Sword and Sextant

When I was a young child, I had instilled within me the concept of American Exceptionalism. It meant that our country was freer, richer, stronger, and giving. When the chips were down and the world was at the brink of disaster, the Americans could show up and save the day at all costs. When Germany countrolled most of Europe, slaughtered Jews wherever it went, and threatened to extinguish the rich traditions of its centuries-old neighbors, America stormed the beaches and overthrew North Africa, blew up 1/4 of Japan in two bombs, and stormed Berlin to deliver us from evil. When the USSR began building its borders and infiltrating sovereign neighbors with Communism at gunpoint, and posted nuclear warheads in Cuba, we faced them down by other means, and crushed their despotic economic model. We were the heroes of the world, and our lives meant something special.

I was taught that it was better to make five dollars raking the yard than it was to get 10 dollars from Mom. I was taught that we had more than others because Dad didn’t come home until 7 at night, and he was so exhausted that some days he’d just go to bed. I was taught that no one ever achieved the American Dream working only 40 hours a week.

Instilled within me is the spirit of individualism, and from it flows my life. I converse with others who feel similarly about their responsibility for their own actions. I sit in wonder of my grandfather, who came from abject poverty in a broken home to run the biggest inland military manufacturing plant in America for 20 years. I revel in stories of making it on your own, without handouts and charity. I bask in the glow of the quiet dignity of earning one’s own keep, meager or otherwise, and having the freedom to utilize my bounty as I see fit.

I am worried, though, that my fellow citizens were not blessed with my upbringing. There is an old quote from a Scottish politician that a republic can exist until the people realize they can raid the treasury for personal benefit. As such, they will vote in those who promise the greatest spoils from their nation, until the money is no longer present. Our nation is doing that right now. In a non-coincidental fashion, KFC is a perfect case study of this.

Last week, KFC piloted their Kentucky Grilled Chicken product, and offered a coupon for one free meal to try it out. The result was nigh-armageddon, as lines blocks long clogged roads and demand closed several stores before the company Yum! Brands finally reneged on the coupon. Lord, save us. The promise of ONE free meal drove thousands to clog drivethrus all over the nation for the savings of about $4.50 plus tax? The draw of one handout is enough to cause such furor? Who pulled into a line 15 cars long and decided they had time to get ONE free meal at a fast food restaurant? Thousands of today’s Americans did, that’s who.

These are the same Americans that demand services from their own Government that they were never meant to get in to. Healthcare? You want lawyers determining whether you should go to the doctor or not? Welfare? You want appointed officials to give you money for nothing at the expense of your fellow working man? Where is your dignity? Auctioned off to your providers, no doubt.

Our corporations lack immunity to the spectre of helplessness, as well. When the going gets tough, they don’t restructure or close down shop to try again, as we’re taught to as children. Nay, they whine to the Feds, who are all too happy to gain more power and influence in their malignant fashion. The government concocts a tall tale about being too big to fail, and they send billions to these banks and businesses, with strings attached, and nothing of merit changes, including their further need for cash in the near future. The Gov’t now controls parts of our private industry, and the economy suffers as zombie businesses inflict failed practices on the populace for a bit longer. Now, the banks, supposedly cured, realize their cure contained a strain of a far worse disease, in federal control. Everybody loses, except the gov’t, which can’t lose.

As we open the doors of our lives to our federal saviors, we slowly lose our individualism. You may smoke, but not inside of ANY building, including those you own. Property rights are a little yesterday these days, aren’t they? You may drive a car, but you’ll miss the tax break unless you get the hybrid with 150 less horses under the hood. The economic disadvantage is akin to a tax hike compared to your more environmentally inclined brethren. The government, each day, finds new ways to tax behavior they deem unnecessary or unhelpful to their worldview and they rob us freedom of action each day.

I don’t fault the gov’t for this, but the people. Their learned helplessness is a brilliant display of the most despicable aspects of the human character, and its much harder to cure than to dive deeper into. My fellow Americans look to their federal angels a little more each day. Problem is, the day will come when there is nothing left. European countries, centuries ahead of us in this trade of ease of living for freedom, are running out of money. Eventually there will be none left for them to spend. And then what? The answer is all over the history books, and its revolution. Can we get our people thinking about taking care of themselves again, or are we headed for the 1984 scenario, in which Big Brother provides all things, including a brutal police force to keep you in line. People actually get arrested now for questioning gay adoption privately in the UK, so we’re not as far as you think.

At the end, its not about politics or worldview, but a belief that you are responsible for yourself. You are the keeper of your own fortunes and losses. A vote for Obama donated many of your liberties to the state. Lets hope a different vote will someday return them to us.

There is condensation, and a shred of actual good judgment.

Here’s the deal on the prisoner abuse photos being blocked.

Here’s a story on infinite detention, which is just another reality of holding the most dangerous murderers in the world.

I will first congratulate Obama for moving in this direction, as it is the correct direction. I am determined to never appear as those Bush-haters who just couldn’t even admit the most minor good things about the man. This is a good pair of policy shifts, and he deserves credit for having the fortitude to fight off the crazies this will enrage, and the beginnings of backing away from the prosecute Bush thing, which I believe is coming.

Its a great thing when the great heights of utopian partisanship meet the fact that you can’t release the best criminals in the last 40 years once you have them, much less treat them as citizens. The only remaining disappointment will come when Obama runs the ship in lockstep with GWB, but receives no adverse coverage for it.