), and a community of goods (central ownership of all the means of production and distribution), are as visionary and impracticable as those which vest all property in the Crown. These ideas are arbitrary, despotic, and, in our government, unconstitutional. " - Samuel Adams

On the abridgement of freedoms: "I believe there are more instances of the abridgement of the freedom of the people by gradual and silent encroachments of those in power, than by violent and sudden usurpations...This danger ought to be wisely guarded against." - James Madison

On peace through strength: "The way to secure peace is to be prepared for war. They that are on their guard, and appear ready to receive their adversaries, are in much less danger of being attacked than the supine, secure and negligent." - Bejamin Franklin

On debt: "But, ah, think what you do when you run in debt; you give to another power over your liberty....as Poor Richard says, the second vice is lying, the first is running in debt." - Benjamin Franklin

On the greatness of America (my favorite): "I sought for the greatness and genius of America in her commodious harbors and her ample rivers and it was not there; in her fertile fields and boundless prairies, and it was not there; in her rich mines and her vast world commerce, and it was not there. Not until I went to the churches of America and heard her pulpits aflame with righteousness did I understand the secret of her genius and power. America is great because she is good, and if America ceases to be good, America will cease to be great." - Alexis de Tocqueville

Our country is much less moral than it once was and is falling into disarray. De Tocqueville was and is right.(less)

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Aug 13, 2008 Autumn rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: classics

I believe this book is fundamental. We should all be involved in the community and in our country. This book lays out basic true principals believed in by the founding fathers on which we should base our decisions in government.

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Mar 12, 2010 Suzanne rated it 5 of 5 stars Recommends it for: everyone

If you believe in the principles of freedom that America stands for than you will appreciate this book. I know that because of human nature there is no perfect society and that men are fallible. That is exactly what the founders believed also. So they did their best to set up a system of laws and government to try to put in check the evil designs of men and the weakness’s of human nature. We have faltered much along the way, not because of the weakness of the constitution but because of the weak...more If you believe in the principles of freedom that America stands for than you will appreciate this book. I know that because of human nature there is no perfect society and that men are fallible. That is exactly what the founders believed also. So they did their best to set up a system of laws and government to try to put in check the evil designs of men and the weakness’s of human nature. We have faltered much along the way, not because of the weakness of the constitution but because of the weakness of men. The “Utopian dream will never be possible in view of the obvious limitations of human nature”.

This book names 28 “principles of freedom” that the founders believed and used to form America. It is non-partisan. It explains how the founders measured the political spectrum from Ruler’s Law (far left) to No Law (far right). And they believed that the key was in the balanced center of People’s Law. This book is also a powerful argument against socialism and clearly illustrates how socialism and all of its forms are unconstitutional.

The name of the book reflects the fact that these freedoms created an environment for which we have progressed greatly in technology, science, living standards, etc: more in the last 200 years than in the first 5,000 of recorded history. It makes the point that mankind can progress when the shackles of bondage are broken and an atmosphere of freedom abounds.

So what are some of those principles? Well the first five or so principles were religiously/morally based. Basically, a belief in God and of Natural Law. i.e. Our rights are God-given - "we hold these truths to be self evident...that men are endowed by their creator". That legislation in violation to God’s natural law is a scourge to humanity. Also, that a virtuous and moral people and leaders are necessary for a strong society. A quote from James Madison said, “Is there no virtue among us? If there be not, we are in a wretched situation. No theoretical checks, no form of government, can render us secure. To suppose that any form of government will secure liberty or happiness without any virtue in the people is a chimerical idea.”

To make his points, the author quotes many of the founders and also the works that the founders studied such as Cicero and John Locke. I don’t have a naive view that these men were perfect but I do believe that they were educated and inspired at the right time in history to bring about this miracle of a nation.

Other “principles of freedom” espoused in the book include:
* “The proper role of government is to protect equal rights, not provide equal things”. (This chapter includes a lesson from communism)
* “The United States of America shall be a Republic” (Explains the misconceptions about democracy)
* “A constitution should be structured to permanently protect the people from the human frailties of their rulers”.
*“The highest level of prosperity occurs when there is a free-market economy and a minimum of government regulations”
*”Peace, commerce, and honest friendship with ALL Nations – entangling alliances with none”
*And of course the lesson so needed today: “The burden of debt is as destructive to freedom as subjugation by conquest”
*And my personal favorite! “Life and Liberty are Secure Only so Long as the Right to PROPERTY is Secure”!

