{"id":960,"date":"2013-11-27T13:31:18","date_gmt":"2013-11-27T20:31:18","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/donlafferty.com\/blog\/?p=960"},"modified":"2013-11-27T13:31:59","modified_gmt":"2013-11-27T20:31:59","slug":"sufficient-reason","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/donlafferty.com\/blog\/?p=960","title":{"rendered":"Sufficient Reason"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>This person expressed his opinion on liberal America so well that I had to borrow it. \u00c2\u00a0You can see his whole blog <a href=\"http:\/\/sufficient-reason.tumblr.com\/post\/26781491317\/dear-liberal-heres-why-im-so-hostile\">here<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;<i>This essay is a bit of departure from my usually reasonable and logical approach to important issues. \u00c2\u00a0That\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s not to say that the essay isn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t well-reasoned and is bereft of logical argumentation, but I freely admit that it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s polemical, in nature. \u00c2\u00a0Sometimes you\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re just pissed, and you need to vent. \u00c2\u00a0Here\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s my vent\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6<\/i><\/p>\n<p>Lately, I must admit that my hostility towards your political ilk has ramped up, pretty dramatically. \u00c2\u00a0No, it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s not because we, at this point in my life, have a half-black president in the White House, and I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m some closet racist who is becoming increasingly frustrated at the prospects of the White Man\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s power slipping through my fingers. \u00c2\u00a0I know that you\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ve accused our side of such nonsense, and the thought keeps you warm at night, but I can assure you that it is a comfortable fiction of which you should probably divest yourself.<\/p>\n<p>Now before I waste too much of your time, let\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s establish who I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m talking to. \u00c2\u00a0If you believe that we live in an evil, imperialist nation from its founding, and you believe that it should be \u00e2\u20ac\u0153fundamentally transformed\u00e2\u20ac\u009d, lend me your ears. \u00c2\u00a0If you believe that the free market is the source of the vast majority of society\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s ills and wish to have more government intervention into it, I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m talking to you. \u00c2\u00a0If you believe that health care is a basic human right and that government should provide it to everyone, you\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re the guy I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m screaming at. \u00c2\u00a0If you think minorities cannot possibly survive in this inherently racist country without handouts and government mandated diversity quotas, you\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re my guy. \u00c2\u00a0If you believe that rich people are that way because they\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ve exploited their workers and acquired wealth on the backs of the poor, keep reading. \u00c2\u00a0Pretty much, if you trust government more than your fellow American, this post is for you.<\/p>\n<p>First of all, let me say that we probably agree on more things than you think. \u00c2\u00a0Even between Tea Party Patriots and Occupy Wall-Streeters, I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ve observed a common hatred of the insidious alliance between big business and big government. \u00c2\u00a0As Representative Paul Ryan (R-WI) so correctly noted, government should never be in the business of picking winners and losers in corporate America, and no person, organization, union, or corporation should have their own key to the back door of our government.<\/p>\n<p>Second, contrary to popular belief, conservatives really are concerned with the plight of the poor in this nation. \u00c2\u00a0You accuse us of being uncompassionate, hateful, racist, and greedy, but studies have shown that when it comes to charitable giving, conservatives are at least (if not more, depending on the study you read) as generous as liberals in caring for the poor. \u00c2\u00a0The difference between us is not in our attitude towards the problem \u00e2\u20ac\u201d it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s our attitude towards the solution. \u00c2\u00a0We believe that the government does practically nothing well (since without competition or a profit motive there is no incentive to do well) and has made the plight of the poor far worse than it would have ever been had government never gotten involved. \u00c2\u00a0For a stark example of this, look no farther than the condition of the black family in America since the \u00e2\u20ac\u0153War on Poverty\u00e2\u20ac\u009d began. \u00c2\u00a0You believe that more government is the answer, and that if we only throw more money at the problem, the problem will go away. \u00c2\u00a0We believe, as Reagan so aptly stated,<\/p>\n<p><i>Government is not the solution to our problems; \u00c2\u00a0government\u00c2\u00a0<b>is<\/b>\u00c2\u00a0the problem.