The Major Issue is Not the Economy but the Lack of Integrity and Morality in Our Leadership

The Patriot Post ^ | 22 February, 2012 | Joan Fischer (joanie-f)

[joanie-f]

Many Americans, conservatives among them, have been voicing the opinion that social issues have no part in campaign debates, are criticizing Rick Santorum for placing them in the forefront of his campaign, and are branding him as unelectable as a result.

I take issue with those points of view for two reasons: Firstly, social issues, when considered in their broadest sense, should play a major role in any campaign and none other than our Founders cautioned us to demand that they do. Secondly, it is not Rick Santorum who is declaring that social issues are the entire focus of his campaign; it is the left-leaning media.

John Adams, and most of the other Founders in their own way, cautioned, "Our Constitution is designed only for a moral and religious people. It is wholly inadequate for any other."

A conservative candidate's focus on social issues, issues regarding abortion, contraception, sexual openness, the breakdown of the family, etc., generally has at its core a desire to do what is right. The definition of what is right differs from person to person, based on his religion, upbringing, etc., but when social issues are of genuine concern to a candidate the desire to define and do what is right is personal and passionate, and it takes second place to no other. That central desire is something that is lacking in much of modern American leadership today, especially at the highest levels. During the era of Clinton-Lewinsky, the American people were, for the most part, appalled at the personal morals of the man in the oval office. His character also came into play many other times during his two terms in the White House, but was most obvious during his impeachment for perjury and obstruction of justice. Nonetheless, the majority of the citizenry re-elected him because the state of the economy was more important to them than the character of the man serving as their president. We all took part in debates about character during the Clinton years. 

Fast forward more than a decade and the American people are once again declaring that the economy is the major issue in this election. And yet why is the American economy imploding? The crisis is largely the result of the fact that our leadership in D.C. is sorely lacking in character. Corruption and lying have become a way of life, and the goal of being a public servant has given way to the goal of promoting an leftist agenda and amassing as much power and wealth as possible, and the nation's security, prosperity and fiscal and monetary integrity be damned. 

The state of the economy is just one symptom of a pernicious disease. Lack of morals/character in leadership is the underlying disease. Seeking to do what is right for the country no longer plays a primary role in decision-making in Washington, D.C. If we simply vote for the candidate who stresses "fixing" the economy, without considering his character and his willingness to stand on firmly-held convictions no matter the political cost, we are declaring ourselves more interested in treating the symptoms rather than eradicating the disease.

Despite what the mainstream media would have us believe, the candidate with character, the candidate who has deeply-held beliefs regarding social issues, is not going to insist that his personal convictions be forced down the throats of the rest of the country. He will not rule by executive order. He will not appoint dozens of czars to usurp constitutionally-designated powers from the legislative branch. He will respect constitutional parameters and call upon his moral convictions to do what is right, rather than what is politically expedient or part of a political agenda.

(continued at link to article)

[joanie-f]

So many conservatives themselves are falling prey to the media's interpretations of the candidates' personal beliefs. If we continue to allow them to dictate our opinions, this election, and our republic, will be lost.

[joanie-f]

November will mark our rebirth, or our demise.

[PDGearhead]

Excellent! 100% right! It is the moral decay and lack of social issues that has led to our countries problems.

[Jeff Head]

Thank you, Joanie...I responded at the site and am pinging this to my list.

Your article is right on the money...thank you for sharing. God help us, as a people, to re-enthrone the fundamental moral principles that are the foundation and bedrock for this Republic. All else will hinge ultimately on the larger majority of us doing just that and voting accordingly.

I have shared it on Face Book as well.

As always, God’s speed to you and yours.

AMERICA AT THE CROSSROADS OF HISTORY
http://www.jeffhead.com/crossroads.htm

[dforest]

Your title stands alone as a statement. No truer word have been said.

[Jacquerie]

The recent Ninth Circus ruling that forced homo marriage on the western states specifically said the majority may not impose its morals on society. IOW, we are no longer self governing.

[MrB]

Those who are in power now truly believe they can have their own, separate “morality” that they define for themselves.

Obama even said so, when asked what sin was, he replied
“being out of alignment with my values”.

[meadsjn]

Despite what the mainstream media would have us believe, the candidate with character, the candidate who has deeply-held beliefs regarding social issues, is not going to insist that his personal convictions be forced down the throats of the rest of the country. He will not rule by executive order. He will not appoint dozens of czars to usurp constitutionally-designated powers from the legislative branch. He will respect constitutional parameters and call upon his moral convictions to do what is right, rather than what is politically expedient or part of a political agenda.