All in all, I learned a lot, gained some good tidbits from history, and enjoyed the many wonderful quotes. Read this book! But be forewarned that it may leave you a bit disillusioned at how far from the constitution we have strayed. Nonetheless these principles need to be taught for us to get back on the right track and I WISH every voting American would read this book.
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Aug 16, 2009 Margie rated it 5 of 5 stars Recommends it for: Those who love liberty and realize that freedom isn't "free."

Recommended to Margie by: finalfrontier100@yahoo.com

I'm half way through this and wish that we had used this as a text in my Junior history class in high school. Everyone should read this and become reacquainted with the principles of the Republic and why we were so forutnate that our Founders established the government this way. Benjamin Franklin, when asked what type of Government they had set up responded, "We have given you a Republic madam - if you can keep it." I hope many more people will educate themselves on the genius of the Republic an...more

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Dec 09, 2008 Nicole rated it 5 of 5 stars

The Center for Constitutional Studies has really been pushing for every American to read this book. It's been kind of a controversial book--some people really pushing for it to be included in public school curriculum, others pushing hard to have it banned. Anyway, it explores the fundamental principles that our nation was founded on, and how those principles let to more advancement in 150 years than had been accomplished in the 5000 years previously. I thought it was wonderful--so clear and conc...more

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Jan 05, 2009 Rand rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

A must read - especially politicians! They need a refresher course on what made the USA great.

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Feb 05, 2009 Lindy rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: classics

Wow! I want to sent this book to every elected official - and every citizen for that matter- in the country. (And I'm only on page 20!) This book discusses what it takes for a people to stay free. We have strayed so far from where the Founding Fathers started. I can't wait to wade deeper in.

I returned to library about 1/2 read. It has a lot of great information, but there is a lot to assimilate. I need to buy it so I can take my time to digest each of the principles of freedom and make them a pa...more

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Nov 24, 2011 Frank rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

The 5,000 Year Leap
By W. Cleon Skousen

This remarkable book covers much forgotten or neglected history of our nation's founding, including the Godly and moral principles on which America began.

Some of these principles trace back to the ancient Anglo Saxons, who considered themselves a commonwealth of free men and had a tradition of being highly involved in local government. Our Founders realized the similarities between Anglo Saxon laws and those governing Israel during Biblical times.

They also...more

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Jan 07, 2009 Eve rated it 5 of 5 stars

a great beginners education of a political ignoramus like me.

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Feb 12, 2013 Heidi Angell rated it 4 of 5 stars

The book is a very fascinating and in-depth review of the constitution, the influences of the time that helped to shape the Founding Father's thoughts as they wrote it, and quotes from the Founding Fathers to clarify, confirm, and warn Americans of their belief in the importance of maintaining the basic principles of the Constitution. The author rides a very fine line of guiding Americans in their implied responsibilities with the constitution, warning of the dangers of our not remaining vigilan...more

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Oct 21, 2012 Bill Buckingham rated it 5 of 5 stars

This should be mandatory reading for every high school in America. Seriously, every American citizen should read this book. I have never seen a finer, more thorough presentation, analysis, and breakdown of the framework of our Constitution, how it was designed, composed, edited, and amended than in the magnificent detail of this book. No nation on earth has accomplished what the United States of America has accomplished. I've never been more proud of the Founding Fathers than while studying this...more

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May 23, 2012 William rated it 3 of 5 stars

Read this book in about a week. Its a pretty good beginners guide to the American experiment, but to paraphrase Franklin, it "smacks of the pulpit". This is not necessarily a bad thing unless you like a more academic treatment of history. I liked the way the book laid out its premises in 28 principles, but like I said before, its kind of beginners theory. The author was a BYU professor and I liked the way it read, but at times it felt like the longest conference talk in recorded history. This is...more

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May 02, 2012 Shonn rated it 1 of 5 stars

Shelves: politics

W. Cleon Skousen’s The 5,000 Year Leap is a marvelous book on The U. S. Constitution and American politics, if one is willing to blatantly and totally disregard everything that has happened in American history since 1860. Seriously, as a student of history and a one-time aspiring historian, this kind of book is our discipline’s worst nightmare, it purports to use history to bolster its arguments while all the time displaying either an ignorance (or an ideologically-driven selectivity of interpre...more W. Cleon Skousen’s The 5,000 Year Leap is a marvelous book on The U. S. Constitution and American politics, if one is willing to blatantly and totally disregard everything that has happened in American history since 1860. Seriously, as a student of history and a one-time aspiring historian, this kind of book is our discipline’s worst nightmare, it purports to use history to bolster its arguments while all the time displaying either an ignorance (or an ideologically-driven selectivity of interpretation) of the basic points of the history of the very nation it seeks to lionize.

