Don’t tell me about your faith, show me what you do with it.
James 2:18 (paraphrased)
I think modern political debates are a waste of time. President Trump did not participate in the Republican TV joust, even though he is formidable in this arena. President Trump is lightyears ahead of all other contenders, and everyone knows his positions, and the rest are mere second or third place contenders. There won’t be a Democrat primary debate because Biden is incapable, like so many other Democrat leaders (Fetterman, Feinstein, etc.). I’m not a believer in polls, but I read that Robert Kennedy Jr. is rising in South Carolina, the state that resuscitated Joe Biden’s campaign in 2020. I hope Kennedy stays safe during his campaign despite Biden’s refusal to give him customary Secret Service protection.
A stage presence is not my forte. However, with practice I overcame this reticence, giving hundreds of medical lectures. I am no thespian like the lovely Becky who is energized on stage and has done thousands of theater performances. She is my local expert and taught me that actors navigate using the designations “stage right or stage left,” whereas the audience’s perspective is reversed.
As my readers know, words interest me. Last year I discovered a word that defines different perspectives. As an example, if you write a 6 on the schoolyard blacktop, your friend standing opposite you would see the number 9. English is a rich language, and there is a word for different perspectives. Unfortunately, I didn’t write down the word and I lost it! Folks, can anyone help me find my lost word?
In a recent essay I noted that as a result of English parliamentary convention, conservatives/Republicans sit on the “audience” right side of Congress, whereas the liberals/Democrats sit on the left. There isn’t a place to put socialist Bernie Sanders or progressive-leftist AOC and her Squad, but since they conference with those who still call themselves Democrats, they sit in the chamber’s left. Semantics aside, it is ideology that counts.
Some time ago, I wrote about the types of government and the misused terms of left and right as related to communism, fascism, etc. There is an excellent YouTube video describing various types of government. Go to YouTube and search types of government. Then scroll down to Political Systems 101. Alternatively, read and consider my exegesis of the conundrum.
The left-right spectrum of government types is misleading and wrong. Actually, fascism and communism are types of governments with the least individual freedom and the greatest tyranny. We hear much these days about the far right, fascism and the modern term alt-right. Interestingly, the prefix alt- was first used in the late 1980s to describe alternative newsgroups with “nontraditional or unconventional discussion topics.” Alt- implies views different from mainstream culture. We could just as easily use the term alt-left and be just as wrong as modern conventional usage of alt-right.
A better way to conceptualize government and ideology is to put at one extreme total government (totalitarian) and at the other extreme no government (anarchy). Examples of total government are communism, socialism, Nazism, fascism, dictators or potentates (kings). Sixteenth-century philosopher Thomas Hobbs wrote that in nature — without any government – “life is nasty, brutish and short.” He argued for a social contract in his book “Leviathan” where man would surrender some of his freedom for a government that would protect the individual. John Locke would later propose that governments are instituted to protect “life, liberty and property.” Thomas Jefferson modified Locke’s perspective in the Declaration of Independence stating that governments are instituted to promote “life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness” for the people.
Therefore total freedom or total government is problematic. The Founders knew this from studying totalitarian kings, the abuses of ancient Greek democracies and Roman law. The Founders fashioned for us a Constitutional republic, a form of government predicated on the rule of law. In fact, the word republic comes from the Latin res publica or the people rule.
After surveying multiple news sources and listening to the political commentariat, I didn’t miss much by ignoring the GOP debate. After all, the Lion King wasn’t there. And we don’t need mush mouth Republicans, political has-beens or RINOs. We need a leader and the broken Washington cabal disassembled and rebuilt to follow The Constitution and the law. The GOP debate was for second place and possibly a vice presidential pick or third place and a cable TV gig.
I feel passionately about my country and the destruction wrought by Biden and the Democrats. But feeling is one thing, action is another.
I vote in every election. I obey the law, pay taxes and support my church and charities. And I write this column, logically and factually pointing out the evil which has spread across our land. But will that be enough to save the country?
So, I’ve been asking myself what would I be willing to risk or do to save my country? Three years ago, Becky told me that she would give her life if she knew it would save our country. I’ve often thought about her patriotic passion. Becky and I raised two girls and now have five grandchildren. I would risk everything to protect them and even give my life if necessary. Any parent would. But would I sacrifice everything to save our country? The soldiers who stormed the beaches of Omaha and Iwo Jima did.
After reflecting on the GOP presidential debate, I wondered if these candidates would sacrifice everything to save our country. President Trump has already done so. People wonder why he would again run for president when he has everything by human standards. Why incur the wrath and hatred of Democrats, Washington elites and deep staters, the legacy media, the pinheads of academia, Hollyweird and leftists? And I could go on.
Actually, you probably have friends who are driven by evil’s hatred to wish President Trump in jail or dead. And President Trump is at grave risk. God help us if some nut job or leftist kills him at his arraignment or in the coming months. President Trump is running again to right the wrong done in 2020 and out of gratitude and duty for the country and his family.
What would you risk to save the country?
