America At A Crossroads, Part I

Writing about politics online is probably even worse than writing about religion online, unless you are a satirical artist mocking Mohammed in your story.  Post something political on Facebook and you are essentially lighting the match and tossing it into gasoline (see the Chick-Fil-A fiasco last month).  However, I am going to try a different approach.  I may or may not succeed, but I feel compelled to try.

I view the coming election as a tipping point in American history and it begs for some intelligent conversation and debate, not the ridiculous spin doctoring, name calling, insult tossing banter which has overrun the modern American political scene.  Political debate has been replaced with political berate.  This will merely be some of my thoughts, opinions, beliefs, information, and personal reasoning on the issues which matter to me, and not a condemnation of those who choose to align opposite from me.  If someone else truly disagrees with my opinions, I encourage them to write in defense of their beliefs as well, not just fling some tweets, or whine in comment fields.

So, why do I feel so strongly about this election being so important?  Why do I feel it may be a crucial tipping point in our country's history?  That is probably the best place to start.  This hopefully summarizes the why for me.

We are betraying the very principles upon which our country was founded.  We are spending trillions and trillions of dollars we don't have, mortgaging our children's and now grandchildren's futures, sacrificing our liberties, and being told we need to trust in a faceless bureaucracy that will determine for us what we need, what is fair, and what is best for us.  This is not a slight change in the course of our country's future, this course of action is an assault upon it's very soul. 


The Foundation And The Founders

This country was founded on one principal above all others: freedom.  The freedom those brave souls fought for in the Revolutionary War, the freedom so carefully written into our nation's founding document; that freedom had never before been granted to any citizen: the freedom to speak one's mind openly, the freedom to pray and worship whomever/whatever you choose, the freedom to pursue your happiness and dreams, the freedom to own and protect property, all without the interference of an oppressive and demanding government. There is no other country in the world where freedom is the foundation of their very existence.

You can tell how important these ideals were by simply reading the founding documents themselves.  Sadly in our current education system, few students will ever be exposed to them and therefore, will be shockingly unaware of their actual contents.  Many adults remain woefully ignorant of them as well.  If Jon Stewart read them aloud on his show, a whole segment of our population would come to know and understand the actual tenets those documents hold.  Sadly, this would likely be the only way many people would ever learn their details.

Furthermore, by reading the letters, speeches, and other writings of those who wrote and helped frame the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence, you can begin to understand how important these ideals were to them.

For example, Thomas Jefferson himself understood how important it was for the newly formed country to prevent public debt:

"Then I say, the earth belongs to each of these generations during its course, fully and in its own right. The second generation receives it clear of the debts and encumbrances of the first, the third of the second, and so on. For if the first could charge it with a debt, then the earth would belong to the dead and not to the living generation....The conclusion then, is, that neither the representatives of a nation, nor the whole nation itself assembled, can validly engage debts beyond what they may pay in their own time."
--Thomas Jefferson to James Madison, 1789.
"It is incumbent on every generation to pay its own debts as it goes. A principle which if acted on would save one-half the wars of the world." --Thomas Jefferson to A. L. C. Destutt de Tracy, 1820.

John Adams (sadly I probably need to remind some folks he was our second president) spoke and wrote of the absolute paramount importance of property rights:

"The moment the idea is admitted into society that property is not as sacred as the laws of God and that there is not a force of law and public justice to protect it, anarchy and tyranny commence. If “Thou shalt not covet,” and “Thou shalt not steal,” were not commandments of heaven, they must be made inviolable precepts in every society before it can be civilized or made free. ... Property is surely a right of mankind, as really as liberty."
-- John Adams, A Defence of the Constitutions of Government (1787)

"They who can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety, deserve neither liberty nor safety."
-- Ben Franklin, Memoirs of the life and writings of Benjamin Franklin (1818)

Okay, so I have laid the foundation for what's to come.  I doubt precious few will read on, perhaps only myself, but here is how I am laying out my inherent belief that we must change course and find our way back to the ideals which made this country great.


Freedom Sure Is Misunderstood

Earlier I referenced freedom as the primary principle our Founding Fathers fought for, and as the foundation upon which they built the greatest country the world has ever known.  It seems like such an easy and simple thing freedom.  Webster's defines freedom as "the state of being free or at liberty rather than under confinement", and as "exemption from external control, interference, and regulation" as the primary definitions of the word.

No matter where you look up the definition of the word there are some universal truths about freedom:

Freedom isn't free.  It comes at a cost, as all things do.  In our country's history, it has cost many thousands of lives over the years.  Thomas Jefferson famously noted, "The tree of liberty must be refreshed from time to time with the blood of patriots and tyrants."  Indeed, freedom is always under attack from those who want to control, from within our country and without.  Freedom always requires an effort to keep, and simple laziness to lose.

You can't have freedom without responsibility.  You certainly can't have civilization without it.  Without responsibility our country would descend into chaos.  Yet you would have a better chance today of converting the entire country of Lebanon to Judaism than you would getting everyone in America to accept responsibility for all their choices and actions.

The freedom we enjoy means we are all free to speak our minds, even those who espouse an opinion or belief you find distasteful or even morally reprehensible.  Certainly we have all heard some vile and disgusting things in our life, and we are all able to put our feet right into our mouths, that is freedom.

Freedom does not mean the equality of results.  Our constitution does not guarantee everyone a home, a car, a cell phone, health care, a job, social security or even something as basic as "fairness".  Look carefully, none of those are there.

Our Declaration of Independence  clearly states "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness."  Created equal, and the pursuit of happiness.  No mention of equality of results.  No right to a lifetime of happiness.  America is known the world over as the land of opportunity.  You have the chance to pursue happiness.

The freedom we have to pursue it is also the same freedom we have to fail.  The same freedom we have to make really dumb choices.  The freedom to screw your life up.  The freedom to learn from your mistakes.

There is no amount of money in the world, no country which will ever exist where everyone and everything will be fair.  Period.  All anyone can really ask for is the chance to try and succeed.

The founding fathers were not without compassion or consideration for those in disadvantaged circumstances:

"I am for doing good to the poor, but I differ in opinion of the means. I think the best way of doing good to the poor, is not making them easy in poverty, but leading or driving them out of it. In my youth I travelled much, and I observed in different countries, that the more public provisions were made for the poor, the less they provided for themselves, and of course became poorer. And, on the contrary, the less was done for them, the more they did for themselves, and became richer." 
--Ben Franklin, On the Price of Corn and Management of the Poor (29 November 1766)

So, as I sit and type this blog, I already sit at 14 pages (this is just the first 3.5).  I think I had better break this up or even I may have a hard time reading it.  I have tried to explain my view (briefly believe it or not) of how this country was established, based on studying America History, actually reading the Constitution (including the Bill of Rights and all the amendments) and the Declaration of Independence; and by taking time to understand the people who started our great nation and their vision.  Soon, I will post more on the rest of my quote in dealing with the betrayal of our principles.