But let’s not dwell on generalities, shall we? I should begin by stating that I wholeheartedly reject Mr. Skousen’s central argument, that the in setting out the framework for free-market society, the U.S. Constitution provided the impetus for a massive, almost evolutionary, leap in human society, propelling us in the space of 200 years from a benighted semi-medieval lifestyle to placing men on the moon. No, I do not deny that the pace of technological innovation has accelerated at a rapid, unprecedented pace in the last two centuries, nor do I deny that at times the United States, with its unabashedly capitalist system has spearheaded those developments. However, I feel I must add a dose of cold water to Mr. Skousen’s enthusiasm. The Industrial Revolution (a phenomenon that Mr. Skousen pays lip service to, while basically ignoring its social, economic or political implications) did not start in the United States, in fact one could argue that it didn’t really take off in the Republic until the 1830’s, by this time industrialization was well under way in the cradle of that particular revolution, England, soon to become the “workshop of the world.” Furthermore, lest Mr. Skousen harp too heavily on our technological achievements in getting to the moon, one of the founding fathers of NASA, was the German Scientist Dr. Werner von Braun who helped spearhead the Third Reich’s V-2 rocket program, and came to the U.S. courtesy of “Operation Paperclip” a program designed to gather up as many Nazi rocket scientists as possible before the Soviets got them. Hence had we not entered the Second World War (as Mr. Skousen repeatedly argues we should not have) the first man on the moon may well have been planting a Swastika-bedecked flag.

However, as I have previously noted, the pesky facts of history seem to be mere annoyances to be disregarded by Mr. Skousen. Clearly the founders held the ideas of personal property in high esteem, and felt that a limited and strongly circumscribed Federal Government was ideal. These men did not have the pleasure of seeing their nation a century after the fact, to see a working class that had been removed from the agrarian society they were familiar with and proletarianized into laborers under the robber-baron industrial conglomerates created by the Rockefellers, Carnegies and Vanderbilt’s. They did not see Congressmen, Senators and State governments that were bought and paid for by the highest bidder. They did not foresee the rise of a new aristocracy who would cover themselves in all the trappings of republican virtue, while denying the spirit of republicanism through acts such as strike breaking, dismal workplace safety records, child labor, and an urban society with levels of crime, disease and pollution present in levels that they would have found nightmarish. The founders did not foresee such a future, because they could not have, any more than we will be able to predict the nature of our own societies a century in the future.

Understanding this lack of prescience, the Founders provided the Constitution with a remarkable quality that Mr. Skousen fails to fully appreciate or, blinded by his own strict constructionism, avoids properly addressing. This quality is flexibility, the Constitution of the United States is malleable enough to adapt to changed times and conditions without becoming a rigid anachronism of a bygone age, while still retaining enough of its original character to protect it from becoming a victim of political faddishness. The system that allows our Constitution this remarkable quality is the Amendment process.

Now, as any constitutional scholar will assert, the process of amending the Constitution is extremely difficult.[1] A potential Amendment must pass both houses of Congress by a 2/3 majority, and then be ratified by 2/3 of the respective State legislatures (clearly, with 50 states this is somewhat more difficult than it was with the original 13!) Nevertheless in the past 222 years we have managed to amend it 27 times,[2] dealing with issues as varied as slavery, Presidential succession, and women’s suffrage and voting age. It stands to reason that, far from the complete and static document that Mr. Skousen vehemently asserts answered all possible questions regarding national governance upon its ratification in 1788, the U.S. Constitution may actually be a living, adaptable document that was designed with the express purpose of maintaining its relevance during changing times through the possibility of amendment and revision.

As Mr. Skousen disregards this system, it is perhaps no surprise that he then viciously and hopelessly mangles his interpretation of the Progressive era, which he blames (as does his acolyte, Glenn Beck) for America’s departure from traditional Constitutionalism, toward some form of Socialist experimentation that has stymied American growth and potential for the future. In doing so, Skousen both brutally over-simplifies and generally disregards the effects of the Industrial Revolution on the American people. He consistently fails to appreciate the effects of urbanization, impoverishment and proletarianization on the American working class. Furthermore, in a manner surprising in a cold warrior as vehement as Skousen, he fails to appreciate how the radicalizing influences of Socialism on the American working class put the entire future of his cherished American capitalist-republic at risk. The Progressive leaders (in particular Theodore Roosevelt and Woodrow Wilson, both of whom come in for heavy criticism by Skousen) were not engaging in frivolous innovation, they were attempting to, in the face of massive government corruption on the one hand and massive popular discontent on the other, to use the system the founders had established to return the government to balance between tyranny and anarchy. Far from undoing the work of the founders, the Progressives were the Founder’s successors whose necessary work helped preserve a nation in crisis from imploding into the chaos that consumed a number of less flexible and farsighted nations in the years following 1917.

