Posted by
Patrick Henry on Saturday, September 19, 2009 12:05:52 PM
All cultures and peoples revere accumulated wisdom rooted in their history. Noted philosophers,
national heroes, honored religious leaders and great statesmen are among those contribtuing to the
corpus of any civilizations wellspring of ideas. Those that ring truest with a nation's citizenry over long
periods of time, are enshrined in its governance documents, and tested by the pragmatics of everyday
living are the ones that define national character and survive efforts to supplant them. Thomas
Jefferson, one of America's "founding fathers," a framer of The Constitution and a noted president
is one of history's giants in that regard. He, as well as anyone, understood what the framers intended
by the constitutional provisions they penned. Some of the voices that serve as a national clarion call
are, in fact, voices from the grave. And a few of Jefferson's most notable maxims ring with a
Nostradamus-like clarity in the current battle for The Constitution and its hallowed liberties. Four.
in particular, stand out.
(1) "The democracy will cease to exist when you take away from those who are willing to work, and
give to those who would not." It seems that Jefferson has scoffed at Barack Obama's "redistribution of
wealth" scenario long before the current president proposed it. Understanding that the creation of an
ultimate entitlement state would ultinately destroy every incentive to productivity, Jefferson sought to
exclude a "welfare mentality" from national consideration.
(2) "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." In today's world of multi-trillion dollar national debts and
rampant, out-of-control government spending, Jefferson would be a lonely voice crying out in the
wilderness. But history has relentlessly confirmed his contention. The policies of Barack Obama threaten
to propel the United States of America down the slippery slope to bankruptcy, heaping on our children
and theirs a mountain of unsustainable debt and making it ever more likely that they will have to go to war
just to survive.
(3) "My reading of history convinces me that most bad government results from too much goverbnment."
Presently the United states government is expanding -- in numbers of new hires, in scope and in reach -- at
an unprecedented rate. It has taken over the nation's automotive industry (Chrysler, GM), banks and
financial services companies, and now threatens to usurp control of national healthcare which currently
represents one-sixth of the nation's economy. If bad government comes from too much government,
Obama's is on a pace to become the worst in history.
(4) "I predict happiness for Americans if they can prevent government from wasting the labor of the
people under the pretense of taking care of them." Obama proposes to increase tazes on "the wealthy,"
on companies and individuals declining to purchase health insurance, on busineeses exceeding an arbitrarily
imposed emissions quota, and even on soda pop and juice drinks. He would have us believe that he
can provide healthcare for all that will cut medical costs, improve the quality of services, not add to
the short or long term deficit, save billions in fraud and waste that no previous administration has been
able to make a serious dent in while maintaining steady tax rates for the middle class. These are promises
believed only by starry-eyed sycophants, political spinmeisters and the most naive in our society. The
more Obama tries to take care of everyone, the less their incentives to take responsibioity for themselves.
The end result? A bankrupt nation of the irresponsible.
Thomas Jefferson and Barack Obama are two presidents on opposite ends of history, philosophy,
politics and constitutional interpretation. Jefferson was a fierce defender if individual liberty, while
Obama has taken public positions abridging fredom of speech,the right to bear arms, and employees' right
to vote on unionization, among others. Jefferson championed responsibility of the individual citizen, Obama
the creation of an entitlement state where responsibility rests with the government. Jefferson warned
against big government, precisely what Obama is day-by-day creating. Jefferson decried the seizure
of wealth for the purpose of distributing it equally. Redistribution is the centerpiece of Obama's policies and
the apparent goal of his legion of extremist "czars." One man helped write the constitution, the other
seems hell bent on re-writing it. One fancies himself a constitutional scholar, the other actually sat with
the founding fathers from whose wisdom it arose. One's ideas have stood the test of time, and been a
bedrock from which the world's greatest nation has evolved. The other is enamored of the failing European
socialist republics in which the more radical the implementation of socialist ideology, the more
calamitous the collapse of order, prosperity and democracy. In elections to come, Americans will
determine whose ideas to carry into the future, and whose to discard on the scrap heap of political
failure. America elected Obama to bring hope, and to change the way Washington does business. He
has done little of either, and current polling reflects growing public repudiation of his policies. Personally,
my bet is on Jefferson every time. And thanks for the reality check, Tom!