Well, it’s been a few weeks since I last posted and my mind is still occupied with what is going on in Washington. Yesterday, the House passed H.R. 2454, the American Clean Energy and Security Act.
It is neither, American, clean or secure. Interestingly, eight Republicans voted for it while 44 Democrats voted no. The bill is something like 1200 to 1500 pages long and represents the most expansive and expensive federal intrusion into the lives of the American people in history. That record will only stand until our thuggish uncle sinks his teeth into the healthcare system next.
The premise of the bill is that we desperately need to do something about global warming. Proponents say that America simply puts out too much carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases. They say the science is settled and that the cost of waiting is too high.
All of this is garbage. If you think that global warming is real and that it’s the fault of mankind, think again. Liberals are a funny lot (funny strange, not funny ha ha). On the one hand, they think that “we the people” are too stupid and incompetent to take care of ourselves, while on the other hand, human beings are so powerful that we could destroy the planet by driving our cars and refrigerating our food. Well, which is it? Both can’t be true, though apparently, liberals think so.
Well, I can tell you that the second one is most certainly not true. Global warming is total bunk. The “science” is definitely not settled. In fact, real science (you know the kind they used to teach in schools) shows just what we’ve always known – that Earth is bigger and more complex than we will ever know. And, while we can certainly have temporary deleterious effects on the ecology and the environment, this planet that God created always reminds us of how insignificant we are in the big scheme of things.
As for the first assertion – that we are stupid and incompetent, well, I am just not sure on that one. The American people could actually be so stupid as to let the government take more and more freedom away. We could be gullible and ignorant enough to believe that the government can “compete” with the private sector without the economy suffering grave damage. We may buy the claim that when government runs the healthcare system that we will still be able to choose what doctor we see. We may accept the idiotic notion that we can continue to spend and spend without condemning future generations to a life of state run mediocrity and despair.
But, if we are that stupid (or maybe lazy is a better term?) then it is because we have allowed it. If the elitist, cowardly whores in Washington (and even our state capitols) have such a low opinion of us, maybe it is because we have given them reason to believe it. Don’t get me wrong, the politicians and the bureaucrats have a lot to answer for, but I think we need to admit our role in the current crisis of liberty.
For decades now, we have allowed ourselves to believe that our blood-bought, God-ordained liberty was not being gradually taken away from us by a government operating outside the Constitution. We have lied to ourselves by asking that same paternalistic government to take from our neighbor in order to give to us. In short, we have convinced ourselves that government can legally do all sorts of things that we ourselves cannot do. Then, we blamed the elected ones rather than blame ourselves. We created and gradually perfected a system that virtually requires those running for office to promise things that they have no right to promise. At the same time, we label those principled few who will not prostitute themselves as “radical” or “uncompassionate”.
And yet, we still claim to be free. Are we? Do we deserve to be?
Thomas Jefferson once said “the natural progress of things is for liberty to yield and government to gain ground”. History certainly proves that over and over again. History also shows that the more ground that is lost to government, the more sweat and blood it will cost to regain it. I don’t know how to measure the amount of ground that has been lost. But, I do know how to put a value on it. Quite simply, liberty is worth all sacrifice, all exertions, and any defense to reclaim and preserve it. However, we won’t search for something if we don’t know it has been lost. If we are not intimately familiar with the look and smell of freedom; if we do not know it by its fruit, we simply will not be able to reclaim it. The question is this: are Americans still capable of recognizing true liberty? And if we are, is it still worth to us what it will cost to get it back? I sincerely hope that it is.
Having said all that, there is a larger issue I must mention. There is of course a context for all this justifiable concern for the plight we are in. Thoughts of my responsibility as a Christian citizen are never too far from my mind. It is rare that I can speak or write of political matters without being reminded that God is in control and that he commanded us to respect and pray for the government authority. The thing I wrestle with is the details of how I should do this in my life. I firmly believe that my passion for liberty and for America as a practical ideal did not arise by accident. Nor do I accomplish any good in this arena by my own devices. Whatever I am, whatever I have to offer in this regard is because of God. My prayer will always be that I remember to Whom I really belong. When I write or speak, especially when my sensibilities are aroused (which is to say most of the time), I will strive to be cordial even while direct in my language. I will trust my family, friends and compatriots to help me realize those times when I may have strayed from the goal.
I will finish with one more quote from Thomas Jefferson:
“Timid men prefer the calm of despotism to the tempestuous sea of liberty.”
I’m done being timid. Are you?
June 29, 2009 at 5:11 PM |
Brett, Thanks for putting into words what so many of us think.