As I sit typing this morning, the sun is pouring in my window and I am listening to the sweetest music I know. For someone who grew up in West Michigan, who loves the change of seasons, but favors summer, the sound of the first robin of spring is a symphony of promise. There may be another snowstorm or two; the ice may yet hold the lake prisoner, but the clock of the seasons is sweeping winter off its face. That elated chirruping of the robin in my yard makes my heart sing.
If you will excuse my poetic nature further seeping into my prose, I will suggest that there is a parallel situation in politics. The choices made by the electorate in this country in 2008 ushered in a wintry chill for conservative thinkers. I sadly admit that the temperature was already dropping during George W's term, especially near the end. (The bailouts were like snow before Halloween.) The guarantee that the Constitution would be put on ice was signed in November. Subsequent polling proves that many who invited Jack Frost to the White House were largely unacquainted with his true nature, but invite they did, hoping for a positive change. Think Narnia before the children came to the rescue.
We are going to be given some interesting choices when election time comes around next fall. The word I'm hearing from conservative friends and prognosticators makes me think this may be the most important election in decades, or perhaps generations. The blatant disregard for constitutional principles prevalent in Washington is almost beyond belief. The new progressives parading as Democrats want change of a magnitude on par with the recent earthquake in Chile. I see buildings falling, homes and businesses destroyed, and lives forever ruined.
I believe there are three primary causes for the present dismal political situation. The first is ignorance. Sadly, the richest nation on earth, despite having almost universal education through near adulthood, has dumbed the electorate down to a pitiful second or third class status intellectually. Perhaps by design (yes, I speak of conspiracy,) the teaching of meaningful history regarding the foundational principles and people which led to America's greatness has been all but deleted from public education. Forget that the Judeo-Christian influence has been erased; no substantial effort is made to teach the concepts of natural law, separation of powers, or limited constitutional governance (or anything else that made the American Revolution revolutionary.)
The second cause of the sad state of political affairs is apathy. This may be related to the previously mentioned ignorance in some cases, but even those who know better don't always study, support or vote for candidates who reflect their values. My heart tells me, and many recent polls assert that the majority view in this country is right of center both politically and socially. The problem I see is that more liberals (progressives) are politically active than their conservative counterparts. Rush Limbaugh has suggested that conservatives are too busy making a living and raising a family to get involved in a significant way. I hope the so-called tea party movement is an indication of change in that regard.
The third reason that winter has come (and it will never be Christmas) is that many former conservative politicians have succumbed to the icy hypnotism of power. Once they get in office, they seem to contract selective amnesia. Witness RNC Chairman Michael Steele backing the candidate for New York's 23rd, Dede Scozzafava, who stood to the left of her Democrat opponent. Lindsey Graham sitting down with John Kerry to work on carbon cap and tax legislation provides an example. George W. Bush's abandonment of free market principles in the financial crisis is another. Closer to home, our Republican representative in Lansing voted for the dreadful business tax. These actions make no sense except as a go-along to get along move. Whence principle?
The consent of the governed is a sacred trust granted to the people of the United States at the cost of the blood, toil and tears of the Founding Fathers. The Declaration of Independence says in part, "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 to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed." The framers of the Constitution recognized the importance of the involvement and education of the governed as a prerequisite to rational consent.
There are those on the left who say that we Christians should not be allowed to assert our beliefs in the public square. I would ask them to interpret these words of our founders: "Whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of [the rights endowed by the Creator], it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it." To paraphrase what I recently wrote in "No Freedom to Speak," the First Amendment loses all meaning if our political adversaries are not allowed free expression of their ideas. I am not yet ready to take up arms (a course of action which our founders anticipated,) but I genuinely fear that if Christians don't begin to take informed action, our options may soon resemble those faced by our founders. I pray we wake up before that.
If you will excuse my poetic nature further seeping into my prose, I will suggest that there is a parallel situation in politics. The choices made by the electorate in this country in 2008 ushered in a wintry chill for conservative thinkers. I sadly admit that the temperature was already dropping during George W's term, especially near the end. (The bailouts were like snow before Halloween.) The guarantee that the Constitution would be put on ice was signed in November. Subsequent polling proves that many who invited Jack Frost to the White House were largely unacquainted with his true nature, but invite they did, hoping for a positive change. Think Narnia before the children came to the rescue.
We are going to be given some interesting choices when election time comes around next fall. The word I'm hearing from conservative friends and prognosticators makes me think this may be the most important election in decades, or perhaps generations. The blatant disregard for constitutional principles prevalent in Washington is almost beyond belief. The new progressives parading as Democrats want change of a magnitude on par with the recent earthquake in Chile. I see buildings falling, homes and businesses destroyed, and lives forever ruined.
I believe there are three primary causes for the present dismal political situation. The first is ignorance. Sadly, the richest nation on earth, despite having almost universal education through near adulthood, has dumbed the electorate down to a pitiful second or third class status intellectually. Perhaps by design (yes, I speak of conspiracy,) the teaching of meaningful history regarding the foundational principles and people which led to America's greatness has been all but deleted from public education. Forget that the Judeo-Christian influence has been erased; no substantial effort is made to teach the concepts of natural law, separation of powers, or limited constitutional governance (or anything else that made the American Revolution revolutionary.)
The second cause of the sad state of political affairs is apathy. This may be related to the previously mentioned ignorance in some cases, but even those who know better don't always study, support or vote for candidates who reflect their values. My heart tells me, and many recent polls assert that the majority view in this country is right of center both politically and socially. The problem I see is that more liberals (progressives) are politically active than their conservative counterparts. Rush Limbaugh has suggested that conservatives are too busy making a living and raising a family to get involved in a significant way. I hope the so-called tea party movement is an indication of change in that regard.
The third reason that winter has come (and it will never be Christmas) is that many former conservative politicians have succumbed to the icy hypnotism of power. Once they get in office, they seem to contract selective amnesia. Witness RNC Chairman Michael Steele backing the candidate for New York's 23rd, Dede Scozzafava, who stood to the left of her Democrat opponent. Lindsey Graham sitting down with John Kerry to work on carbon cap and tax legislation provides an example. George W. Bush's abandonment of free market principles in the financial crisis is another. Closer to home, our Republican representative in Lansing voted for the dreadful business tax. These actions make no sense except as a go-along to get along move. Whence principle?
The consent of the governed is a sacred trust granted to the people of the United States at the cost of the blood, toil and tears of the Founding Fathers. The Declaration of Independence says in part, "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 to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed." The framers of the Constitution recognized the importance of the involvement and education of the governed as a prerequisite to rational consent.
There are those on the left who say that we Christians should not be allowed to assert our beliefs in the public square. I would ask them to interpret these words of our founders: "Whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of [the rights endowed by the Creator], it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it." To paraphrase what I recently wrote in "No Freedom to Speak," the First Amendment loses all meaning if our political adversaries are not allowed free expression of their ideas. I am not yet ready to take up arms (a course of action which our founders anticipated,) but I genuinely fear that if Christians don't begin to take informed action, our options may soon resemble those faced by our founders. I pray we wake up before that.
Another Great Post ..🙏💪❤️🤗
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