Here it comes.....yet another tiring allusion to the realm of the lexicographer's compendiums. But, because it is, in this day and age, so very important to find and work from a definite basis in truth, and therefore, accuracy, I suspect that you will easily be able to understand the reason for the reference and follow where it leads. So, with your kind indulgence, we proceede.
Patriotism, noun. Love of one's country; the passion which influences one to serve one's country, either in protecting its rights, or maintaining its institutions and laws in purity and vigor; the characteristics of a patriot. I would add "the determined defense of its soverignty."
"That patriotism which animates and prompts to deeds of self-sacrafice, of valor, of devotion, and of death itself - that is the public virtue, that is the sublimest of public virtues."
- Henry Clay.
I submit that as well presented as the definition is, and with the forementioned lexicographer's highest talents applied to sifting out accuracy and clarity for the issue, the truest meaning of the word is stunningly understated in that brief passage. Patriotism in these times includes a much more prodigious responsibility. Patriotism should be defined as the defense of our country against ideologies that are opposed to maintaining the accomplishments of the socio-economic system that is the lifeblood of our modern civilization as provided by our founders. Lack of that specific quality of patriotism in Congress has lead directly to a precipitation of socialism and government expansionism that far outstrips the original injustices that became the basis for the American Revolution by country miles.
Already, I can just hear all of the special interests clamoring for me to be politically corectly hung from a tall tree for even hinting that there are ideas out there espoused by anyone that are not completely compatible with harmonius life in these States, and, they will endeavor to display great offense and chagrin at the very concept of such heresy. But the truth is, they KNOW they're wrong, logic dictates that on a regular basis. But they make their living and fortunes from the deceit they purvey. Socialism, and its ugly sisters, facisim and communism, only ever have benefitted the few, and temporarily at that. Political correctness as the special interests have tailored it for themselves is the only effective battering ram they have had for shoving all of their whacked, hairbrained ideas up our colons. And, it's been very successfull, as well as dependable.
Whole generations of fellow travelers too lazy or disinterested to discern right from wrong with the application of logic have been indoctrinated with that "anyone's ideas are acceptable" crap. And you are expected to accept that on no other authority than that you may offend them if you don't agree. Simply put, they're not all acceptable. For example, just as driving around with a railroad spike stuck in your tire is very easily followed by logic to a disasterous end, no matter why it got there, so is locking up energy production from any historical source to create a constriction on society that is easily controlled by bureaucrats likely to lead, just as predictably, by the same simple method of deduction, to the same result. No matter what justification the politician dreams up. Socialist ideas are not compatible with free society. Control diametrically opposes freedom.
Patriots realize that it's never really about the "good" of the country for the special interests, it's just about the control of the country, mainly by an elected plutocracy that is not affected by what they do, nor has any concience about how they do it. And, of course, the use of tax money funded payoffs to assist the power grabs. Amazingly, fighting for half of a century to socialize medical care is not a clue to them that many people aren't interested in participating in such a disaster. It's just a challenge to the elected plutocrat, like winning a Monopoly round.
Point here is that only patriotism, practiced by anyone that believes in logical, limited government, in any manner on any scale by positive means, will save this country from the balkanization that is being rampantly propagated by special interests, and, the increasing control that government uses that balkanization to justify. What patriots have worked, sacrificed, fought and died for this past two hundred years is under unceasing attack from both without and within and the cumulative effect is less freedom for us, more redistribution of our power and the fruits of our labor for the attacker's use.
Patriotism, unlike special interests, is not exclusive. Anyone that cares for the good of all as opposed to the largess of the specialized, can be a patriot. Doesn't matter if you're black, Hispanic, female, handicapped, old, blonde, green-eyed, short, bald, or gay. You just gotta have the ability to put agendas that only benefit a few aside for the cause that benefits all: Freedom. It will in turn take care of you. Guaranteed. And, should you discover that there is still something you hate about the good of all, no problem, patriotism will not stop you from leaving the country. One thing, though. You cannot be a patriot just by announcing to the press that you are. You have to act like one. Then, press releases don't even matter. They'll seek you.
A word of caution: Patriotism can only exist in an environment of unvarnished truth. Which, serendipitously, eliminates self-centered and self-serving special interests. You have to be willing to think for yourself and always search for truth for guidance, and, that can be an arduous task.
Patriotism should be revered like religion, not like barnyard chores. It is not just love of country, or even service to it. It's taking some responsibility to actively preserve it, because if we fail, the first two don't matter. Patriotism gave us the best country in the history of the world, it is how we got here in the first place, and, it's the only way we're going to stay.