Finally, I have a serious bone to pick with Mr. Skousen’s idea of geopolitical “separatism.” During the era of Washington and Jefferson, indeed throughout the entire 19th century, the idea of the United States acting as a separate nation makes perfect sense. This was a period of maturation for the nation, a time to achieve stability, material and fiscal strength. Blessed with two wide oceans separating the nation from the rest of the world and one weak neighbor (Mexico) and another relatively docile one (Canada) the republic could grow and develop with less of the pressures of war and revolution that wracked the development of other nations during the same period.[3] Nevertheless, nations that cannot adapt their foreign policies to changed circumstances often find themselves victims of those very circumstances.

I do not necessarily disagree with Skousen that American involvement in the First World War was unprovoked and stupid. We had no vital pressing interests in France, and American isolationism in the following two decades stemmed strongly from the understanding that we had sent our boys to be gassed and slain for nothing pressing. Indeed, I will go so far as to concede that our participation in the First World War, contributing as it did to German defeat, helped pave the way, unintentionally though it was, for the collapse of the Weimar Republic and the rise of Hitler and the far bloodier Second World War. However, it is Skousen’s stubborn assertion of the morality of separatism in this second conflict that I find particularly galling. What exactly would Mr. Skousen have proposed? Certainly we could have sat the war out. Had we refused sanctions against the Japanese they may have avoided attacking Pearl Harbor and contented themselves on gorging themselves on the European colonial possessions unopposed, leaving a trail of rapine, slaughter and horror in their wake. Without Lend-Lease and the Atlantic charter, England would have eventually capitulated to preserve the remnant of their Empire that the Nazis were all-too-willing to promise in order to attack their primary ideological target, the Soviet Union, who without American assistance would have likely eventually folded as well. Fine, no problem, the republic is safe, right? And 11 million Jews, millions of Roma, and heaven knows who else end up being fed unopposed to the Nazi genocide machine. At certain times, under certain circumstances, principles may become vices. Confronted with the enormity of the crimes of the Final Solution, American separatism, though it was originally proposed by Washington himself, would certainly have become such.

I do not deny that Skousen brings up some excellent points in his argument. He rightfully points to the Legislature as being the central point in the functioning of the government, and his concern with the national debt (driven though it is by a fixation on destroying the welfare state) is all the more timely today. Nevertheless, taken as a whole, The 5,000 Year Leap is a pernicious over-simplification of our Constitution, government and politics that assumes that the massive technological changes so deeply extolled in its opening pages have nevertheless left us with a society that remains essentially frozen in late 18th century yeoman agrarianism, and thus our government need not make allowances for the pressures of changing times. Such thinking is, under the best circumstances merely a charming delusion, under our current troubles it threatens to saddle a nation of 300 millions facing two ongoing wars, massive unemployment and political gridlock with a system of governance wholly inadequate for modern problems. This was not what the founders intended.

[1] As well it ought to be. The ease of Amending the California State Constitution has essentially surrounded it with a veritable weed patch of bad law, which then has either been immediately reversed by subsequent referenda, or declared unconstitutional by the courts. While such a system is certainly more majority-friendly and directly democratic, it is hardly a recipe for good governance.

[2] The first 10 Amendments comprise the Bill of Rights, followed by another 17 passed over the subsequent two centuries. The 18th Amendment (1919), involving the Prohibition of Alcohol was repealed by the 21st Amendment (1932).

[3] Though it is noteworthy that it was during this period that the republic fought what is still the bloodiest war of its existence, as the Civil War (1861-65) claimed over 720,000 lives, more than were lost in every conflict the nation has engaged in since 1941.
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Feb 22, 2012 Steve rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: government

Personally, I think the best part of the book has to do with Skousen's take on the "Founder's political spectrum". The real spectrum is NOT from "left" to "right", it is from "anarchy" to "tyranny".

