Short Term Pain...

How do we get from where we are to where we want to be?  Be assured, this election is not going to solve the problems.  If we have any dreams of an America that are based on what America used to be, then we have to be realistic.  We are so far from where we started that we would not recognize our country if it were functioning strictly under the Constitution.

Our Founding Fathers began warning us about the evils of men's desires before the ink was dry on their signatures.  They understood that to keep a Republic form of government was going to be a challenge.  They labored to deliver a document that gave those who would follow a fighting chance to experience freedom.  The liberties that they passed on were not taken lightly.  These men had been fighting a war to secure the freedom they envisioned.  When they declared independence from England, they pledged "to each other our Lives, our Fortunes and our sacred Honor."  Over the next few years, their pledge would come due.  Lives and fortunes would be lost, but sacred honor would increase. 

Why would the residents of the colonies take such drastic action to increase their liberties?  Was it really so bad, the way they already existed?  Sure there was a King and they were subjects of the throne in the Mother country.  They endured regulations, invasion of privacy, taxes and more taxes, etc., but was it worth war and the very real potential of dying in order to be free?  After all, what good is freedom if you do not live to enjoy it's benefits?  If they fought and lost, what would be the consequences?  If the fought and won, would the victory be appreciated by the next generation and guarded with their lives?  These were real questions that real people had to wrestle with as they stood at the junction for the direction of America.  We can put up with England and her domination over us and live the best we can, or we can declare independence and face the consequences, which for sure will include a bloody war against a well-armed military.

The men of that period of our history were a rare breed when compared to many of our current leaders.  They were men of principle, virtue, and had a love for their Creator.  They were not ashamed of the Gospel of Christ and demonstrated their spiritual lives in public.  They believed that America was to be something special.  They had a vision and followed their dream. 

Special men (such as Washington, Hamilton, Franklin, Adams, Jefferson and Hancock), put their personal lives to the side and took on the task of establishing a new nation, one based on an experiment where the people would be the ultimate seat of power.  Their vision gave them the strength to be willing to suffer the cost and pain in order to potentially enjoy the benefits of Liberty.  They could see the future, where there existed a long-term gain and they were willing to suffer the short-term pain.

If we had leadership running the United States that had anywhere close to the character that these men had, we would not be in the ugly situation that we find ourselves.  This is not a Democrat problem and it is not a Republican problem.  This is a people problem.  Our people have lost their way and who will step up to lead them back home?

Is there a present day Jefferson who will step forward and plainly explain to us where we are, how we got here, where we need to get to, and how we are going to find our way?  Do we have such men and women, today?  Is there the honesty and integrity needed to gain the trust of the people in order to convince them that the hard choices will reap good results?  This will not happen if our elected leaders are worried about re-election politics, polls, and popularity.  This kind of leadership can only come from someone who sincerely puts America's future above his own ambition and career.  If she is afraid, she cannot be the leader we need.  If he wants another term in office, forget about him making the tough decisions, he is not our man.

Short-term pain will be the result of honest leadership.  There is no other way to recover from the abyss.  We cannot solve the World's financial crisis, in fact, we have shown to be extremely irresponsible about our own finances.  Before we can be a positive global influence, we must first get our own house in order.  We are responsible for over $13,000,000,000,000 in national debt and this does not include many unfunded mandates passed by our government. 

We cannot be a strong nation, again, without manufacturing and self-sufficiency.  We cannot be dependent on foreign oil and be a strong nation.  We cannot buy everything from other countries and exist as a consumer nation whose work force is involved in the "service" industry.

We live in a dangerous world.  There are others who are set on our destruction and some of them live within our borders.  We cannot blindly exist, on a side-by-side basis, with the radical enemy.  PC, Political Correctness, needs to transform into Power Concentrated.

We must determine what it would take to begin "in-sourcing jobs".  We have to put government, at all levels, on a diet.  They will have to learn to function in a much smaller fashion with a much reduced budget.  Entitlement and social programs will have to be reduced or eliminated.  Our present level of government "give-away" programs is not only idiotic but also suicidal.  They have robbed many productive individuals of their self-worth and destroyed an honest work ethic.

Our eduction system needs a drastic overhaul.  Washington should have nothing, NOTHING, to do with our local schools.  Every level of public existence needs to stop taking handouts from politicians.  We have to abandon the notion that everyone should chip in to help pay for what we want in our locality.  If we want it, we should be the ones that have to pay for it.  If we are not willing to pay for it, we can do without.

The concept that we all have a "right" to home ownership, a job, health care, etc.; must vanish from our vocabulary.  Those things are not "rights"!  When did we forget the idea of spending less than we make, saving the difference and one day being able to buy what we dream about?  Instant gratification is a sin.  Have you transferred your family from a credit system where you are slaves to the lenders, to one where you do without unless you have the money to purchase the desired product? 

Self-sufficiency is a concept we have heard about but very few of us actually experience.  It is time to simplify our lives and get back to basics.  What would be so bad about swings on the front porch, talking with your neighbors, helping to build that room addition for a friend, family and extended family gatherings, helping those in need, and getting back in good relationship with God?

If this sounds good to you and you would love to see this great country return to it's roots where the Constitution, as written and as intended, is the law of the land; where the three branches of government actually perform checks and balances on each other to make sure they only operate in the areas they have constitutional authority to do so, then what are you willing to give up in order to get there?  Getting there will be painful!  Arriving there will be joyful!

It all begins with a massive house cleaning in our nation's Capitol.  All levels need to be controlled by those who will seriously defend the Constitution.  We need to exercise the authority to impeach judges who have exceeded their legal limits and restore honor to the courts.  We need a president who loves this country and it's Constitution.  We need law makers who know and understand the boundaries set for their positions and who guard against exceeding them in any way. 

Can we restore Washington to a Constitutional government or do we the people need to exercise our right to replace our current government with one of our choosing?  There is no easy path of recovery.  We are addicted to socialism.  Detox and rehab will be painful.  It may take a generation or two to become a recovering-dependent, but we can do it!

No pain, no gain!