 Why would we study law and government in our teenage years? One of the first lessons in this course is that you, on reaching your majority, will be part owner of the United States. You, along with other citizens, will own the U.S. government, the U.S. economy, and the legal system. Until this point, we have not been educated to support our ownership. We have a vast and wealthy nation, but other people are running it as our agents. Our traditional education supports us in voting for the right people. Owners don't just put the right people into authority, they tell those who represent them what to accomplish in their name. Our Constitution is a contract. It is an agreement by and among the citizens signed on our behalf by our representatives. This Constitution is not the highest authority in the land. You are. Neither the federal government nor the states are even legal parties to this contract. Do you have a clear understanding of the document that was signed in your name? Do you know what our leaders are to accomplish in your name and what was forbidden to them? The first rule of written contracts is their meaning is in the writing, it is not subject to interpretation. It means what we the people agree that it means. Wherever the writing is unclear, then we are not agreed on what it means, and any unclear parts of our contract are void. This is not a course in revolution. We do not revolt against a government that we own. We simply direct it to do whatever we can agree it should do. This course supports ownership in four ways. First, understanding what we own, especially our legal foundation. Second, understanding the human wants and needs and possibilities that will bring us to agree. Third, basic knowledge of management, how we assure that our government serves us. And last, how to manage changes that implement the will of the people. We start with one fundamental understanding that there is only one party in interest and it is us. The US government only exists to serve our interests. The US economy only exists to provide the citizens of this nation with a way to get what we need and what we want. The US system of laws has no purpose except serving us. We are the only party in interest. But there is even more in our wonderful nation and an understanding that we are not just the owners and customers of our nation. Our government is only authorized to act in our name, not as some sovereign ruler over us. Even as our economy only does what people do, our nation only does what we do. Over and wherever we find agreement, we become the only authority. The focus on our teenage years is a focus on the time when we will be preparing to become effective adult citizens. This course is empowerment. It is empowerment of a nation by empowering its people. Welcome to law and government for teens. This course is your citizens' owner manual for the United States.