Posted on 11/03/2014 7:32:15 AM PST by jfd1776
This election presents tough choices for some voters. Many are upset that the Republican Party hasn’t formally enunciated its core principles, properly nationalizing the election in a simple, coherent way. The national GOP has, instead, settled for letting it be a traditional midterm, a referendum on the policies of that man in the White House and the party that unconditionally, unquestioningly, supports his every act.
And yes, for many voters, that may well be enough.
But for those voters who would like a clear presentation of the difference between the modern Democrat Party and the Republican opposition, that difference can be easily gleaned from the campaign commercials and talking points of this cycle, from the voting records of the incumbents, and from the policies of the past eight years.
Here, for example, are a few of the contrasts that this election, and in fact all modern elections, are all about.
Which Do You Choose?
A free cellphone… or the Freedom to converse on your own phone without the government listening in?
Free foodstamps… or the Freedom to choose what you want to eat and drink, in the quantities you find cost-effective and desirable… even if that means a 32oz sodapop or an ice cream sundae?
Free hot dogs and beer provided by the union at a work stoppage or strike… or the Freedom to work for the company you choose, maybe even starting your OWN company, without some union blocking your entrance or driving it out of business?
Free housing in a government-run tenement in a dangerous big-city slum… or the Freedom to work and prosper in a free economy, so that you can afford a good home, maybe even a great home, maybe eventually even a mansion, rather than being locked into the permanently limited confines of public housing?
Free passage into the country for any foreigner, regardless of origin, talent, philosophy, or physical health... or Freedom for honorable refugees from communism and other foreign applicants who've been following the rules and waiting their turn for years, and who APPRECIATE the freedom that they'll get by coming here?
Free inbound travel and healthcare for foreigners with ebola and other deadly contagious diseases… or the Freedom to continue to live in an America that’s free of the many miserable diseases that have infested tropical zones since the dawn of time?
Free legal services for LBGTQ couples who demand catering, reception-hosting, wedding, bar-tending, photographing, videotaping, and limitless other services from people who would rather not... or true Freedom of contract, in which people seek out like-minded entrepreneurs to hire, so that both sides are happy to do business, rather than intentionally hunting down quarry for vicious, politically-based lawsuits?
Free midnight basketball programs… or the Freedom to play a sport in your local park without fearing that the neighborhood is full of marauding gangs because the government won't lock up convicted criminals?
Free birth control pills as a mandated part of an overpriced, weighted down government-approved politically-manipulated health insurance plan… or the Freedom to choose the specific balance of doctors, premiums, co-pays, and services that meet the needs of you, your family, and your business?
Free weaponry for practically anybody in the middle east who calls himself a rebel, no matter whether it’s in keeping with American interests or not… or a Freedom-based foreign policy that punishes islamist and statist governments, and rewards governments that share American ideals of Judeo-Christian ethics, free markets, and constitutionally limited government?
Free unemployment checks so that you can collect a check as long as you’re out of work, renewed again and again, perpetually funded by the taxpayers and the businesses that formerly employed you… or the Freedom to start and work for companies that are NOT overburdened by taxation, so that there are always other opportunities to work… so that if you lose this job, there are dozens more available, in the kind of boom economy that only a low-tax, low-regulation government can provide, so that you don’t ever NEED long-term unemployment insurance?
Free cradle-to-grave management of your life, by distant bureaucrats who are certain that they know what’s best for you… or the Freedom to live your life as you choose, to join the church or synagogue of your choice, attend the schools of your choice, study and work in the disciplines and careers that you choose, and move and live in the communities you want to live in?
Free lunches, free vodka, and free cigarettes from the local Democratic Party machine in exchange for votes, as they go on their typical desperate Election Day vote-buying frenzies... or honorable and Free elections by thoughtful, educated, patriotic citizens who fully understand what's at stake, this Tuesday and EVERY election?
These are the choices – both on the specific issues mentioned here, and on all the others too.
In all the examples above, the first choice is the policy of the modern Democratic Party, the radical advocates of dependence and coersion at every level... and the second choice is the policy of the Republican Party, the party of limited government in the tradition of our Founding Fathers. If you prefer the second choice, you stand with the conservative movement, whether you realized it or not... the Republican Party of individual opportunity, the Republican Party that proudly stands for the limitless potential that's possible only with limited government.
Will we choose the movement that stands for “free stuff and chains”... or will we wisely follow the advice of our Founders, and vote for the one that stands for free enterprise, freedom of contract, and the philosophy and methodology of the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution of the United States?
Copyright 2014 John F. Di Leo
John F. Di Leo is a Chicago-based Customs broker and international trade trainer. His columns appear regularly in Illinois Review.
Permission is hereby granted to forward freely, provided it is uncut and the IR URL and byline are included. Follow John F. Di Leo on Facebook or LinkedIn, or on Twitter at @johnfdileo.
It’s the big picture this time...no one issue. We’re in a mess and it’s a DEM mess.
“But for those voters who would like a clear presentation of the difference between the modern Democrat Party and the Republican opposition, that difference can be easily gleaned from the campaign commercials and talking points of this cycle, from the voting records of the incumbents, and from the policies of the past eight years.”
I think the present republican strategy is spot on. For the last 6 years republicans have been coming up with alternatives to health care, taxation, amnesty, etc. And the Mediacrats and white hut keep saying republicans aren’t bringing ideas to the table. There are 360 bills on Harry Reid’s desk that say republicans have ideas.
If the media did its job, republicans would present those ideas. But since the media won’t report on them, letting the dems implode is the republicans best strategy.
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