Remember this: People will only do to you what you let them. Will you let your freedom be taxed, or signed, or, even voted by Congress away? You don't have to. Yet.
Saturday, December 26, 2009
Sunday, December 6, 2009
Responsibility
Responsibility, noun:
1. The state or quality of being answerable, accountable, liable, or responsible, as for a trust, debt, office, or person.
2. Means of meeting liabilities; ability to answer in payment.
3. That for which one is accountable, liable, answerable, or responsible, as a duty, debt, or trust.
Root word: responsible, meaning, among other things, having such intellectual or moral capacity as to be able to discriminate and choose between right and wrong; with regard to any given act, free from compulsion and having knowledge of the natural consequences. I would add to that possessing the fortitude to consistently act in the positive.
The reason for these seemingly mundane and boring recitals of definition is to attempt to give context to a thunderously serious concept which forms the most important, basic and fundamental fiber in the fabric of human relations. "Now," say you of the unknowing, uncaring, or unpracticing; "what warrants all of this hyperbole about a term which so many of us in modern society find unfamiliar, discomforting, distasteful, unattractive, or, just plain downright unfair?" This is the cut to the chase: Responsibility is the currency with which we buy freedom.
First, though, a reminder of an old saw: Freedom isn't free. Here is how it works. The founding fathers handed us the greatest socio-economic improvement device ever concieved as the basis for the formation and operation of this country. Their responsibility ended up being the first payment on our freedom. They primed the pump, started the ball rolling. Their responsibility to work or fight or die to craft such an organization as the United States of America was forged into the first incarnation of a government that was to be SUBSERVIENT to it's citizens and controlled by them for the intended purpose of protecting the newly unleashed freedom. They had witnessed tyranny and were determined that the scourge would never again in their lives take root among them. They prevented that by limiting the powers of government. That was accomplished by accepting for themselves the responsibility for the powers not given the government.
Now, those of you who cannot imagine what life would be in this day and age without government this or that in your lives are wondering just exactly where on Earth the responsibility for those functions would lie if not for it. Here's how they solved it in the late 1700's: They reserved the powers, and, responsibilities, to THEMSELVES. They provided their own retirement. They provided their own healthcare. They provided charity to those who had legitimately fallen on hard times. They provided education for their children. They developed their own specialized skills and fit them into an economy they created. They fed, clothed, sheltered, and transported themselves. Therefore, they did not have to depend on, or, answer to anyone else for whatever they chose to do or how they did it. They used morality and logic to govern their actions. Lots of hard work, that responsibility for themselves. But it always bought more freedom.
Anyone that has managed to pry themselves away from "ESPN" or "MTV" or "reality TV" or any of various vices and personal dramas might be mildly aware that there has been for over sixty years in this country a concerted effort to restrict freedom that has been presented as at first benevolent, then benign, then, as the bureaucracy unfolds and multiplies exponentially, necessary to the health and welfare of the proletariat. How did this come about? The answer is stunningly simple and obvious. Politicians, in quest of power, which only source was the people of this country, hit upon the idea that many of those people were tired of the work involved in the production of the responsibility they needed to purchase freedom. So, naturally appealing to the lazy side of human nature, they decided to eliminate as much freedom as possible to obviate the need for all that nasty hard work of maintaining an account full of responsibility.
Responsibility has qualities that compare to energy in physics as well. It can be converted to other forms, but, it cannot be destroyed. It can also be wasted. So, what happened to the responsibility that was no longer needed? The politicians said that their minions would assume it and care for it for the people, but that is not entirely the case. Much of it has been converted in that reactor that is modern government back into a different, dangerous form of power. Power, formerly vested in the governed, converted to responsibility to maintain the ability to acquire a supply of personal freedom is instead diverted and wasted by re-converting it through the pork-barrel to political power. Problem is, it is in this incarnation a Ponzi scheme, benefitting only a few political crooks.
But, lack of freedom does not eliminate the requirements of responsibility. It had merely been transferred to a pigeon hole. So, to ultimately deal with it, politicians return to their only source of anything, the people, and, in a sleazy shell game of redistributing wealth for votes, force more responsibility upon and out of them in the form of tax, which is then directly converted to more political power. You're right. That's not really dealing with it. It's just creating a responsibility deficit and then kicking it all down the road. But, the politicians, like crack addicts, can't resist, so they don't care.
Wasted responsibility. Lost freedom. Basic physics. So simple, a child could understand. So, why do so many fall for the scheme? Another simple answer: No one else cares either.
Freedom is necessary, but unchecked political power is not. And enough disinterest in responsibility, or those it's forfeited to, will loose freedom for everyone.
