Inese excerpts are from a letter written by George Washington to John Jay, dated Augnst 1, 1786. In these lines, Washington is agreeing with Jay's criticism of the Articles of Confederation. Your sentiments, that our affairs are drawing rapidly to a crisis, accord with my own. . . We have errors to correct. We have probably had too good an opinion of human nature in forming our confederation . . . . . . thirteeen sovereign, independent, disunited States are in the habit of . . refusing compliance with [our national Congress] at their option. Would to God, that wise measures may be taken in time to avert the consequences we have but too much reason to apprehend. ... What did Washington mean by saying "we have errors to correct?" When washington Said that he was Saying the articles of confederation What do you suppose he meant by saying "we have probably had too good an opinion of human nature in forming our confederation? $$ \qquad $$ $$ \qquad $$ had issues that need to be fixed

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Washington's remark that “we have errors to correct” is an acknowledgment that the current system—the Articles of Confederation—has serious deficiencies. He recognized that the framework was not working as intended because it relied too heavily on the voluntary cooperation of the individual states. In essence, he was admitting that the Articles contained flaws that needed to be fixed before the nation could successfully face its growing challenges.

When he adds that “we have probably had too good an opinion of human nature in forming our confederation,” Washington is critiquing the overly optimistic assumptions made by the founders. They believed that the states and their leaders would consistently act in the common interest and honor their commitments to a centralized national authority. However, in practice, the thirteen independent states often acted in their own self-interest, sometimes outright refusing to comply with decisions made by the national Congress.

Together, these comments reveal Washington’s concern that the inherent weaknesses of the Articles—stemming partly from an idealistic view of state behavior and human nature—were leading the nation toward a crisis. He believed that without significant reforms to address these foundational errors, the new nation might face severe consequences due to the lack of effective central authority and coordination among the states.
Washington meant that the Articles of Confederation had flaws that needed fixing because the states weren't cooperating properly. He also thought the founders were too optimistic about how states would work together, leading to problems with the national government.

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