AJ Jacobs talks about “The Year of Living the Constitution”
For over a year, author AJ Jacobs wore wool leggings more often than socks. why? “A few years ago, I realized that I had never read the U.S. Constitution,” he said. “But every day I open the news, there's another article about how this 230-year-old document is impacting our lives. And I'm like, we need to know more about the founding document. And the way I like to learn is, “I like to go all in.''
For Jacobs, going all-in means complete immersion. In his best-selling book, The Know-It-All, Jacobs wrote that he spent 18 months reading the Encyclopedia Britannica. In the “Year of Living Biblically” he tried to follow all the rules of the old era and New Testament. And now, his latest obsession is “The Year of Living According to the Constitution.”
“I look really silly,” he said, dressed in late 18th century garb. “But I'm also serious about this project. Part of my goal is to get into the minds of the Founding Fathers as much as I can.”
lead young
Jacobs therefore joined the Third New Jersey Regiment of Revolutionary War Reenactors. He showed Dickerson a musket and said, “This is real from the 1700s.” “I got it online, but I don't think that was the way they did it at the time.”
Jacobs said the reenactors were “very enthusiastic. Of course they weren't using lead balls. They were using blanks.”
Anyway, he actually “died.” He said, “He certainly died for his country, but he died in the shadows.”
To explore his Second Amendment rights, Jacobs carried an antique gun around New York City. “I was standing in line at a coffee shop with a musket, and the guy in front of me said, 'Go ahead. I'm not messin' with you.'”
CBS News
During a visit to the 1765 Morris Jumel House in Manhattan, which General George Washington briefly made into military headquarters, Jacobs was asked what the framers of the Constitution were afraid of. “They had just waged a war to remove the monarch,” he said. “One of the best parts of the Constitution is how they built in mechanisms to prevent one person or one branch from taking over this balance of power. I never valued the balance of power too much. It has served to keep us away.'' There are so many tyrants! ”
Jacobs' research also took him to Washington, D.C., to learn more about his First Amendment right to petition the government. Jacobs brought his own petition, a long scroll with 423 signatures, to Oregon Sen. Ron Wyden to reconsider Ben Franklin's idea of having multiple presidents. “You're injecting logic and common sense, which is often missing from public debate,” Wyden said.
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So how was the petition received? “I think he thought about it for about five seconds, and that was it!” Jacobs laughed. “I would say he completely understood my underlying theory that the president has too much power.”
Jacobs used a quill pen during his research, which meant spending the rest of the day with dirty fingertips. “I love writing by hand,” he said. “There's something wonderful about taking out a quill, dipping it in ink, and just writing. I love the sound of it.” wound, wound, wound. ”
CBS News
Julie Jacobs, AJ's wife of 24 years…not so much. “We've been through a lot together,” she said. “So this is nothing! This is nothing.”
When asked if she was the most patient wife in the world, Julie laughed: “I think so! You can call me St. Julie any time you want!”
AJ not only wrote with a quill, he also scratched the words onto parchment, which wasn't paper at all. It is made from stretched and dried animal skin, such as sheepskin. To learn how to make it, Jacobs took lessons from brothers Jesse and Stephen Meyer, who run Pergamena, one of the few places in North America where parchment is made.
CBS News
Asked to describe the smell, Jesse Meyer said, “It smells like something between rotting meat and very strong cheese.”
The same process was used to create the Constitution, which is now enshrined under glass and protected by unbreakable glass on display at the National Archives in Washington.
“People come here and see it and get energized,” says historian Jesse Kratz. “And they're probably going to vote in local elections as well as presidential elections.”
CBS News
“I don't want to say, 'Just read the Constitution.' Read the Constitution,” Jacobs said. talk about it with people, especially those who disagree with your views. To me, that is democracy. ”
crown
All this running around may seem like cheating, but Jacobs says his immersive approach helps him focus on the important lessons of the system we all still live under today. I say it was helpful. “They thought about rights, but they also thought about responsibilities,” he says. “They had a deeply ingrained idea that they had a responsibility to their community and country. But I feel like we've lost some of that. Sometimes it's hard to put others before yourself. Everything.”
This lesson is more than just a fun concept. It is vitally important to the survival of the Constitution.
When asked if his project made him more optimistic or pessimistic, Jacobs said, “George Washington was sitting in a wooden chair at the Constitutional Convention. There was a sculpture behind the sun.'' There was, but not the whole sun, but only half of the sun “, the upper half, so you could not say: is it setting or rising? About America. ”
“And my question was, what is the sun? still Will you stand up against America? It's up to us. Because if we don't do anything, the sun will set. ”
Read an excerpt: “The Year of Living the Constitution” by AJ Jacobs
For more information:
- “A year of living according to the Constitution: One man’s modest quest to follow the original meaning of the Constitution.” Written by AJ Jacobs (Crown) Available May 7th in hardcover, ebook, and audio formats Amazon, Barnes & Noble and Bookshop.org
- morris jumel mansionNew York, NY
- 3rd New Jersey Regiment, Jersey Blues – Revolutionary War Reenactors (Facebook)
- pergamenaMontgomery, New York
- national archivesWashington DC
- thanks to Photographer Reid Young
Story produced by Jay Kernis. Editor: George Pozderek.