<\/i><\/p>\n<p>Third, as people who might actually have to avail ourselves of a doctor\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s services at some point in our lives, we are just as concerned with the condition of America\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s healthcare system as you are. \u00c2\u00a0While we believe that America has the world\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s most capable physicians, has the world\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s most innovative pharmaceutical industry, and is on the cutting edge of medical technology, we also understand that the delivery system is far from perfect. \u00c2\u00a0However, unlike you, we see a grave danger in turning the administration of that delivery system over to the same entity that is responsible for giving us the United States Postal Service. \u00c2\u00a0There are private sector solutions that should certainly be explored before we kill the system, altogether, by giving it to the government to run.<\/p>\n<p>Now that we\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ve touched on a couple of points of common ground, allow me to explain my aggressiveness towards your efforts to implement your progressive agenda. \u00c2\u00a0First, let\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s talk about the word \u00e2\u20ac\u0153progressive\u00e2\u20ac\u009d, since you now seem to prefer that word to \u00e2\u20ac\u0153liberal\u00e2\u20ac\u009d. \u00c2\u00a0In order to label something as progressive or regressive, one must have some idea as to what constitutes progress. \u00c2\u00a0What is the ideal towards which you are striving? \u00c2\u00a0An idea is considered progressive if it moves us closer to the ideal and regressive if it moves us further away. \u00c2\u00a0So, what is your ideal society?<\/p>\n<p>Though I can\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t begin to discern the thoughts of every liberal who may read this, nor can I assume that every liberal has the same notion of an ideal society, in my arguments with liberals over the years, I couldn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t help but notice the influence that FDR\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s Second Bill of Rights has had in shaping the beliefs of the modern liberal with regards to domestic policy. \u00c2\u00a0The rights that FDR cited are:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>The right to a useful and remunerative job in the industries or shops or farms or mines of the nation;<\/li>\n<li>The right to earn enough to provide adequate food and clothing and recreation;<\/li>\n<li>The right of every farmer to raise and sell his products at a return which will give him and his family a decent living;<\/li>\n<li>The right of every businessman, large and small, to trade in an atmosphere of freedom from unfair competition and domination by monopolies at home or abroad;<\/li>\n<li>The right of every family to a decent home;<\/li>\n<li>The right to adequate medical care and the opportunity to achieve and enjoy good health;<\/li>\n<li>The right to adequate protection from the economic fears of old age, sickness, accident, and unemployment;<\/li>\n<li>The right to a good education.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>At this point, you\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re probably screaming, \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Right on!!\u00e2\u20ac\u009d, and who can blame you? \u00c2\u00a0What sane person in the world doesn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t want everyone to be gainfully employed, adequately fed, smartly clothed, appropriately sheltered, and properly educated? \u00c2\u00a0These are the goals of every moral society on the planet, however we cannot ignore the fundamental question of, \u00e2\u20ac\u0153At what cost?\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n<p>I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m not sure whether FDR was a shallow thinker or simply a shrewd, Machiavellian politician, but the fact that he framed each of these ideals as a human right should be troubling to every freedom-loving person in America. \u00c2\u00a0After all, what does it mean for something to be a human right? \u00c2\u00a0Doesn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t it mean that it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s something to which you are entitled simply by virtue of your being human? \u00c2\u00a0Let\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s think about some of the basic rights that the real Bill of Rights delineates: freedom of speech, freedom of religion, freedom to petition the government, freedom to bear arms, freedom from illegal search and seizure, etc.