In order to win election, the candidate needs to be able to articulate their positions well enough to convince a plurality of voters to vote for them.

I would vote for either Gingrich or Santorum against Romney/Obama, although I prefer Gingrich for his ability to articulate his positions, and support them with sound Constitutional, historical, and economic principles.

[cva66snipe]

Proverbs ch 28 2When there is moral rot within a nation, its government topples easily. But with wise and knowledgeable leaders, there is stability.

We who read GOD's Word are shown time and time again what happens in nations where morality is abandoned. When the nations seek GOD wise leaders are given. Wise doesn't mean perfect but the nation heals and prospers. I would rather trust a man to lead this nation who is willing to face these issues and bring them out in the open than one who for political reasons pretends they simply don't matter.

Until hearts change and our nation founded on GOD's Laws and Biblical Principle repents there will be no healing. In the news our nation is headed to the moral decline of Sodom and Gomorrah. GOD has judged nations for less wrongs than what our nation is embracing today.

We've had righteous leaders offered too us many elections even in the post Reagan years who were sounding this alarm and rejected them. Time after time political expedience has came before right and wrong before GOD. The results of which we live under today. GOD judges all nations and our nation as a whole has forgotten that fact. I'm old enough to remember as a kid when we had men in a space capsule bound for the moon and an onboard explosion damaged the capsule. Experts didn't really know if the men on board would make it back home due too issues like having enough oxygen. That is about the last time I can actually remember the nation as a whole praying and the media not mocking it nor ones in the street protesting prayer. That may have happened but I don't remember them getting any coverage if they did. A miracle happened no doubt.

The 9/11 attacks should have been a wake up call too the fact certain enemies want both Jews and Christians dead and were allowed too attack our nation. Instead of national prayer and calling to repent we get told they are a religion of peace? Instead of call for repentance we are given a call for more tolerance toward evil? They are a people GOD is using to judge us. Wake up USA before it's too late. Return to GOD, repent, as GOD is faithful & merciful to forgive. He will heal our nation. There is no other solution too this. None.

[joanie-f]

Thank you, Jeff. And thank you for continuing your tireless crusade to reclaim America from those powerful, evil forces in whose hands she now finds herself. Since I last posted seriously here on FR, lawlessness has become rampant among our 'leadership'.

We've reached the point in this country where the rule of law is often just a matter of convenience among much of our 'leadership'. The Constitution, and the laws that are founded on it, are often obeyed, or not, depending on the agenda that disobeying them would serve.

Not only is this administration making an art form out of end-running the Constitution, and not only is congress passing all kinds of laws that don't pass constitutional muster, but our 'leadership' in D.C. is condoning – even encouraging -- lawbreaking by the average American, if it suits their purposes.

A glaring example of what happens virtually every day in decisions made by this administration and its agencies is Eric Holder’s dropping of the charges made against the Black Panthers for the gross voter intimidation they committed in Philly back in '08.

How many of our leftist 'leaders', the president included, have spoken out in favor of Occupy as a patriotic group that is simply exercising its first amendment rights -- knowing full well that the list of crimes, including rapes, assaults, looting, and desecration, committed by some of this group's members is an abomination afflicting, at one time or another, virtually every city in the country?

The left's stranglehold on the decision-making process, the mainstream media, the education system, and the minds of the many uninformed among us, is something they will not give up without a fight, and the safety and security of the country as a whole be damned.

If we believe the election of a republican ticket in November will go a long way toward heralding a new era of constitutional government, we need to consider the fact that many on the left will be supporting , both overtly and covertly, any means to undermine that government, even before it assumes office in January of 2013. Franklin’s warning that we have 'a republic, if we can keep it' will be sorely tested in November. I believe we will lose our republic for good if Obama is re-elected. And, if he is not, the outrage that will ensue from the left will be unprecedented, and the results of, and responses to, that outrage will define nothing less than whether or not America will survive as a representative republic.

May God continue to bless you and yours during these troubling times ...

~ joanie

[hosepipe]

The United States may be the NEW Sodom..
It may be turning to salt....

Ya think?..

[joanie-f]

I think that when a presidential candidate is excoriated simply for expressing his religious views to a religious group (as happened in 2008, with his remarks regarding Satan), and when he is lambasted by the media for simply mirroring his Christian beliefs, and refusing to dilute them — never once insinuating that he would use the power of the presidency to impose them on anyone else — we are living in seriously evil times.

[Czar]

As always, right on the mark. I still owe you a response to your email earlier today.