Summarize this content to 100 words For over a year, author AJ Jacobs wore wool leggings more often than socks. why? “A few years ago, I realized that I had never read the U.S. Constitution,” he said. “But every day I open the news, there's another article about how this 230-year-old document is impacting our lives. And I'm like, we need to know more about the founding document. And the way I like to learn is, “I like to go all in.''For Jacobs, going all-in means complete immersion. In his best-selling book, The Know-It-All, Jacobs wrote that he spent 18 months reading the Encyclopedia Britannica. In the “Year of Living Biblically” he tried to follow all the rules of the old era and New Testament. And now, his latest obsession is “The Year of Living According to the Constitution.””I look really silly,” he said, dressed in late 18th century garb. “But I'm also serious about this project. Part of my goal is to get into the minds of the Founding Fathers as much as I can.”
Humorist AJ Jacobs gets colonial attire right (except from the ankles down).
lead young
Jacobs therefore joined the Third New Jersey Regiment of Revolutionary War Reenactors. He showed Dickerson a musket and said, “This is real from the 1700s.” “I got it online, but I don't think that was the way they did it at the time.”
Jacobs said the reenactors were “very enthusiastic. Of course they weren't using lead balls. They were using blanks.”Anyway, he actually “died.” He said, “He certainly died for his country, but he died in the shadows.”
To explore his Second Amendment rights, Jacobs carried an antique gun around New York City. “I was standing in line at a coffee shop with a musket, and the guy in front of me said, 'Go ahead. I'm not messin' with you.'”
AJ Jacobs, author of A Year of Living the Constitution, immersed himself in the era of the Founding Fathers to better understand the U.S. Constitution.
CBS News
During a visit to the 1765 Morris Jumel House in Manhattan, which General George Washington briefly made into military headquarters, Jacobs was asked what the framers of the Constitution were afraid of. “They had just waged a war to remove the monarch,” he said. “One of the best parts of the Constitution is how they built in mechanisms to prevent one person or one branch from taking over this balance of power. I never valued the balance of power too much. It has served to keep us away.'' There are so many tyrants! ”Jacobs' research also took him to Washington, D.C., to learn more about his First Amendment right to petition the government. Jacobs brought his own petition, a long scroll with 423 signatures, to Oregon Sen. Ron Wyden to reconsider Ben Franklin's idea of having multiple presidents. “You're injecting logic and common sense, which is often missing from public debate,” Wyden said.
AJ Jacobs presents a petition to Oregon Sen. Ron Wyden.
CBS News
So how was the petition received? “I think he thought about it for about five seconds, and that was it!” Jacobs laughed. “I would say he completely understood my underlying theory that the president has too much power.”
Jacobs used a quill pen during his research, which meant spending the rest of the day with dirty fingertips. “I love writing by hand,” he said. “There's something wonderful about taking out a quill, dipping it in ink, and just writing. I love the sound of it.” wound, wound, wound. ”
CBS News
Julie Jacobs, AJ's wife of 24 years…not so much. “We've been through a lot together,” she said. “So this is nothing! This is nothing.”When asked if she was the most patient wife in the world, Julie laughed: “I think so! You can call me St. Julie any time you want!”AJ not only wrote with a quill, he also scratched the words onto parchment, which wasn't paper at all. It is made from stretched and dried animal skin, such as sheepskin. To learn how to make it, Jacobs took lessons from brothers Jesse and Stephen Meyer, who run Pergamena, one of the few places in North America where parchment is made.
AJ Jacobs of Pergamena, one of the few places in North America where parchment is made.
CBS News
Asked to describe the smell, Jesse Meyer said, “It smells like something between rotting meat and very strong cheese.” The same process was used to create the Constitution, which is now enshrined under glass and protected by unbreakable glass on display at the National Archives in Washington.”People come here and see it and get energized,” says historian Jesse Kratz. “And they're probably going to vote in local elections as well as presidential elections.”
CBS News
“I don't want to say, 'Just read the Constitution.' Read the Constitution,” Jacobs said. talk about it with people, especially those who disagree with your views. To me, that is democracy. ”
crown
All this running around may seem like cheating, but Jacobs says his immersive approach helps him focus on the important lessons of the system we all still live under today. I say it was helpful. “They thought about rights, but they also thought about responsibilities,” he says. “They had a deeply ingrained idea that they had a responsibility to their community and country. But I feel like we've lost some of that. Sometimes it's hard to put others before yourself. Everything.”
This lesson is more than just a fun concept. It is vitally important to the survival of the Constitution.When asked if his project made him more optimistic or pessimistic, Jacobs said, “George Washington was sitting in a wooden chair at the Constitutional Convention. There was a sculpture behind the sun.'' There was, but not the whole sun, but only half of the sun “, the upper half, so you could not say: is it setting or rising? About America. ” “And my question was, what is the sun? still Will you stand up against America? It's up to us. Because if we don't do anything, the sun will set. ” Read an excerpt: “The Year of Living the Constitution” by AJ Jacobs For more information:“A year of living according to the Constitution: One man’s modest quest to follow the original meaning of the Constitution.” Written by AJ Jacobs (Crown) Available May 7th in hardcover, ebook, and audio formats Amazon, Barnes & Noble and Bookshop.orgmorris jumel mansionNew York, NY3rd New Jersey Regiment, Jersey Blues – Revolutionary War Reenactors (Facebook)pergamenaMontgomery, New Yorknational archivesWashington DCthanks to Photographer Reid Young Story produced by Jay Kernis. Editor: George Pozderek.
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John Dickerson is the anchor of CBS News Prime Time with John Dickerson, CBS News' chief political analyst, senior national correspondent and contributor to CBS Sunday Morning. He also anchors CBS News' election coverage and political specials.
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/a-j-jacobs-on-the-year-of-living-constitutionally/ AJ Jacobs talks about “The Year of Living the Constitution”
