Dan Wolf posted on December 20, 2014 11:12
I must take a brief break from our present topic to say a
few words about the passage of last week’s spending bill. At first it seems like such polar opposites
as Nancy Pelosi, Elizabeth Warren, Ted Cruz, and Tom Coburn would not agree on
much of anything given their differing political and policy views. However, like minded individuals on both sides
opposed the passage of the proposed CROmnibus bill. I think that there is a simple
explanation. The individuals mentioned,
and others like them, have principles that they allow to guide their
actions – and they act upon those principles in their actions. There are two points to be made from this
event.
First, those in the ‘middle’ who supported the bill have
stated many things: ‘this is the best
compromise we could get’, ‘passage will keep the government open for business’,
‘we’ve stopped the executive action amnesty’, and ‘there’s nothing else we can
do to change things, but we’ll fight later’.
There is a key word in the title of this bill. It is continuing. Those who voted for this measure voted to
continue things as they presently are, to continue down a same path reasonable
people know is unsustainable. They placed
expediency above principles, and politics above doing what is right. This is not leadership or compromise, but
cronyism, cowardice, conceit – or fill in your own words here - ______.
Compromise is about maintaining your principles while coming to an
agreement. It was a disgraceful action
capped by the signing of the bill by the President.
However, we get the government we deserve, and we elected
the people who are presently in office. We
are ultimately responsible. If we want
something different, then we must change – and take actions accordingly. Washington is proving each week that they have
other interests that they place above the welfare of those they are supposed to
serve. That there is little, if any,
principled leadership in either party.
Do they really seem as though they want to fix things? If so, where are their actions? What fruit is being produced? The Founders deliberately put the States into
our framework of governance to serve as a counterweight to the federal government. This was a role previously held by the Church
before the Reformation. The States have
let their powers erode by inaction, and we have assisted in the passage of
several Constitutional amendments which have aided in bringing things to their
present state. The States are the next
line of defense in our system of governance.
While we should continue to effect change within Washington, we must
also work for change from the outside through the States themselves. The States have the power to do this through
the calling of a convention.
Second, our Founders clearly selected Judeo-Christian
principles to serve as the moral basis for our society. Those principles are simple and few. They are to love our Creator and love our
fellow man (see posts 2, 3, and 4 for more).
While they could not agree on who our Creator was, they agreed He
existed and that our rights come from Him.
If you disagree; I suggest you read the Declaration of
Independence. It is a promise to the
people. A promise our Founders delivered
with the ratification of our Constitution.
The two documents are links in a chain, and those principles cannot be
changed by man, but only by our Creator himself. The Roman general Scipio said that two things
were needed to be a people. They
must: (1) possess a common mutually
agreed upon set of rights, and (2) they must mutually cooperate for the common
good – they must place others welfare on a par or at times above their own.
There is no doubt that we are divided. I am not sure that we are currently a single
people. We do not hold to a common set
of agreed upon rights any more, nor do we appear to have the same notions of
the common good at present. Those
divisions have been exacerbated by the present administration. They have divided instead of united, and as
such they have failed to lead. We need
to promote leadership which will heal by focusing on what unites us instead of
what divides us. But to do that we must
first work to heal ourselves. This
Christmas season is the perfect opportunity to begin that process by asking for
His help. He is always with us, all we
need do is to ask and be willing to take the hand He offers to each and every
one of us. All are welcome, even those
who do not believe. That is the only
place in which our hope lies. Once we
rightly orient our hearts, the rest will follow. It will not be easy, but it is achievable. My hope is built on nothing less.
In Faith, Hope, and Love to you all.
Dan