The current financial problems are not new. They are the breaking flames from what has been smoldering ever since politicians decided to veer from the spirit of the Constitution. Their modus operandi has been:  If it moves, tax it. If it moves too fast, regulate it. If it stops moving, subsidize it. They figure it is their job to take (tax) from those who are ambitious, and give (entitlements) to those who aren’t. Although this is euphemistically called “social justice,” it is, plain and simple, theft.
​

People with their hands out for “government money” do not seem to understand that such money comes from the labor of others. Unfortunately, a government policy of robbing Peter to pay Paul is always assured of the support of Paul. In 2010, Americans spent more on taxes to support social programs than on food, clothing, and shelter combined.
 
A stable civilization requires fiscal sanity. That can only come from encouraging industry by letting people keep what they earn, not by government increasing taxes, or by subterfuge future taxes, namely borrowing and printing money. The problem for us is, the future is now.
 
There is a law in the universe: actions create reactions. Push something and it moves. Throw something and it goes. Work hard and get a result. The obverse of this law is that if there is no action there is no result. Don’t push, don’t throw, don’t work, and you get no result--or at least you shouldn’t. If you are responsible for an action or inaction, you rightly own the result.  
 
This all seems rather elementary, but it has been lost in the blabber of politics. Reality, however, always comes home to roost. The bankruptcy of America and other countries that have tried the something-for-nothing socialistic experiment is the result. The blood of millions has been sacrificed in, for example, Stalinist Russia and Mao’s China, attempting the communist/socialist experiment. Nevertheless, after fighting these ideologies for almost a century, Americans now vote for politicians who advocate them.
 
People are now elected or rejected based upon personality, looks, oratory, religion, age, hand outs…almost anything other than dedication to our only safeguard against collapse and tyranny, the Constitution. Nobody stops to think that politicians--with a history of unseemly or unethical behavior, no management experience, no business or economic experience, no fealty to the Constitution, and only lawyer skills at deal making and working the system--should not be trusted with power, money, or ethics.
 
Living off promissory notes and the fat of the individual industry that created the wealthiest country the world has ever known, we forget our beginnings and our duty to the founding principles that got us here. Imposing socialism on the economic life blood of society kills the goose that lays the golden eggs. The basic principle that you can't make a weak man strong, by making a strong man weak, is being ignored.  We cannot help the poor by destroying the rich. We cannot strengthen the weak by weakening the strong. We cannot bring about prosperity by discouraging thrift. We cannot lift the wage earner up by pulling the wage payer down. We cannot further the brotherhood of man by inciting class hatred. We cannot build character and courage by taking away people's initiative and independence. We cannot help people permanently by doing for them, what they could and should do for themselves.
 
While freedoms are being eroded and the economy destroyed, we occupy ourselves with multiculturalism, multilingualism, warnings on ladders that people could fall, being careful to not use the “b,” “n,” or “h” words, debate about who, what, or how many can be married, health care of those who do not take care of their own health (a person of conscience should be insulted by having someone else pay for their medical bills), filling prisons with victimless criminals, and guaranteeing people a certain standard of living just because they were born.
 
A period of peace and freedom is not the time to be complacent. It is the opportunity to make sure that peace and freedom are secured. That can only be done by putting leaders in place who are ethical, competent, experienced, and dedicated to the ideal of liberty. That requires study, thought, and foresight, not emotion. It’s not an American Idol moment.  
 
(Part 2 will address what to do about the truly needy in a free enterprise system.)
 
P. S. While writing this, these two emails circulated on the web were received:
 
1. “A man who was asked by the census bureau if he had dependents, replied: Sure do, 14 million illegal immigrants; 3 million crack heads; 42 million voluntarily unemployed; 50 million on food stamps, the entire cast of the Jerry Springer Show;  2 million people in over 243 prisons;  half of Mexico;  and hundreds more in the U.S. House, Senate, and White house.”
 
2. “If you can answer this correctly, you can answer the question on what action to take on raising the Federal debt ceiling. You come home from work and find there has been a sewer backup and you have sewage up to your ceilings. What do you do……raise the ceilings or pump out the sh**?”