So, how are those Steelers doing, and, is Oprah still gaining weight?
1. The state or quality of being answerable, accountable, liable, or responsible, as for a trust, debt, office, or person.
2. Means of meeting liabilities; ability to answer in payment.
3. That for which one is accountable, liable, answerable, or responsible, as a duty, debt, or trust.
Root word: responsible, meaning, among other things, having such intellectual or moral capacity as to be able to discriminate and choose between right and wrong; with regard to any given act, free from compulsion and having knowledge of the natural consequences. I would add to that possessing the fortitude to consistently act in the positive.
The reason for these seemingly mundane and boring recitals of definition is to attempt to give context to a thunderously serious concept which forms the most important, basic and fundamental fiber in the fabric of human relations. "Now," say you of the unknowing, uncaring, or unpracticing; "what warrants all of this hyperbole about a term which so many of us in modern society find unfamiliar, discomforting, distasteful, unattractive, or, just plain downright unfair?" This is the cut to the chase: Responsibility is the currency with which we buy freedom.
First, though, a reminder of an old saw: Freedom isn't free. Here is how it works. The founding fathers handed us the greatest socio-economic improvement device ever concieved as the basis for the formation and operation of this country. Their responsibility ended up being the first payment on our freedom. They primed the pump, started the ball rolling. Their responsibility to work or fight or die to craft such an organization as the United States of America was forged into the first incarnation of a government that was to be SUBSERVIENT to it's citizens and controlled by them for the intended purpose of protecting the newly unleashed freedom. They had witnessed tyranny and were determined that the scourge would never again in their lives take root among them. They prevented that by limiting the powers of government. That was accomplished by accepting for themselves the responsibility for the powers not given the government.
Now, those of you who cannot imagine what life would be in this day and age without government this or that in your lives are wondering just exactly where on Earth the responsibility for those functions would lie if not for it. Here's how they solved it in the late 1700's: They reserved the powers, and, responsibilities, to THEMSELVES. They provided their own retirement. They provided their own healthcare. They provided charity to those who had legitimately fallen on hard times. They provided education for their children. They developed their own specialized skills and fit them into an economy they created. They fed, clothed, sheltered, and transported themselves. Therefore, they did not have to depend on, or, answer to anyone else for whatever they chose to do or how they did it. They used morality and logic to govern their actions. Lots of hard work, that responsibility for themselves. But it always bought more freedom.
Anyone that has managed to pry themselves away from "ESPN" or "MTV" or "reality TV" or any of various vices and personal dramas might be mildly aware that there has been for over sixty years in this country a concerted effort to restrict freedom that has been presented as at first benevolent, then benign, then, as the bureaucracy unfolds and multiplies exponentially, necessary to the health and welfare of the proletariat. How did this come about? The answer is stunningly simple and obvious. Politicians, in quest of power, which only source was the people of this country, hit upon the idea that many of those people were tired of the work involved in the production of the responsibility they needed to purchase freedom. So, naturally appealing to the lazy side of human nature, they decided to eliminate as much freedom as possible to obviate the need for all that nasty hard work of maintaining an account full of responsibility.
Responsibility has qualities that compare to energy in physics as well. It can be converted to other forms, but, it cannot be destroyed. It can also be wasted. So, what happened to the responsibility that was no longer needed? The politicians said that their minions would assume it and care for it for the people, but that is not entirely the case. Much of it has been converted in that reactor that is modern government back into a different, dangerous form of power. Power, formerly vested in the governed, converted to responsibility to maintain the ability to acquire a supply of personal freedom is instead diverted and wasted by re-converting it through the pork-barrel to political power. Problem is, it is in this incarnation a Ponzi scheme, benefitting only a few political crooks.
But, lack of freedom does not eliminate the requirements of responsibility. It had merely been transferred to a pigeon hole. So, to ultimately deal with it, politicians return to their only source of anything, the people, and, in a sleazy shell game of redistributing wealth for votes, force more responsibility upon and out of them in the form of tax, which is then directly converted to more political power. You're right. That's not really dealing with it. It's just creating a responsibility deficit and then kicking it all down the road. But, the politicians, like crack addicts, can't resist, so they don't care.
Wasted responsibility. Lost freedom. Basic physics. So simple, a child could understand. So, why do so many fall for the scheme? Another simple answer: No one else cares either.
Freedom is necessary, but unchecked political power is not. And enough disinterest in responsibility, or those it's forfeited to, will loose freedom for everyone.
So, how are those Steelers doing, and, is Oprah still gaining weight?
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)