Today it became obvious to me that the Democrats will pass a health care bill. Yes, I know about the exceedingly angry crowds at town hall meetings and the poll numbers. But these traitors, these anti-Constitutionalists do not care: They have the power and they are going to exercise it — this time through “reconciliation” … a process designed to cut off any meaningful debate, a process that avoids completely any potential for a filibuster by those who understand the disaster that will come with health care reform as proposed by the Democrats. Besides, these so-called representatives don't even believe the potesters are real — They believe the lying, liberal press when it reports that the protesters represent but a small minority of the citizenry.
That prospect has caused me to face squarely what may be coming. Please allow me to explain — and please forgive me if I give you a little background about me. I believe the background to be relevant in terms of establishing the fact that I do not approach these matters lightly. I am certain all of you have done as much and more than I have done: I just want you to know I am one of you.
I began my political activism as a 14-year-old hanging literature on door knobs for Barry Goldwater in 1964 — In every single subsequent election I have put my vote, money, and time where my mouth has been, and have done so AT EVERY LEVEL OF GOVERNMENT, nor have I ever missed an opportunity to make my feelings or opinions known in every conceivable way to anyone with whom I may have had the slightest degree of influence. Indeed, I chaired a committee that recalled an ENTIRE five-member city council for imposing a 6-percent utility tax — the first time in California history that an entire city council had been removed from office. I subsequently ran for a city council seat and served on a city planning commission — where I continued to fight big government and bureaucratic spendthrifts. I currently serve on a personnel commission for a school district and chair a professional committee in my chosen profession.
I have been published in the local paper — in the editorial column as a guest editorialist where, once again, I argued for small, efficient government. And I served on an advisory committee where I also pursued the delivery of a public safety service on a smaller, more cost effective scale than was wanted by the bureaucrats, politicians, or the unions.
In addition, I have organized service projects, including projects that provided food and shelter for the homeless and single mothers with their children — all at no cost to the taxpayer.
My point is this: I am not a novice. I am a hardened activist with 45 years of experience.
None of us wants violence. For 45 years I have done it the right way — voting, talking, writing, volunteering, voting, talking, writing, volunteering, voting, talking, writing, volunteering … I have been a model citizen. Until this point in my life, I would have NEVER EVEN CONSIDERED any act outside the system, including non-violent civil disobedience (e.g., King, Gandhi), because I believed working within the system was the only way to correct the problems — problems I saw coming when I was but 14 years old. Yes, even at that tender age I knew what was coming because I had seen Lyndon Johnson in action; my fears were only reinforced when I watched Richard Nixon impose price and wage controls and Jimmy Carter ravage an economy — so the last two decades have been no surprise to me. When, however, Reagan was elected, I was elated because I believed we were finally turning the corner; but the Bush, Clinton, Bush, and Obama presidencies and the behavior of Congress over the last 20 years have finally caused me to re-evaluate my optimism.
I will be 60 in five months; at some point I will be forced onto Medicare where my heath benefits will be rationed — even more so than they are already being rationed for current beneficiaries. (I should add this observation: The stimulus bill that has already been passed also has a provision that rations health care.) Moreover, this so-called government continues to eat away at my Constitutional rights, even while granting Constitutional rights to enemy combatants. And as if that were not enough, eminent domain and ballooning deficits and tax burdens continue to erode my SACRED property rights.
I will not allow my family or myself to be denied medical care. I will not continue to have the fruit of my labor stolen by socialists who think they can make better use of my property than I can. I will not continue to have my rights eroded.
The Declaration of Independence states the following:
(1) "Governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes."
Note, however, that the statement does not say that governments should not be changed.
(2) "All experience hath shewn that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed."
No one who understands the Constitution, including all of you, believes our rights have been protected as envisioned by the Founders. And all of us who believe in our divinely-inspired Constitution know that we have been caused to suffer greatly, and that the prospects for suffering, absent a change, will only increase. It is also fair to say that the suffering has been “tolerable” to this point. However, that our suffering has been tolerable does not mitigate the problem — it only makes it more difficult to deal with due to the public perceptions that logically flow from such a condition. By the way, many are fond of pointing out that, as bad as it might be for us, our suffering pales by comparison to the suffering of people in other countries — and to those I would say the following: “You deserve your chains. Depart from us. You are not worthy of the company of free men because freedom is not relative. It is or it is not — period.”
(3) "But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future security."
“Evince” means to show, to demonstrate, to make clear. Tyranny need not be an established fact to justify the reclaiming of our liberties — it only needs to be apparent that tyranny is the end, the result, the design of a series of policies or acts. That forces the question, Is there any doubt about the design? Only a fool would miss the obvious. There is no doubt about the design, the objective, the purpose. Lincoln once observed that, as a nation of free men, we must live through all time or die by national suicide — a transformation that requires a purposeful, coordinated plan developed in a shroud of secrecy by powerful interests from big business, big labor, and government.
I will work within the system — for a little longer. But in the end I will reclaim my rights as acknowledged by the Founders. I will begin with non-violent civil disobedience. But make no mistake — MY RIGHTS WILL BE RECLAIMED.
And one other thought. History has shown that those with power and an intent to destroy liberty will not easily yield: Once acquired, such evil will hold on to power by whatever means necessary. Are we willing to confront that truth? And the consequences that flow from it? The facts are that evil currently has the reigns of power, and evil is proceeding according to a plan. For now we must work within the system — I accept that in spite of my belief that more will one day be required — but evil needs to know that the people are willing to rise up and reclaim, by force, that which has been stolen. I am not saying people should or need to rise up outside the system with force at this point in time, but evil must know it is possible — and probable — if our course is not reversed. Remember, the Founders believed that government not only needed to be in chains, but that the government needed to fear the people rather than the people fearing the government … which is precisely why we have the Second Amendment. If the Founders believed or knew with certainty that force would never be required in order to reclaim our God-given rights, then why did they provide us with the means to exert force? Indeed, is it an accident or coincidence that the forces of evil have arrayed themselves against the Second Amendment?
