The Scariest Words in the English Language.

If you’re a guy in a relationship with a woman, you might answer the question “what are the scariest words in the English language?” with the phrase “we need to talk.” If you frequently fly without a net (if you know what I mean, and I think you do) they might be “Honey…I’m/We’re pregnant!” But regardless of your age, gender, race, creed, color or national origin, the real scariest words in the English language are these:

We’re from the government . . . we’re here to help.

Sweet Mother of All That is Good and Holy, now those are some scary words. Think about it. What has Your Federal Government done lately to actually help you? I’m not talking “Obama versus Bush.” I’m talking about BOTH of them. The Gulf oil spill? Don’t make me laugh. Katrina? What are you on drugs? Speaking of – what about drugs? Give me strength. Crime? Fageddaboutit. So why does the government persist in even trying to help, and more to the point, why do we continue to let them even try?

The scope of government and what it is actually mandated to do lies at the heart of virtually every question that affects our daily lives. Think it doesn’t matter to you, John Q. Gun-owner? Think again bubala – this one cuts to the very nature of what you are (and are not) allowed to do with your gun.

As we (should) all know by now, the 2nd Amendment states that the government shall not abridge the rights of individuals to own guns. Seems simple enough. But the Founding Fathers saw the government that governs best as one that governs least (T. Jefferson). They wouldn’t have seen laws that regulate how many guns you can own, how often you can buy a gun, or where you can carry a gun as reasonable – they would have seen them as both ridiculous and unacceptably invasive into personal liberties.

It was in the 1920s that a number of individuals came to power that saw our Federal government in a completely different light. Today we call these individuals “Progressives,” and they occupy positions of power in BOTH political parties. This is not an issue of Democrat versus Republican, or even Left versus Right. It is an issue of Progressives versus Original Intent.

Why should you care? Because Progressives have a completely different perspective on the very base level function of government than the Founding Fathers. And that difference is playing out right now in Congress, in the Executive Branch, and in our courts. No matter which side you’re on, you need to understand what’s going on, because this affects ALL your rights, including your cherished 2nd Amendment ones.

Progressivism got its start with two Presidents in the 1920s – Teddy Roosevelt and Woodrow Wilson. They held that government should be proactive (get it?) in the way it works. Before Progressivism, government was largely held to be a minimalist thing: do what’s necessary and nothing more. A small (or non-existent) standing army, handle foreign policy, that sort of thing. Post-progressivism, government became an expansive thing – an entity that would run things for the people.

That’s a huge difference. Instead of government working for the people, in ProgressiveLand, people essentially work FOR the government. The government is not a small, flexible group that responds to the will of We the People. It’s an all-powerful force of nature, that grants rights, boons, and privilege to select groups of people, while essentially enslaving others.

In the Founders’ version of America, our Constitution spelled out precisely what the Federal government could – and more importantly could not do. In fact, the Tenth Amendment (part of the so-called Bill of Rights) specifically states that all powers not specifically granted to the Feds is automatically reserved for the “several States” and “We the People.”

In fact, the Constitution (like the Declaration of Independence before it) were written from the point of view that Americans have certain “inalienable rights” from God, and that We the People grant our government some (but not all) of these rights. In other words, power – real power – comes from “We the People” and flows to the government.

In the Progressives view of America, this “power from the people” idea is quaint and outmoded. They believe that power flows from the Federal government and whatever powers and rights the Feds don’t take, the people are allowed to hold . . . until such time as the Feds want to control it.

Many people don’t understand this fundamental difference in political theologies, and what it means to us. And with good reason. Progressives virtually took over colleges and universities, and then the business of writing textbooks. Most of what the current generation knows of our Constitution is known through the filter of Progressive thought, and they literally rewrote history to reflect their own perspectives and biases.

Can’t really blame them. Power abhors a vacuum. Ben Franklin, when asked by a passer-by at the end of the Constitutional Convention that gave us our Constitution “what kind of government have you given us, Mr. Franklin,” He famously replied, “A Republic, madam, if you can keep it.”

You see, a republic (where we elect representatives to run our government for us, as opposed to a classical democracy, where each man has one vote, and everything is decided by the majority vote) is damned difficult to maintain. It requires that we, as citizens, participate in our government by – and this is where it gets really difficult – pay attention to what’s going on.

Progressives sold us all on the idea of, essentially, “leave the driving to us.” They said, “we can run things, and you won’t need to pay attention.” To most, this sounded just peachy. The problem is, you can’t maintain a Republic if the people don’t pay attention. If the people are asleep at the switch (or ballot box, as the case may be), human nature takes over (contrary to popular belief, politicians are human) and they take more and more control.

It’s that power abhors a vacuum thing all over again. At various times when We the People get restless, the modus operandi of the ruling class is to throw us a bone (or as they call it “political pork” – the other OTHER white meat). One group or another gets essentially bought off with a few earmarks (of our own money). Trouble is, we’re fast approaching a situation where there are more people on the government teat than are paying for the government largesse.

Newsflash, folks – that means that when there are more people getting money from the government than are paying taxes to the government, we’ll never be able to stop the freebies, at least until Atlas shrugs. (Read your Ayn Rand. You’ll thank me later.)

I don’t care if you are a Democrat, Republican, Libertarian, or Independent. (By the way, those labels are not intended to clarify, but to obfuscate.) I don’t care if you’re pro- or anti-abortion, immigration, taxes, or ecology. What I do care about is if you are aware of the fundamental difference between a government that works for us, or considers us either employees (or worse), slaves.

I care, because I believe that when We the People are armed, our government will fear us. When we are disarmed, we will eventually fear the government.

Think about this when you read a paper, watch the news on TV, read it on the ‘net, and (for pity’s sake) VOTE. Don’t be mislead by party labels. They don’t matter. What you need to do is vote for candidates that reflect your fundamental belief in the function of government.

Either you believe in a small government that responds to the will of the people, or you believe in a big government that dictates to the people. I’ve made my choice, and it has nothing to do with party labels. Please make your choice accordingly.

But if you’re a believer in owning guns, be advised that when the Feds says “we’re from the government and we’re here to help” what they really mean is “we’re from the government and we are here to tell you what to do, when to do it, and if we’ll even allow you to do it. Subject to change without notice.

Now go do something useful. Think for yourself. Your Republic is depending on you.