OP-ED: A fork in the road
Probably, like no other time in our recent American history we stand before a fork in the road. Our next step will determine the future of America and more importantly the future of our children. Will the republic of America survive, or will we follow the destructive pathway toward socialism? If we continue to deny that such an event can’t happen here, not in America, just do a little research on Venezuela. Venezuela was a rich, culturally diverse nation that was deceived by its leader, Hugo Chavez. He divided the country into warring factions of race and wealth, stripped private ownership, confiscated its guns, and now, only the elite political socialists have the all the wealth and power. Everyone else in that county suffers in poverty. There is no free speech, no free press, no food, no future, just submission to the one and only socialist party.
It’s not like we don’t know what socialism produces as an ideology. In the last century, some 25 countries around the globe have tried socialism with disastrous results. Poland, Yugoslavia, Albania, Czechoslovakia, Hungary, Romania, East Germany, Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia, North Korea, China, Cuba, Nicaragua, Bolivia, and most of Africa were socialist. The Soviets murdered over 20 million of their own citizens, the Chinese murdered 20 million to 25 million, the Nazis murdered comparable numbers of Jews, gypsies, Poles, Russians and Eastern Europeans. If socialism has produced a worldwide record of misery and tears, why are we even considering such a destructive ideology in America?
The Democratic Party today is not the party that many, including myself, were a part of. It is now a radical left wing political cabal, run by rich, white billionaires looking for power on the backs of Black people and through the ignorance of educated, rich, white kids. Leftist Bernie Sanders is a socialist and maybe better portrayed as a Communist in ideology, and yet Kamala Harris’ voting record is to the left of Bernie. What does that tell you of her politics? The ideological left group BLM itself was created by self-proclaimed Marxist agitators encouraged by the Venezuela takeover.
The left, to be successful, must divide us into warring factions of race, wealth, religion and sex. And they have been successful as we watch cities burn and see race relations continue to deteriorate. Up is down, good is evil, and right is wrong. We are afraid to speak up, we are shouted down, threatened, fired from our jobs, dismissed, demoted and demonized if we don’t submit. This distorted dream of a socialist utopia has not, and will never work.
The proper role of government is to protect equal rights, not provide equal things. The Constitution is a brilliant document that attempts to keep us centered in political thought and to maintain a balanced equilibrium of political extremes. Yes, it was constructed by men who had personal flaws; they were human just like us, but the resulting document that emerged from these flawed men was truly a miracle for all time.
The Constitution employs such devices as the Electoral College to prevent mob rule and allow the minority states to have an equal voice. We cannot eliminate the Electoral College, for if we do, we will become a democracy run by the mob and not a republic. The Constitution provides freedom from abuse by those in authority. As Thomas Jefferson said, “Let no more be said of confidence in man, but bind him down from mischief by the chains of the Constitution.” The Constitution can’t become obsolete, as many propose, because it was designed to control something which has not changed and will not change, and that is human nature. “Men are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights” means that the rights of men are not from some governmental authority but from a higher power; they are sacred, God-given rights. The left demands that we listen to their experts, their scientists. They are the educated elite, they are smarter than the people, and we must conform to their educated view of the world.
Life and liberty are secure so long as the right to property is secure. Collectivism will destroy property rights and all that you have worked for will be gone. The entrepreneur will cease to exist, as there will be no incentive to risk time and capital. Didn’t we learn that from Jamestown? Can’t we see it in North and South Korea? You didn’t build it! For socialists to succeed they have to somehow convince people that the rich somehow stole what they have from you, and that it belongs to the commonwealth of society, but not them. Victimhood, warring factions, us vs. them, that’s how they sow descent and destroy a society.
America is the last and best hope for freedom in the world. If not America then where shall we go to enjoy our freedoms and prosperity? We are an exceptional country, built from imperfect and flawed people, but people who want a better life for themselves and their neighbors. We must seek hope in our common interests and have faith to discuss our differences and seek just resolutions that benefit us all. What is the greatest commandment, the lawyer asked? “Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like unto it. Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself. On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets” (Matthew 22:36-40).
Be sure of the next step you take as we stand at a fork in the road of America’s future.
Tom Flickinger is treasurer of Washington County.