“She is too old and fragile.”

What does age have to do with it? At 200 years plus, CONSTITUTION is in better shape than the vast majority of ships on the water. Capability is what counts - the basic structure of this ship has been restored - anything else can be repaired and upgraded as required. This ship was designed to fire broadsides at a time, sail in hurricanes and haul supplies for several hundred seaman sustaining them for months at a time at sea. She has been fought, grounded and sailed in weather that no one, in any ship at any time - including today - would deliberately go into. By merely being prudent and sailing conservatively, CONSTITUTION can be held within an envelope that keeps her easily inside her present design limits. CONSTITUTION, we are told, was returned to original specifications with materials equal to or better than first used. In over 200 years, most of the ship has been replaced. It is the idea, the design that remains - and that is a good as it ever has been. History confirms that this is a solid ship.

The Constitution is robust and designed to be modified. But only according to her nature and with prudence.

“We might lose her in an accident.”

Seems to me that we already have lost her in an accident - an accident of will. There is risk in sailing this ship as there is with any other. Prudent sailing and proper skill will attenuate the risk. Not keeping these skills may be a bigger risk, however. Not exercising the will to use the ship as she was designed to be used may be a bigger, and in the end, an unacceptable risk. It would be unfortunate to lose her physically - but we already have lost her metaphysically. It would be a rare circumstance to have a total loss even if there was an incident. She avoided total lose in over a half a century of active duty, sailing without aid, engine, and in hostile waters. We cannot match this performance today?

That we might lose the Constitution in an accident of history may be the major metaphor of our day. Lets hope it does not become a reality.

“Someone could get hurt.”

True. It is an all volunteer military and learning to deal with risk is one aspect of the training. There are Tall Ships predominately sailed by teen-age Cadets. Most of the risk associated with the old sailing days is greatly mitigated by modern electronics, communication systems, proper food and medical knowledge. I suspect that sailing CONSTITUTION is safer than crossing the streets of New York city. This is a cya excuse.

Can fear cause us not to apply the Constitution to our modern needs and context?

“It costs money and the budget will not allow it.”

The “budget!” In the world’s richest Nation “the budget” is a mantra used whenever someone doesn’t want to do something. I bet that this could be made into a net income generator for the Navy. What would people contribute just to see CONSTITUTION sail? What would they pay to spend a week on her as a deck hand? What might advertisers pay for (tasteful) use of her persona and image in ads. Or. perhaps, the government might want to keep that IP to itself for positioning the USA brand, globally. We certainly spend a great deal more doing this in less real and far less effective ways.

Can you imagine someone saying that the Constitution cannot be fit into the budget? That money is more important? We have a great deal of money but only one Constitution.

“Fewer people will get to see her if she sails a lot.” CONSTITUTION is a must see when in Boston but I suspect that more people would see her if she sailed with the international Tall Ships fleet. There have been times in the past when she was hauled from U.S. port to port so that she could be enjoyed by a larger audience. Why not sail her from port to port? Why not let people experience the “real thing?” No, I didn’t say that.

Perhaps it is time to take our Constitution abroad rather than our military industrial complex [link: making rights].

“We don’t know how to sail her today.”

Well now, there is one good answer to this: learn how! This is, of course, is the point. As we move to a more technically supported society, and as much of our life become vicarious in nature, we need to experience life and technology in a primary way. Else, we loose the feel of it. When this primary feel is lost we risk becoming cerebral monsters poor designers and abusers of technology [link: the monkeys paw]. When CONSTITUTION was last sailed, the Navy had to be trained by a private group. This is not a good sign. This is a case where the reason given for not doing something is the best reason for doing it.

There is an old saying about constitutions: “use it or lose it.”