We The People...

"Our country is now taking so steady a course as to show by what road it will pass to destruction, to wit: by consolidation of power first, and then corruption, its necessary consequence." -Thomas Jefferson-

"We hold these truths to be self-evident: that all men are created equal; that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights; that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness." -Thomas Jefferson-

"All tyranny needs to gain a foothold is for people of good conscience to remain silent." -Thomas Jefferson-

"A democracy is nothing more than mob rule, where fifty-one percent of the people may take away the rights of the other forty-nine." -Thomas Jefferson-

During our summer vacation last year, we stopped and toured Monticello, Thomas Jefferson’s home in Virginia. It sits on a beautiful site; you can see miles of valleys and mountains. After all that Thomas Jefferson had risked to fight for personal liberty, we can only imagine the satisfaction he felt when looking at his property and the surrounding countryside. He could have lost everything, even his life, if the British had defeated the Americans. The founding fathers who signed the Declaration of Independence would have been treated as traitors under British rule, with the ultimate punishment being death by hanging.

Apparently, freedom was worth any price for Mr. Jefferson and his fellow signers. The founding fathers were learned and well-read men who studied ancient and then-current governments to see what worked and what didn’t work. They wanted the people to govern themselves but understood that a pure democracy is little more than mob rule. So they formed a federal republic of states, believing that the majority of the power should lie within the state and that representation of the people would work best to insure that mob rule wasn’t the law. Certainly it was a divinely inspired plan.

The government we have now has strayed down a dangerous path from the one that the founding fathers created. The American people are ill-informed about their government and blindly vote for politicians who end up not having their best interests at heart while greedily allowing lobbyists to line their pockets.

Fortunately, there are indications that many Americans are waking up to the reality of their government and they are starting to fight back. Hopefully, it won’t be too little too late.

The speakers at church this past Sunday reminded us about the importance of having the right to make our own choices and then using that agency wisely. We have a government now who wants us to relinquish our agency to them. They no longer even listen to us. It has been reported that the American people were nine to one against the bailout, but our politicians voted for it anyway. These politicians are our representatives. They serve in Washington, D.C., with our permission. We can revoke that permission at any election.

We believe that our freedom of choice is given to us by the God of all of us. He will hold us responsible if we misuse the gift. Many people in this nation are waiting for hand-outs from the government, willingly letting the government feed and clothe them, while hoping that more government hand-out programs will come their way. The social programs and government hand-outs are no better than slavery because we are surely enslaved to the government for our existence by allowing them control over our lives.

If the founding fathers were willing to risk their very lives as the price for freedom, then shouldn’t we, who enjoy the fruits of their labors, be willing to fight our current government to keep those freedoms. We may be separated by 230 years from our founding fathers, but what has really changed? They were people who wanted to be free of oppressive government and we are people who are witnessing government become more oppressive. The fight is the same. We should be about our Father’s business and make sure we don’t lose our right to choose.

"That government is best which governs the least, because its people discipline themselves." -Thomas Jefferson-

"The spirit of resistance to government is so valuable on certain occasions that I wish it to be always kept alive." -Thomas Jefferson-

"Whenever a man has cast a longing eye on offices, a rottenness begins in his conduct." -Thomas Jefferson-

"Whenever the people are well-informed, they can be trusted with their own government." -Thomas Jefferson-