<\/p>\n<p>If you\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re moderately intelligent and intellectually honest, you\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ll quickly see what separates the rights laid out in the real Bill of Rights from those laid out in FDR\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s misguided list \u00e2\u20ac\u201d none of the rights listed above require the time, treasure, or talents of another human being. \u00c2\u00a0Your right to speak requires nothing from anyone else. \u00c2\u00a0Your right to practice your religion requires nothing from any of your fellow citizens. \u00c2\u00a0Your right to bear arms means that you are allowed to possess weapons to defend yourself and your family, but it makes no demand that a weapon be provided to you by anyone. \u00c2\u00a0A true human right is one that you possess, even if you\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re the only person on the entire planet \u00e2\u20ac\u201d and it is unconditional.<\/p>\n<p>FDR\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s list is no \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Bill of Rights\u00e2\u20ac\u009d. \u00c2\u00a0It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s a list of demands. \u00c2\u00a0If I have a\u00c2\u00a0<b>right<\/b>\u00c2\u00a0to a job, doesn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t that mean that one must be provided to me? \u00c2\u00a0If I have a\u00c2\u00a0<b>right<\/b>\u00c2\u00a0to adequate food, clothing, and recreation, doesn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t that mean that I am entitled to those things, and someone should provide them to me? \u00c2\u00a0If I have an inherent\u00c2\u00a0<b>right<\/b>\u00c2\u00a0to a decent home, once again, doesn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t that mean it should be provided to me, regardless of my ability to afford one or build one for myself?<\/p>\n<p>You might protest that FDR only meant that we have the right to\u00c2\u00a0<b>pursue<\/b>those things, but that\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s not what he said, and why would he? \u00c2\u00a0If we live in a free society, our right to pursue those things is self-evident, is it not? \u00c2\u00a0Besides, if he only believed in our right to pursue those things, he would not have felt the need to implement the New Deal.<\/p>\n<p>You may be getting anxious, now, wondering what FDR\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s Second Bill of Rights has to do with my antipathy towards your political philosophy. \u00c2\u00a0It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s quite simple \u00e2\u20ac\u201d your political beliefs are a threat to liberty \u00e2\u20ac\u201d not just for me, but for my three boys and their children as well. \u00c2\u00a0I care much less about the America that I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m living in at this very moment than I do about the one that I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m leaving Nathaniel, Charlie, and Jackson.<\/p>\n<p>How does your political bent threaten my and my sons personal liberty, you ask? \u00c2\u00a0In your irrational attempt to classify things such as clothing, shelter, health care, employment, and income as basic human rights, you are placing a demand upon my time, my treasure, and my talents. \u00c2\u00a0If you believe that you have a right to health care, and you are successful in persuading enough shallow thinkers to think as you do, then it will place a demand upon me to provide it to you. \u00c2\u00a0If you believe that you have a right to a job, and more than half of America agrees with you, as a business owner, I am obligated to provide one to you, even if it means making my business less profitable.<\/p>\n<p>The fact is, you can rail against my conservatism all you wish. \u00c2\u00a0You can make fun of my Tea Party gatherings, and you can ridicule patriots in tri-corner hats until you wet yourself from mirth, but one thing is for certain: my political philosophy will NEVER be a threat to your freedom. \u00c2\u00a0If you feel a burning responsibility to the poor, conservatism will never prevent you from working 80 hours per week and donating all of your income to charity. \u00c2\u00a0If you feel a strong sense of pity for a family who cannot afford health insurance, my political philosophy will never prevent you from purchasing health insurance for this family or raising money to do so, if you cannot afford it, personally. \u00c2\u00a0If you are moved with compassion for a family who is homeless, a conservative will never use the police power of government to prevent you from taking that family in to your own home or mobilizing your community to build one for them.<\/p>\n<p>However, you cannot say the same for liberalism. \u00c2\u00a0If I choose not to give to the poor for whatever reason, you won\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t simply try to persuade me on the merits of the idea \u00e2\u20ac\u201d you will seek to use the government as an instrument of plunder to force me to give to the poor. \u00c2\u00a0If we are walking down the street together and we spot a homeless person, using this logic, you would not simply be content with giving him $20 from your own pocket \u00e2\u20ac\u201d you would hold a gun to my head and force me to give him $20, as well.<\/p>\n<p><b>Everything that modern liberalism accomplishes is accomplished at the barrel of a government rifle.