We either have not enough government to effectively secure our rights, or we have so much government that our rights are being trampled. Our republic was meant to maintain a balance between the two.

"left" and "right" are arbitrary and shape-shifting terms that serve to distract people from more criti...more

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Sep 10, 2011 Randy Sturridge rated it 5 of 5 stars

Everyone should be required to read this book at some point throughout the educational process. Understanding the Constitution of the United States of America has lost its necessity from some perspectives and proposed views. Whether intentionally or not educational systems nationally have failed to educate the purpose and reasoning involved in the development of the constitution. The 5000 Year Leap serves to explore these ideas and validate each method of integration with sound logical deductive...more

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Mar 27, 2010 Bigmg rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Absolutely essential reading.

With all the rewriting of history that has been going on since the Social Gospel of the late 1800's became the Progressive movement, a clear outline of the principles that the founders used in the formation of our government has been needed. This book shines a light on the path that we are on now and how lost we have become. All the sophomoric doublespeak that has become the language of the MSM and political hacks is now exposed for what it is: a lie.

Principles, su...more

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Aug 19, 2009 Dick rated it 4 of 5 stars

This is a book that is not Republican or Democrat. Rather is it about how our Found Fathers incorporated what they did into our formation as a country and into our constitution. It goes back to Cicero and others of that philosopical genre. Those who founded this nation were not kings or men of great wealth for the most part. They had worked hard to achieve whatever they had and rejected the entitlement mentality of royalty totally. These men believed in God and in HIS gift to us of not only HIS...more

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May 17, 2009 Dan rated it 2 of 5 stars

This is another hard book to rate. It's well written and really easy to read, which is saying a lot for a book on government. Quite honestly, when Skousen was talking about the absurdity of our partisan concept of the left-right divide and the problem solving vs. the conservation wing of government, this was going high three, maybe even low four for me. The difficulty arose when he actually started teaching history. He clearly had done his homework and knew a lot of things that I knew nothing ab...more

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Oct 29, 2009 Nickie rated it 5 of 5 stars Recommends it for: All Americans

Shelves: statesmanship-club

Just read this book again. October 2009. This time I presented principles 11-28 over 6 hours with a youth group. Great learning experience for me.
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This is a book all Americans need to read. And I hope would appreciate.

For me, this is the planting of a seed and the swelling of that seed which will grow, with proper nourishment into a patriotic tree with fruit of freedom and liberty.

These 28 points ring true to me. Can you tell? I hope they ring true to you as well.

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Jul 21, 2010 Melanie rated it 5 of 5 stars Recommends it for: Everyone!

Have you ever wondered the true definition of "Separation of Church and State"? What about wondering what the Founding Fathers thought about the role of the Creator and what Man's Unalienable Rights are? This book does a wonderful job in explaining the remarkable origins and ideas that helped forge this great nation.

Last Christmas, I was doing some last minute shopping and saw this book in an art gallery. It looked very interesting to me so I picked it up to give to my husband as a present. (I...more

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Aug 15, 2012 Chris Munson rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: history, politics

As I grow older, I have developed a greater appreciation for history. I picked up the 5000 Year Leap in order to help refresh my memory regarding the founding of the U.S. I found that the experience was more of a shock (e.g. how badly we have drifted from the direction that our founders intended) than a refresher. This book provides a documented overview into the 28 principles upon which our country was founded. In general, they can be stated as: Government should not intrude into our lives, deb...more

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Dec 03, 2010 Rhonda rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: read-in-2010

Subtitled Principles of Freedom 101

One of the best books I have ever read on our Founding Fathers, exactly which basic principles and ideas our country was originally intended to be formed around. It discusses the Founder's task of structuring a government with all the power in the people, People's Law and Ruler's Law.

The 28 basic principles include Natural Law, the role of religion and the role of the Creator, equal rights, not equal things, unalienable rights, property rights, free-market econ...more

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Sep 19, 2011 Chad rated it 3 of 5 stars

It is hard to remember, from our vantage point, that at the founding of America, it wasn't inevitable that the principles we take for granted would be adopted by the fledgling government. It really is a miracle in many ways. This book makes that very clear. It seems on the surface to be a great primer for understanding the issues of creating a government, but I was disappointed in many aspects of it. I won't fault it for its length, since it was very short and easy to read, but I personally woul...more

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Dec 10, 2008 Jacqueline rated it 5 of 5 stars

Every American that wants to understand our freedom and liberty should read this book. Can be understood easily by a young person as early as 8th grade, but deep enough to ponder for years. I memorized the 28 principles of liberty once, and I still fall back on them from time to time.

