Determining Intent

When someone says something, or writes something, in additional to interpreting what they said (by defining the words of the language used), who is best at knowing the “intent” of those words? It would seem to me that if the person who spoke or wrote the words were no longer able to explain the “intent,” my guess is as good as yours, and vice versa.

In this exchange between a politician and an idiot you will catch my drift – “Is America a Christian nation? Sarah Palin said on Friday that it’s ‘mind-boggling’ to suggest otherwise. But two groups dedicated to the separation of church and state are now speaking out against her, arguing that she is misreading the founders’ intent. Barry Lynn, the executive director of Americans United for Separation of Church and State told ABC News. ‘It is wildly inconsistent with her views on limited government to get the government involved in matters of faith.’  (ABC News Online)

So why does Barry Lynn think he can determine the Founder’s intent, while Sarah Palin (or whoever else one wants to name) cannot? The hypocrisy of those who are confident they know it all, and people who think otherwise are stupid, is repulsive. I don’t know either one of these two people (Palin or Lynn), but I have read much of what the Founders of this Nation said and wrote. One of these two is wrong. Dead wrong. Wanna’ guess which one?