I try pretty hard to keep my political
opinions off of FB, although I don’t mind giving it if someone wants to discuss
things in a rational, adult-like manner. Moderately aware in the past, I find
this election is different for me. I watched debates, listened to candidates, and
gave ear to what many pundits said. After all, they were the ones with the
power to dig into what was being said-right? Ugh…not true. I’ve never been a
straight-party girl, and I legitimately mark each candidate for each individual
office. With that in mind, I started this “political season” more focused
because I believe we are at a crossroads. A wrong decision could catapult
America into a situation that it might not survive. The more I listened and
searched for answers, the more questions I had. In the course of my
investigating, I found terms thrown around that I did not fully comprehend. I
started there, and I found that most people with whom I spoke did not really
understand what these things mean either.
In discussing the election, candidates,
state of the union, etc., I’ve had several people ask me to share with them
what I found. There is a lot of information out there, and I know that we all
have busy lives. It is with that in mind that I decided to explain what I have
learned. In full disclosure, I am not an expert of any sort; however, I am a
person dogged by the need to find answers and get to the truth. In my effort to
explain things, I may oversimplify or confuse. I’m fairly certain that I will
get something wrong. This is my way to share with the peeps that asked me to
explain some things.
Key
Terms and Ideas in an Order that Makes Sense to Me
As I listened to a HUGE variety of
people talk about this election, I got a little confused by words I’d heard my
entire life. I looked at them again to wade through and put things into
perspective. I plan to lead you through a few definitions as I found them and
see them connected.
Our Founding Fathers came from a
government that oppressed them. They were extremely smart, brave men who did
not believe anybody should have to live under an authoritarian
system. Authoritarianism is a way
of governing where order and control is valued over personal freedom (usually
headed by a dictator), blind submission to a leader who isn’t constitutionally
responsible to the people.
After being here under British rule,
beholden to a king (authoritarian) who overtaxed them but left them
underrepresented and unable to govern themselves, they set out to change
things, eventually paving the way for the greatest nation on earth. The
Revolutionary War began, and then in 1776 they put forth the Declaration of Independence but weren’t under one
central government yet.
I went back to the Declaration and put
it into modern language line by line to understand the beliefs on which America
was founded. (I have that “easy read version “saved if anyone is interested in
it.) At the core, it expresses the
belief that all men are created equal and given the same inalienable rights by
God and not the government.
After the last Revolutionary battle,
they set up a “loose” federal government under the Articles of the
Confederation but became concerned that the democracy was being used in a way
that wasn’t good for the people. They decided to write the Constitution for the
Republic. It is important to remember that we are a Republic rather than a
democracy. Both of them are pretty much based on representation; however, in a democracy the majority always rules so the minority is never
really represented. In a republic, there is a
charter/constitution that protects “inalienable rights” that cannot be
taken away by the majority because it isn’t really theirs to take.
Once they set up the Republic,
capitalism sprung forth. In capitalism, private owners
control a country’s economic and political system. It’s marked by the free
market and led the way for America to flourish in a way that the world
had not experienced.
A term that we have heard a lot over the
last few years is progressivism. This term
describes both Republicans and Democrats. It is not quite the same as a
moderate, but sometimes gets tossed around the same way. The Progressive
Movement seems to have begun during the really early 1900s. Historians disagree
on the exact beginning, some arguing that is started with the New Deal and
others saying it began before. In essence, progressivism is the idea that the government is an evolving entity and takes
on the role the times requires. These people often argue that our
Founding Fathers did a good job at the time and wanted a limited government
because of their experience with the king. They also argue that the people of
that time (the early progressives) wanted to adjust things as needed, allowing
the government to play a more activist role.
Why
do we need to know these, and how the heck do they affect us now?
It’s a lot. I know! I’ve been working
through this for around a year. It is really, really important. Understanding
from where we come sheds light on why we are here and where we need to go now.
After studying this for a while, the
Progressive Movement (to me) seems to be the slow movement away from liberty.