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May 17, 2011 Drew Danko rated it 2 of 5 stars

I was disappointed with this book, but some of that was my fault. If I had researched this book a bit,I would have learned that it was not what I was after. I also would have learned that instead of an unbiased treatment of the subject (the origins of the constitution), I was going to read a slanted interpretation by an author who is ultra conservative which is OK as long as you let me know where you are coming from. This author did not do that.

There is much to learn from this book, but it has...more

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About W. Cleon Skousen

W. Cleon Skousen (1913-2006) was a popular teacher, lecturer and author in the United States for over 40 years. Born in Raymond, Alberta, Canada on January 20, 1913, Dr. Skousen’s growing up years were spent in Canada, Mexico, and California.

At age 17 he was called to serve a two-year, LDS mission to Great Britain for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. He later attended college at th...more W. Cleon Skousen (1913-2006) was a popular teacher, lecturer and author in the United States for over 40 years. Born in Raymond, Alberta, Canada on January 20, 1913, Dr. Skousen’s growing up years were spent in Canada, Mexico, and California.

At age 17 he was called to serve a two-year, LDS mission to Great Britain for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. He later attended college at the San Bernardino Junior College where he was elected Student Body President.

With scholarships and encouragements, he left California in 1934 to work as a government aid in Washington DC. Later Dr. Skousen applied and was hired as an FBI agent.

Dr. Skousen married his sweetheart, Jewel Pitcher of San Bernardino, California, August 1936. During the past 69 years, they have raised 8 children and are the grandparents of 50 grandchildren and over 69 great-grandchildren. He resided in Salt Lake City, Utah, the remainder of his life.

Dr. Skousen served the FBI for 16 years (1935-1951), and worked closely with J. Edgar Hoover. In 1951 he was asked to join the faculty of Brigham Young University. Here he headed up the Student Alumni organization. In 1956 he was asked to serve as Chief of Police of Salt Lake City. During his 4 year service, he also wrote his national best seller, "The Naked Communist." He also was the editor of the nations leading police magazine, "Law And Order." In 1960 he left the police force and began speaking tours around the country on the political crisis during that time period. He also ran for the governors office in Utah, but narrowly missed the primaries.

In 1967, Dr. Skousen returned to BYU as a professor in the Religion Department. He taught classes on The Book of Mormon, The Old Testament, and early LDS Church History. He continued that assignment until his retirement in 1978.

In 1972 Dr. Skousen organized a non-profit educational foundation, named "The Freemen Institute." Later changed to "The National Center for Constitutional Studies" (NCCS), Dr. Skousen and his staff became the nation’s leading organization in teaching seminars on the Founding Fathers and the U.S. Constitution. His book, "The Making of America" has been used nation-wide to educate students on the original intent of the Founders.

His many books and recordings include subjects from raising boys to principles of good government, to prophetic history. Listed in this web site are all the books and tapes which are still available today; Dr. Skousen shares a wealth of knowledge and optimism--a "diamond dust" of exciting history and eternal principles of hope, that calms the sea in today's stormy world of seemingly chaos and uncertainty.

Dr. Skousen passed away peacefully in his home on January 9, 2006, of natural causes incident to age, just 11 days shy of his ninety-third birthday. He was lovingly surrounded by his family and wife Jewel, with whom he was anticipating their 70th wedding anniversary in August. He will truly be missed by many.(less)

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Books by W. Cleon Skousen

The First 2,000 Years: From Adam To Abraham

The Making of America: The Substance and Meaning of the Constitution

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Quotes from The 5000 Year Leap: A ...

“Here is my creed: I believe in one God, the Creator of the universe. That he governs it by his providence. That he ought to be worshipped. That the most acceptable service we render to him is in doing good to his other children. That the soul of man is immortal, and will be treated with justice in another life respecting its conduct in this. These I take to be the fundamental points in all sound religion. --Benjamin Franklin” — 8 people liked it

“I sought for the greatness and genius of America in her commodious harbors and her ample rivers, and it was not there; in her fiertile fields and boundless prairies, and it was not there; in her rich mines and her vast world commerce, and it was not there. Not until I went to the churches of America and heard her pulpits aflame with righteousness did I understand the secret of her genius and power. America is great because she is good, and if America ever ceases to be good, America will cease to be great." --Alexis de Tocqueville” — 6 people liked it

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The 5000 Year Leap: A Miracle That Changed the World

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