[hosepipe]

[ we are living in seriously evil times. ]

Could be said by every generation of the last several thousand years..
Each generation has its own evil(s)...

It may have been started years ago in the Garden of Eden..
If there was a place like that.. even as a metaphor the point was made..

The glass is half-empty, or the glass is half-full..
Same result.. its always what will you do with today..
There is some wisdom in that.. “Carpe Diem” is very biblical..

I would vote for Newt Gingrich today... sure he isn’t perfect..
But who is?..

[joanie-f]

My concern isn't with the way in which evil manifested itself throughout human history. My concern is that, for the first time in American history, the majority of our leadership and our information disseminators, and our educational elite, are determined to undermine the foundations upon which the most moral and prosperous nation in the history of mankind was built. And the power represented by those forces, combined with the blank-slate nature of the average American citizen's ignorance and apathy, threatens to undo the most magnificent blueprint for governance ever created by the mind of man. That brand and depth of evil is unprecedented in the history of this republic, and threatens to drive the final nails. A myopic view, when one considers man's entire history on this planet, but the one with which many of us are wrestling nonetheless.

[tet68]

for the first time in American history, the majority of our leadership and our information disseminators, and our educational elite, are determined to undermine the foundations upon which the most moral and prosperous nation in the history of mankind was built. And the power represented by those forces, combined with the blank-slate nature of the average American citizen’s ignorance and apathy, threatens to undo the most magnificent blueprint for governance ever created by the mind of man.

We have let the majority of our leadership,
our educational elite, and our information
disseminators be replaced by people who no longer
believe in our moral foundation.

The blank slate of American ignorance has been
wiped clean by the educators who have infiltrated our educational system and now teach Marxism as a viable construct to our young and as a prefered
alternative to our own system. It’s no wonder
we see the foundation of our civilization crumbling,
it has been undermined for decades.

One sees it in our leadership, who will apologize
to blood thirsty fanatics at the drop of a koran,
who fears to defend those principles that this nation
was founded upon in the face of violence,
a condition our founders would have derived rightous strength from, not appeasement.

We see it in our schools where statism has grown to
the point that a child cannot bring a lunch from home
as it is deemed unsuitable, a decision made by the
faceless minions of the state who continue to usurp
the role of parents in the upbringing of their own
children in order to make them more compliant
to the wishes of the government.

I used to think I got a poor education in the 1950s
but it shines like a beacon of freedom compared to
the indoctrination these statists have inculled in
our young. Where children must contribute their
school supplies to a communal store, so that the
individual will is bent to the common good.
It’s not the country I learned to love and I
fear for our progeny that unless we take back our
governance they will inherit a hollow shell
that will call them free but they will be enslaved
by the chains of an immoral bureaucracy, an unthinking
uncaring machine that has no recognition of individual
needs or rights.

Four years of this kind of leadership has clearly
demonstrated the harm it is capable of.
We cannot let this cypher that calls itself Obama
have another term to complete his work of destruction
for that is the change he hopes to bring us.

So nice to hear your clear voice of freedom again
it’s been too long. You have such a way with words.
Your FRiend
Tet68

[Alamo-Girl]

Thank you so much for your excellent essay, dear joanie-f!

[tet68]

She is such a jewel, clear and concise.
Glad to see her around again.

[Alamo-Girl]

I very strongly agree, dear tet68!

[hosepipe]

Its a bit late for that...

Republicans have ignored rampant american communism(socialism) in academia and massive voted fraud for decades.. Its about time the fruits of it all become mature.. Its long been known communists have co-opted the Unions.. and their work there has been ignored..

Saul Alinsky and other progressive juntas have operated freely and even funded by “trusts” and “foundations” which have been taken over by the same malicious cabals for the same decades of time..

The Presidential candidates mention none of this.. Because if they did they would get a name like Ron Paul.. Republicans mainly don’t want know.. Newt says the Pali’s are an invented people and republicans deny that as well.. they don’t want to face the truth..

Because “the Truth” would require revolution and republicans are “cats” not “dogs”.. You cannot herd Cats.. Not to speak of the fact revolution would be bloody.. Freedom costs blood always.. Which is OK as long its not their own blood..

Democrats understand republicans, republicans have no clue as to who democrats are.. Thats why they try to bi-partisan.. Democrats are never bi-partisan unless they have already “lost” whatever the issue is..

Republicans are stuck on stupid and wish to remain that way and will whine if anybody trys to change things.. So democrats give them things to whine about.. its insidious.. but brilliant.. And republicans whine about minutia..

Simply; the threat to freedom is the american democrat party.. YES.... all of them..
AND republicans will fight to preserve that situation..

