Constitution or Prostitution - We choose one over the other.

Take the following words and examine them closely:

Destitute
Institute
Substitute
Prostitute
Constitute

What does the Latin word stitute mean? Essentially, it means "to cause to stand" or to establish.

Con means against.
Pro means for, or in favor of.

Destitute means lacking the ability to stand with others. Alone.

Institute is a place to stand with others. An institution is a structure or mechanism of social order and cooperation governing the behavior of a set of individuals within a given human community. Government or Church is such an institution.

Substitute is causing one thing to stand in place of another.

Prostitute is causing to stand in favor of an unworthy cause.

And finally, we have the aim of this thread. Constitute. Remember, con is against. A constitution is against standing for an unworthy cause. What cause is this? Examine the opposite word prostitution and you can easily make a connection to the foundation our country was built upon.

Trace history back and you see that the church was prostituting themselves for money. They were selling indulgences as forgiveness for sin. Along comes Luther and nails his thesis to the doors of the churches in Rome. The great awakening, as they call it, then followed. The Protestant Church was founded and 70 million people fled Europe for freedom and liberty in a new land. From these events, we see the founders standing against the establishment of the institution over the people. Instead, we see the people rise above the institution. The Constitution is then seen as being against its opposite.

Now go back to the Bible and read about the harlot in Revelation. A harlot is a prostitute. The marriage of rule combined with faith is the unholy mirage of the church of Rome and the unlimited rule over men. Can we draw a parallel with our own country being in bed with the old world system of unworthy causes? Our government is the harlot in this case.

Where do we stand today? Are our institutions a place for people to stand united? Or, have our institutions become a prostitute that we send our money to for service? The constitution was originally drafted to avoid standing for an unworthy cause.

I say it is high time we stand up again for a worthy cause before we once again become destitute. The answer is to stand in faith with God by living our lives for a worthy cause. Violence is not the answer. Hate is not the answer. Hate cannot dispel hate. Only love dispels hate. We either light the fire we burn by or we are the light to others on the path. Stand for truth only. Seek ye first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things will be added unto you. It starts with you. Stand with God and the land is healed.

"An idea who's time has come cannot be stopped by an army or by any government." RON PAUL

I see you're still ignoring the true meanings of the words and deciding for yourself which of the root words they could possibly be from are applicable.

Originally posted by cetaphobic
I see you're still ignoring the true meanings of the words and deciding for yourself which of the root words they could possibly be from are applicable.

We've been over this in another thread and con means disadvantage. Pro means advantage. A con job is deception against someone. A convict is against society.

In music, con means with. Why, because being with the music is against unequal elements. For instance, you can see con brio in music. This means with spirit and against the unspirited. But in music, we are not talking about being with something, but against all the rest. Con is a separation form the rest. When two objects are joined, they can be considered conjoined. Joined apart form all the rest, but with each other. This is a disadvantage as it is apart form freedom.

Any way you look at it, con is to separate form the many. It is against the many.

In music, the aim is to be in the center, away from unity. Intonation is not high and not low, but centered. Rhythm is not too fast and not too slow, but centered. When all aspects are unified, they are with unity, or against disunity.

Con is a tricky word and depends on how you are looking at its usage.

There are pros and cons. A concert is a program for removing disunity from sound and organize it by notation. Cert in Latin means to separate. A concert is against separation. When you are in concert with someone, you are with them true, but against disunity or separation.

Do you see the usage? It is a prefix by frame of reference and can mean either depending on the direction you are headed with your meaning.

reply to post by SuperiorEd


There is con and contra. You mean contra, which was also pointed out in the other thread.

Originally posted by cetaphobic
reply to post by SuperiorEd

 

There is con and contra. You mean contra, which was also pointed out in the other thread.

If con is with, then we would define constitution as "standing for a worthy cause." If we see it as against, then it is standing against an unworthy cause. Con is always a disadvantage. Pro is always an advantage. What follows the prefix is a linguistic root that is modified by the prefix. Defining the root is the key to how you define the word from the addition of the prefix. If I stand for good, this assumes that I stand against evil.

A convict is a person proven guilty. Vict is latin for "to victory." How would you see con in this instance? With victory? Yes and no. It is with victory for the prosecution. It is against victory for the one convicted.

reply to post by SuperiorEd


I am saying there are two versions of the prefix con. One is just con, the other is short for contra. You are ignoring that there are some words, such as constitution, that are not based in the contra prefix but the other con prefix.

Originally posted by cetaphobic
reply to post by SuperiorEd

 

I am saying there are two versions of the prefix con. One is just con, the other is short for contra. You are ignoring that there are some words, such as constitution, that are not based in the contra prefix but the other con prefix.

I see.

For instance, a tribute is a forced payment.

To contribute is not a forced tribute. It is against a forced tribute. It is voluntary payment.

So what you are saying is, "con is the English shortened form of the Latin word contra, meaning against, or opposed to. Pro is the Latin for "for," or "in favour of;" contra is simply the Latin preposition and adverb for "against.""

This may help

mid-14c., "law, regulation, edict," from O.Fr. constitucion (12c.) "constitution, establishment," and directly from L. constitutionem (nom. constitutio) "act of settling, settled condition, anything arranged or settled upon, regulation, order, ordinance," from constitut-, pp. stem of constituere (see constitute). Meaning "action of establishing" is from 1580s; that of "way in which a thing is constituted" is from c.1600; that of "physical health, strength and vigor of the body" is from 1550s; of the mind, "temperament, character" from 1580s. Sense of "mode of organization of a state" is from c.1600; that of "system of principles by which a community is governed" dates from 1730s; especially of a document of written laws since the U.S. and French constitutions, late 18c.

1520s, "to offer to indiscriminate sexual intercourse (usually in exchange for money)," from L. prostituere "to expose to prostitution, expose publicly," from pro- "before" (see pro-) + statuere "cause to stand, establish" (see stature). The noun sense of "harlot" is from 1610s, from L. prostituta "prostitute," fem. of prostitutus, pp. of prostituere. The notion of "sex for hire" is not inherent in the etymology, which rather suggests one "exposed to lust" or sex "indiscriminately offered." However, this is now almost the official European term for the institution, e.g. Ger. prostituierte, Rus. prostitutka, etc. Figurative sense (of abilities, etc.) is from 1590s. The noun meaning "a woman who offers her body indiscriminately" (usually for money) is from 1610s. Of men, in reference to homosexual acts, recorded from 1886 (in form prostitution).