America’s Slow Death
The reasons for the
demise of America and solutions to right the ship.
America has been dying a slow death for six decades. I will
set forth a few of those reasons below. I believe the demise stems from
arrogance and apathy. This country has been so blessed for so long that we, the
people, became complacent and inward-focused rather than remaining humble and
outward-focused as we were for much of the nation’s first two centuries.
Unfortunately, we have a President who enables and exacerbates
every one of the reasons set forth below. In my opinion, he is happily presiding
over the downfall of this once great nation. We must quickly swing the tide or risk
becoming a minor footnote in the history books rather than continuing to be a
beacon of freedom and opportunity for the entire world as we have for most of
our 237 years of existence.
What accounts for
America’s slow death?
#1 – Removal of God
from the public sector.
This
one reason permeates all the reasons set forth in this essay!
- This nation was founded upon Judeo-Christian principles! From the pilgrims to the Founding Fathers, all of them put their reliance on God or divine providence. They made countless comparisons to the American struggle against Britain with that of the Israelites coming out of Egypt.
- For 175 years the United States was governed by a belief in God. This belief guided our decision-making and steered our moral compass. Over the last 60 years there has been a steady, “progressive” erosion of God from the public sector (prayer in school, pledge of allegiance, nativity scenes, religion not taught in schools, evolution over creationism, moral relativism).
Short
of a nuclear holocaust, nothing will more thoroughly destroy America than an
economic collapse. The statistics are well known (to most of you). What good
can come from any of this????
- Four straight years of $1 annual budget deficits with more to come.
- We borrow $0.40 of every dollar we spend as a nation.
- We borrow over $4 billion per DAY!
#3 - Abortion has
received mainstream acceptance
- Over 3,000 abortions a day in America! Over 30 million since Roe v. Wade!
- Over $500 million of taxpayer dollars fund Planned Parenthood, which is responsible for almost one million abortions over the last three years!
- A country that readily kills its unborn is no different than ancient, pagan civilizations that sacrificed their babies to the gods! It is the height of arrogance and foolishness for people who claim to believe in God to think for one moment that this goes unnoticed by Him?
#4 - Apathetic,
ignorant electorate
- In an age where the world is literally at our finger tips, a large percentage of the electorate in America is intellectually lazy. They are “sound-bite”, “low-information” or “perception” voters who pay little or no attention to the news. Rather than taking the time to learn what their representatives are doing, they vote for whoever seems to talk the best in 10-second sound bites, seems to care the most or looks the most influential.
- We have a record number of citizens receiving food stamps, disability payments and long-term unemployment benefits. This equates to a record number of citizens opposed to any efforts to rein in spending. They will not vote themselves a pay cut!
- Obamacare will cause more people to become dependent on the government for their healthcare and the cycle will be reinforced.
#6 - Perpetually high
unemployment
- If you cannot find work, you are dependent on the government. If you are dependent on the government, you will oppose any efforts to curb spending. If we do not curb spending, the economy will collapse. If the economy collapses, the unemployment rate goes to 30%, 50%, 75%!
- The U6 unemployment rate (the real unemployment rate) is 16%
- Record high unemployment rates among African-Americans and youth.
- College graduates cannot find work yet they are stuck $1 trillion in student loan debt to pay off their inflated tuition rates.
- enefits. This equates to a record number of citizens opposed to any efforts to rein in spending. They will not vote themselves a pay cut!
- Obamacare will cause more people to become dependent on the government for their healthcare and the cycle will be reinforced.
#7 - Engaged in
perpetual war
- America needs to discontinue its practice of being the world’s policeman. We need to project power and defend our allies but our young men and women do not need to die in foreign lands where the interest of the United States is difficult to articulate. Not to mention the billions of dollars spent annually.
- Median incomes are down under Obama and everything from gasoline to groceries costs more than it did four years ago. Less take-home pay + increased expenses = lower standard of living. THE NEW NORMAL!
- Small businesses employ more Americans than “big” business. They drive the economy.
- Uncertainty, regulations and Obamacare have killed thousands of existing small businesses and stifled the creation of thousands more.
#10 - Rewrite history
- The demonization of the Founding Fathers, the Constitution and the principles in which America was founded.
- 50% of the population pays no federal income tax, therefore, any discussion about raising those rates goes opposed.
- It is indisputable that the Democratic Party is committed to growing the federal government. They consistently support and advocate for higher and higher taxes and more and more spending. Their signature piece of legislation, Obamacare, is full on new taxes.
- They oppose all efforts to cut spending except for the military.
#13 - A neutered and
ineffective minority party
- The Republican Party has proven itself to be irrelevant. When they gain control of the government, they increase spending and grow government (prescription drug benefit, Department of Education, wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, the Department of Homeland Security, TSA, The Patriot Act). When they are in the minority, they are unwilling to courageously challenge the Democrats while, at the same time, minimalizing and maligning the conservative caucus (The Tea Party).
Below are a few ideas:
1.
God back in the
public forum - Those of us who do follow the Judeo-Christian philosophy
have a responsibility to talk about it and profess it. We have been silent too
long! We have allowed secularists to run roughshod over our beliefs for too
long! This nation was founded upon these principles and, if it is to survive
another 237 years, we must return to those principles.
It is ok to speak about God and how
He impacts our lives. It is our responsibility to do so! Books like I
Don’t Have Enough Faith to be an Atheist and Tactics
: A Game Plan for Discussing Your Christian Convictions, should be required
reading. The
Harbinger is a fun, quick read laying out the place that God and divine
providence played in the founding of the United States. A more in depth
discussion can be found in In
Defense of Faith: The Judeo-Christian Idea and the Struggle for Humanity.
2.
Balanced Budget
Amendment to the Constitution – Addressing our spending problem will
alleviate many of the other problems. It will, most importantly, limit the
power wielded by our representatives to dole out our money to their pet
projects and favorite lobbyists.
3.
Term Limits for Congress
– Career politicians are the death knell of our republic. Our representatives
should serve for the sake of service not for power or to enrich themselves. Natural
turnover will birth new ideas and fresh perspectives to problem-solving.
4.
Welfare Reform
– Nothing radical is needed here. We just need to limit the amount of time a
citizen can receive welfare. Reinstitute the work requirement, which Obama
illegally waived prior to the election. Perpetual unemployment benefits and
welfare payments make the recipients complacent and dependent on the
government.
5.
Repeal Obamacare
– This monstrosity must be struck down! The ramifications of this legislation
are disastrous both economically, as we struggle under the weight of insane new
levels of taxes to pay for it, and the inevitable deterioration of the level of
care we will receive. Think about last experience at the DMV, unemployment
office, IRS, or Social Security Administration and transfer that experience to
visiting your doctor. Also consider the level of care of countries who
currently employ a socialized medicine system – Canada, Britain, Cuba. It is
abysmal compared to America.
6. Repeal the 17th Amendment– States' rights must be reestablished!
7. Stay Active and Informed and let your
representatives (at the local, state and national level) know you are watching
them closely and evaluating their performance!
Those representatives who want to do the right thing need to know they have support. And those who prefer to damage the nation in order to hold on to their power must know that behavior will no longer be tolerated.