[joanie-f]

Tet,

My goodness! I am just overwhelmed with the way you have encapsulated not only the problems that plague our beloved republic, but you so clearly identify their sources. Thank you!

I gather that you, too, believe that this election will determine the survival or demise of our beloved republic. Even if the Marxist is dethroned in November, I fear that there will be major upheavals. Once this entrenched, they will not surrender their power without serious repercussions, and the good of the nation be damned.

Thank you for your wonderful insights and very kind words.

I wish the very best to you and yours in these troubling times, dear FRiend ...

~ joanie

[joanie-f]

A bit late for what? The desire to see evil defeated and our beloved republic reclaimed?

I believe Barack Obama will be re-elected in November and the destruction of America will continue, only significantly more feverishly. He has too much going for him between now and November: a billion dollars in campaign funds (many of which will be 'donated' by you and me in the form of bailout kickbacks), mainstream media that serve as an arm of the DNC, unprecedented voter fraud, and an electorate the majority of whom haven't a clue regarding the Cloward/Piven, Saul Alinsky, et al blueprints that have been, and are being, followed in order to 'transform America' into the hideous utopia of the ruling elite.

I actually can find nothing in your latest post with which I disagree. I am fully aware that the process of rot has been festering for many decades, that republicans have contributed nearly as much as democrats to the decay, but in a much different way -- apathy, stupidity and compromise as opposed to deceit, subversion and criminality.

The difference between the erosion of our liberties, safety and sovereignty pre-Obama, and over the last three years, is that much of it is no longer hidden in the shadows, simply because there are now a sufficient number of dumbed-down Americans that we no longer even comprehend that which we are losing, or the magnitude or significance of what those losses represent.

For that reason, we dare not speak the truth. Those who do are mocked and derided as radicals. And anyone who hopes to gain public office, including the four seeking the republican nomination, cannot unearth the most urgent truths -- i.e., the genuine nature and goals of those now in control, the real threat posed by radical Islam, etc. If they did, their chances at the ballot box would be dashed by a public used to being fed, and capable of digesting nothing but, pablum.

With that said, the modern American patriot cannot simply sit by and grumble -- or spew fatalist mantras while the Constitution burns and the people are enslaved. If we believe a candidate, or a politically activist group, presents a choice we can live with, we do what we can for him/her/them. I suspect that you are doing just that, as am I. And yet our means of getting to that end may be quite different. So I, for one, will agree to disagree.

~ joanie

[joanie-f]

Thank you, A-G and tet. It's been a privilege to have crossed paths with you both, and shared our mutual love of, and concerns for, our beloved republic. The very best to you and yours!

~ joanie

[hosepipe]

[ I believe Barack Obama will be re-elected in November and the destruction of America will continue, only significantly more feverishly. ]

Me too sadly.. talk about chickens coming home to roost.. Hope I’m wrong..
If America is the new Sodom... getting salted down is what SHOULD happen..

Washington D.C. and many State Capitals as well are fully corrupt.. if not all of them..
Look at the fiasco in Wisconsin.. the Unions OWN that place.. and other places..

I want to wish for Obama to get re-elected, america is just not ready for the cleanup yet..
BUT I cannot do it.. something in me pukes that concept out..
Even if it would be good for the country I cannot handle thinking it..

The inauguration of Zero for a second term would be extremely painful to me.. maybe even physical..
From what I see america must be hurt badly before change will occur..
America is just not ready for revolt yet.. but only THAT will effect the change thats needed..

[joanie-f]

A sad ‘Amen’ to every word you wrote.

[joanie-f]

Thank you.

[joanie-f]

Thank you, PDG.

[joanie-f]

Your words are sadly true. Trouble is, 80+% of your countrymen wouldn’t even comprehend what you are saying.

[joanie-f]

I agree completely. The governing elite in America today consider themselves something akin to mini-gods. They only reference the one true God when it suits their political purposes -- such as Obama calling on scripture found in Luke in order to justify taxing the 'rich'.

That particularly offensive piece of hypocrisy amounted to defining government rather than God as the giver of gifts, and government rather then God as having the right to demand something from us in return.

Thanks for the insightful response.

~ joanie

[ForGod'sSake]

Thanks Jeff. Wonderful thread. The article and some of the replies are so dead on it ALMOST lights a candle of hope for me for our republic. I'm afraid I've become very cynical about the endurance of the American people as a whole. Are we truly any different from the more-or-less free people that came before us? By some unusual twist of fate will it somehow end differently for us? I've come to doubt it but I pray I'm wrong.