<\/b>\u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0You do not trust in the generosity of the American people to provide, through private charity, things such as clothing, food, shelter, and health care, so you empower the government to take from them and spend the money on wasteful, inefficient, and inadequate government entitlement programs. \u00c2\u00a0You do not trust in the personal responsibility of the average American to wield firearms in defense of themselves and their families, so you seek to empower the government to criminalize the use and possession of firearms by private citizens. \u00c2\u00a0Everytime you empower the government, you lose more of your personal liberty \u00e2\u20ac\u201d it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s an axiomatic truth.<\/p>\n<p>What angers me the most about you is the eagerness with which you allow the incremental enslavement to occur. \u00c2\u00a0You are the cliched and proverbial frog in the pot who has actually convinced himself that he\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s discovered a big, silver jacuzzi. \u00c2\u00a0Somehow, you\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re naive enough to believe that one more degree of heat won\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t really matter that much.<\/p>\n<p>I have the utmost respect for a slave who is continuously seeking a path to freedom. \u00c2\u00a0What I cannot stomach is a free man who is continuous seeking a path to servitude by willingly trading his freedom for the false sense of security that government will provide.<\/p>\n<p>I am reminded of Samuel Adams\u00e2\u20ac\u2122 impassioned speech where he stated:<\/p>\n<p><i>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153If ye love wealth (or security) better than liberty, the tranquillity of servitude than the animating contest of freedom, \u00e2\u20ac\u201d go from us in peace. We ask not your counsels or arms. Crouch down and lick the hands which feed you. May your chains sit lightly upon you, and may posterity forget that ye were our countrymen!\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/i><\/p>\n<p>Servitude can exist in a free society, but freedom cannot exist in a slave nation. \u00c2\u00a0In a free country, you have the liberty to join with others of your political ilk and realize whatever collectivist ideals you can dream up. \u00c2\u00a0You can start your own little commune where the sign at the front gate says, \u00e2\u20ac\u0153From each according to his ability; to each according to his need\u00e2\u20ac\u009d, and everyone can work for the mutual benefit of everyone else. \u00c2\u00a0In my society, you have the freedom to do that.<\/p>\n<p>In your society, I don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t have the same freedom. \u00c2\u00a0If your collectivism offends me, I am not free to start my own free society within its borders. \u00c2\u00a0In order for collectivism to work, everyone must be on board, even those who oppose it \u00e2\u20ac\u201d why do you think there was a Berlin Wall?<\/p>\n<p>In conclusion, just know that the harder you push to enact your agenda, the more hostile I will become \u00e2\u20ac\u201d the harder I will fight you. \u00c2\u00a0It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s nothing personal, necessarily. \u00c2\u00a0If you want to become a slave to an all-powerful central government, be my guest. \u00c2\u00a0But if you are planning to take me and my family down with you, as we say down here in the South, I will stomp a mud-hole in your chest and walk it dry.<\/p>\n<p>Bring it.&#8221;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>This person expressed his opinion on liberal America so well that I had to borrow it. \u00c2\u00a0You can see his whole blog here. &nbsp; &#8220;This essay is a bit of departure from my usually reasonable and logical approach to important issues. \u00c2\u00a0That\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s not to say that the essay isn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t well-reasoned and is bereft of logical [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/donlafferty.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/960"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/donlafferty.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/donlafferty.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/donlafferty.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/donlafferty.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=960"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/donlafferty.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/960\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":961,"href":"https:\/\/donlafferty.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/960\/revisions\/961"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/donlafferty.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=960"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/donlafferty.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=960"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/donlafferty.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=960"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}