Wednesday, April 29, 2009

Seize the Moment

An ill wind of historic proportions has hit our shores. Americans are fretful and apprehensive. Our citadel of financial security has been shown to be corruptible, as are many things, by dishonesty. And while a dedicated cadre continue their public disavowal of the “In God We Trust” motto on our currency, these days God seems less and less the long shot.

But the real dilemma is this: What value will we now place on our Republic as it was handed down to us from our Founders? We were bequeathed a nation in which we are free to pursue our dreams and to harness our talents, to work as hard as we want - or as little as we want. And when that hard work manifests itself in financial reward, then that is our due. It is not a shameful thing. In fact it has blessed humanity.

Since its inception our nation has exploded the frontiers of human accomplishment. In the span of less than 200 years we moved mankind beyond his 2000 year history of oceanic travel by sailing ships and into the world of air travel, space travel and moon walks. Human beings, either individually or collaboratively, are the spark of creativity that ignite the bonfires of achievement and propel civilization to new heights. Being free to excel and to benefit from our endeavors is at the heart of capitalism, but more importantly, at the heart of progress. Capitalism dovetails with our constitutionally protected rights in that the principled pursuit of one’s passions, talents and work ethic commingle to reward the individual and consequently humanity. On the contrary, not a single invention or technological advancement can be credited to a government, because government is in the business of control; it is the antithesis of the creative and industrious processes which generate real product, real change.

Today, because of free enterprise, we live awash in a sea of extravagance that our ancestors could not have imagined. We are each the beneficiary of the products and services created by others. Even among those we label as ‘disadvantaged’, the fruits of capitalism are at work enriching life, making necessary goods and services available to all, regardless of means. Recently Michelle Obama served meals at a soup kitchen window, ostensibly for the poor, and found herself being photographed with cell phone cameras by the kitchen’s clientele. The life of poverty in America, according to our government’s own data, includes car ownership, air conditioning, most household appliances, cable or satellite television, DVD or VCR and stereo equipment, and better than adequate nutrition.

There is a very real difference between poverty and envy, and it is malfeasance by government to provoke the latter, let alone use it as leverage to insist upon equal reward for unequal effort. And as enigmatic as it is to government, much of life’s reward comes not from the accumulation of material goods, but from endeavoring to progress as individuals; and there exists no prescribed route for this, though many in government strain to create one. To fixate on materialism as the measurement of equality is a surefire way to instill envy and foment dissatisfaction…which is, of course, an excellent strategy by which to set up salvation by government.

As the winds of crisis pound away at our resolve, if not our very roots, we find ourselves facing the prospect of genuine hardship. We simply must step back and examine the bigger picture. We are nearing a precipice which may claim the engine of our nation’s great success. Onerous debt will preclude economic growth and prosperity. Too much Funny Money and we will be living under inflation’s smothering cloak. The ‘solutions’ coming out of Washington seem to have one thing going for them: they increase the scope and power of government.

Our president continuously warns of catastrophic results if we do not yield to his will, and that of the Pelosi-Reid congress. A monstrous spending bill has slithered through Congress and now bears the president’s seal. Similar bills are promised, leaving the citizens of this nation with a brutish choice. We can sit mutely on the sidelines and allow Congress to saddle future generations with a debt that guarantees crushing taxation and conscription to a lifetime of shoveling earnings into Washington’s fiery fiscal furnace. Or, we can play the hand we’ve been dealt, trusting in, and exercising, our combined grit, resourcefulness and compassion to deal with what now comes our way.

The demise of Liberty is never more than a crisis away. Will this crisis make us, or break us? The choice is ours… but only for a moment.