There was a time, even 20 years ago, I naively believed our inspired Constitution would protect us. HAR! It's just a piece of paper that can do NOTHING on its own. Without caretakers and defenders it's intricate and, dare I say, fragile foundation can and will be crushed by the incessant, perennial evil that resides in our midst. Problem is, evil doesn't stroll the Amecican landscape with a big sign announcing itself. As always, the work of satan and his minions is cloaked in insidiously titillating language and seemingly altruistic deeds.

Oh well, I believe there is little to gain by preaching to the choir. For America to rise from the abyss, freedom loving Americans will have to actually DO something. I submit TEA Partiers made a huge difference in our last election cycle but can we maintain the foucs and sustain the energy necessary to make a difference over the long haul? Is the sentiment still alive and quietly growing? AND, will it be enough? We'll see. I pray that still waters run deep.

God's best to all...

[hosepipe]

[ A sad ‘Amen’ to every word you wrote. ]

Damn I was hoping you would take me to the woodshed and beat some sense into me..
Your exquisite use of language skills could do that..
I so want to be wrong..

I fear a “hard rain” will fall...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uam8Wcqxkks

[joanie-f]

How incredibly awesome that Dylan's song, hardly written to honor our America heroes, can be so beautifully attached to a montage that does.

The young people who used that song, and so many others, back in the 60s to form a movement that today is a large part of the reason America is in irreversible decline, hadn't a clue then, and either haven't a clue, or are premeditatedly seeking America's destruction, now.

I wish every American, before being allowed to register to vote, would have to read the chapters on the 60s from Bork's 'Slouching Towards Gomorrah' (The Vertical Invasion of the Barbarians, What They Did and Where They Went). They'd recognize that 'hard rain' for what it's going to be. And maybe they'd stop electing 'leaders' on the basis of glibness and promises of handouts.

Or maybe not.

I'm betting on the latter.

Best to you and yours in these troubling times, dear patriot ...

~ joanie

[joanie-f]

As always, the work of satan and his minions is cloaked in insidiously titillating language and seemingly altruistic deeds.

Your (insightful, as always) comments -- especially the sentence above -- really hit hard.

Rick Santorum's recently resurrected comments regarding satan's role in what is happening in America, and, even moreso the media's reaction to them, exhibits in microcosm what is at the core of America's demise.

Rick's comment, 'Satan has set his sights on the United States of America' was made four years ago, to a Catholic audience.

That he has been excoriated for that comment to me is evidence that the media in particular, and a huge portion of the American people in general, are no longer willing to acknowledge the existence of evil. At the same time that the large majority of Americans identify themselves as 'Christian', how can that be?

We finally have a man of character, not willing to dilute his faith depending on the way the political winds are blowing, running for the presidency. And the all-powerful, unaccountable media regularly use his expressions of that faith as a weapon to portray him as somehow out of touch with reality, reactionary and radical.

In an era in which radical Islam is seeking to control the world through indimidation and violence, and will soon have within their power the physical means to do so, the American media are are serving as their psychological propaganda arm, intent on indoctrinating the citizenry to believe that references to evil have no place in the American election process. And they are succeeding. We are going to succumb to the forces of evil while still allowing ourselves to be mesmerized by media lullabies.

I share your realistic pessimism, as well as your wish to be wrong.

Thank you for sharing your wonderful insights.

~ joanie

[hosepipe]

[ Or maybe not. / I’m betting on the latter. / Best to you and yours in these troubling times, dear patriot ... ]

Who knows what to actually believe these days?..
Occams Razor demands that America has Now the government it deserves..
AND will continue to,..... ELSE “we” would change it..

I’m going with the Sodom and Salt dichotomy..
Maybe we have found the evil and the evil “is US”..
God help us..

[ForGod'sSake]

Great points as always joanie and thank you.

[joanie-f]

Occams Razor demands that America has Now the government it deserves ... Maybe we have found the evil and the evil “is US” ... God help us.

I agree with you that the evil is us, and, employing Occam's Razor (which I agree we should), why would God help us (although far be it from me, or you, to know His will)?

We've turned away from Him. We've allowed Him to be banished from the public square. We've allowed our elitist decision-makers to define references to Him and His Word as curious, simple-minded and inappropriate for public discussion. We've declared that truth-telling, and holding liars accountable for their lies, are passé and unrealistic. We've defined goodness as situational. And we've decided that human mini-gods have the ability to remove from us rights and freedoms that were bestowed by Him.

We are so deeply blessed and so wickedly ungrateful.

~ joanie

[hosepipe]

(what you said)........