At one point in time, Americans would not have accepted many things that we now
think is normal. In this, I am not referring to social issues but rather the
move from believing in American exceptionalism to the idea that we must accept
our station in life, whining and complaining about “fairness” rather than pulling
ourselves up by our boot straps and knowing that we can do better if we work
harder and smarter.
In just over a hundred years, we have
landed in this place where many Americans cheer for a revolution they hope will
lead to socialism without really understanding it.
Socialism is a political and economic system that puts
the community as a whole before the individual and does so at the hand of the
government. This comes from the ideas of Karl Marx and is often said to
be the transitional state between overthrowing capitalism and realizing communism, which is a system all social activity is
controlled by a totalitarian and state dominated (single and self-perpetuating)
government. In short, the government rules it all, and inalienable rights are
non-existent. The beauty of America rests in the fact that the will of
the people can prevail, and we have the freedom to express our beliefs without
fear. That stops working when we stop participating and advocating for
ourselves. One cannot simply listen to a candidate’s rhetoric and expect to
know the truth. Their actions matter more.
Many young people hear the promise of
“free” and have no clue that translates into “free right now”. It is imperative
we teach them that an education given to them without earning it (whether by
getting a job to pay for it or working hard in school to earn a scholarship)
weakens their resolve to be a better person and puts them in debt to that same
government. They will be held accountable for that cost, and likely, so will
their children because of the amount of debt the ever-increasing government
keeps taking in order to give them a “free and fair” life.
My research into what was and what could
be (quite easily I might add) leads me to the here and now. My own personal
belief? We cannot afford another progressive, on either side. While some would
argue that progressive thought has a place in our current situation, I
disagree. It breeds laziness and apathy. The majority of students in today’s
classroom have no idea what it means to live in an American society where true
freedom encourages exceptionalism. Many of them will ask me what they must do
in order to do fine in class. The hardest battle I face as a teacher stems from
acceptance of mediocrity. I’ve never seen anything like it, and it moves closer
to the norm every day.
Americans are angry and exhausted. As a
teacher, I give of myself above and beyond what is required so my students have
every chance to be successful. No matter what I do, it is still up to them to
take that education and put it to good use. It is the same in the current
political situation. We have a duty as part of the REPUBLIC to hold up the standards of the Declaration, even more so
than the Constitution. This requires us to be sure everyone has an equal shot,
but it maintains that the individual must take hold of the opportunity and make
something of it. Each time we give the government more power in a messed up
attempt to make things fair, we only create a society where individuals lose
the will to step outside of their comfort zone and take risks as Americans have
always done.
I am fearful of where we are at this
moment in history. After years of hearing people complain about Obama and his
tactics of using executive order and bullying to get his way rather than
following the Constitution and going through the proper channels, America
should be running towards constitutionalism and someone who puts the individual first
while protecting the Republic. Instead, the front runner is a man who admits he
will use those same tactics to get his way. He will wheel and deal and
compromise, the very thing that defines the crony capitalism we claim to
despise. Since he is on “their side”, they find it more acceptable. He and
Obama are so much alike it screams out in the face of Americans, yet most do
not see it because they are willing to compromise principles to “take back
America”. News flash…a self-proclaimed kiss up who will do whatever it takes to
make the deal and who changes his stance (if he even has one) on most things
regularly is not the answer. Principles matter. How have the compromises worked
out so far?
Are we really willing to sell out? The
Republic isn’t perfect, but there isn’t anything better. It only works when we
educate ourselves and vote out our representatives when they do not vote the
way we want, but it requires great strength, stamina, and fortitude. Either we
believe in liberty and vote on principles, or we vote in another
progressive-and continue down this path of self-destruction. It is my belief that we need to vote for a
constitutionalist and give ourselves and our children a fighting chance.
Many members of the Republican Party
herald Ronald Reagan as the greatest President of our generation. It is
important to remember that nobody thought he could win or get anything done
because they were afraid he wouldn’t be able to work with others, and he was
very conservative. Turns out, the world craved a man of principle, and he
accomplished more than could have been imagined. In the words of Reagan, “"I hope we have once again reminded people that man is not free
unless government is limited. There's a clear cause and effect here that is as
neat and predictable as a law of physics: as government expands, liberty
contracts."
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