Posted on 08/29/2002 1:00:30 PM PDT by feelin_poorly
Shortly after 9-11, TV talk-show host Sean Hannity said, "Thank God, we have an honest man in the White House!"
And when you think about it, a great deal of what you might believe about the so-called War on Terrorism is based on statements from George W. Bush. You have only his word, or that of someone in his administration:
Since America is endangered by the "you're either with me or against me" tactics of the Bush administration, it becomes vital to know whether we can trust the man in charge of our government.
The record
So does George Bush's record inspire confidence in his honesty?
Unfortunately, this is the same man who has referred to trillions of dollars in budget surpluses – even though the federal government hasn't had a budget surplus since 1956. (The appearance of any "surpluses" was created by taking excess receipts from Social Security and applying them to the general budget, even as the politicians swore they were protecting Social Security.)
Mr. Bush even has the chutzpah to refer with a straight face (well not exactly a straight face, he loves to smirk) to corporate executives "cooking the books." He neglects to mention that many of the corporate bookkeeping methods the politicians are so incensed about today were motivated by rules imposed by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.
And George Bush is the same man who in 2000 said he believed in "limited government." Most people assumed he meant a government limited by the Constitution. In fact, he took an oath in which he swore to uphold the Constitution.
But he's violated virtually every one of the first 10 Amendments – especially the Ninth and 10th Amendments, which are meant to impose precise limits on his power.
So his belief in "limited government" apparently means government limited to what he wants to do.
George Bush is the same man who in one breath tries to ingratiate himself with you by saying, "It's your money, not the politicians' money" – but in the next breath, he says he's entitled to one third of "your money."
George Bush is the same man who said he has learned more about political philosophy from Jesus of Nazareth than from anyone else. But he's proven by his actions that he doesn't really believe such things as "Blessed are the peacemakers." And "the meek" who Jesus said would inherit the earth are in Mr. Bush's eyes really just "collateral damage" in his plans to tell the world how it must live.
Is honesty important?
In these and in so many other ways, George Bush has proven that he's not an honest man – and that we shouldn't trust him with the safety of America.
In fact, Thomas Jefferson understood that we shouldn't put our trust in any politician. He said we should bind them down from mischief "by the chains of the Constitution." And a truly honest man wouldn't even ask you to trust him.
Contrary to what you might have thought, this isn't an article about George Bush. It's an article about you. Are you going to demean yourself by putting your faith in a man who has done so much to demonstrate the folly of such faith?
Are you going to let politicians stampede you into throwing away the Bill of Rights, based on "evidence" you never see, reassured by politicians who have proven that the truth is secondary to their own ambitions?
Don't you have enough respect for your own mind to make your own decisions, refuse to accept conclusions without evidence, and be something better than a cheerleader for a politician or a political party?
Hope you've got on your asbestos suit. You're gonna need it on this thread.
Welcome aboard!!
I don't recall ever hearing of you before tonight.
And what are you doing to remedy the situation? Have you thought of becoming a teacher and teaching the Constitution as it should be taught?
Kinda liked that one myself. :) It seems to have flown under the radar screen of most. I'm glad you liked it!
Fitting.
You think thaey are our friends???
It's like this whole 'war with Iraq' business. Our leaders are talking, what is basically, pre-emptive strikes. You know, do unto others before they get the chance to do unto you. This is NOT grounded in ANY Constitutional ideology and, for that matter, flies directly in the face of everything that a true Constitutional Republic is supposed to stand for.
So we shouldn't make a pre-emptive strike??
...But the rest of us realists have to make the decisions to punch foreign dictators and tyrants in the mouth in order to keep our nation safe.
Nobody wants to preserve the Constitution more than me but the reality is that this country or World will never go back to 1776 so we're gonna have to make decisions that get the best results for our Nation right here, right now.
BRAVO, I couldn't agree more
I'm just asking for, well heck, I don't know why. But I've never understood how people can be so easily led. If 9/11 wouldn't have happened, maybe my opinion would be different. I don't know. I do know that the power grabs going on right now have nothing to do with safety, and have everything to do with insuring that we'll never see freedom again in our life times. And after the U.S. invades Iraq, I shudder to think what kind of "security" measures will be implemented for the "homeland" (what a horrible word, far too Teutonic IMO).
I guess I'm just amazed that people continue to line up so enthusiastically behind whatever leader is at the podium telling them to give up their liberties and lives.
1) Gingrich won in 1994 because he represented the values of the electorate. Less government, lower taxes, and more Freedom. It's the same reason Reagan won in 1980 and 1984; and the reason Bush Sr won in 1988 (he ran as Reagan III).
2) Bush duped conservatives into believing he was a real conservative (school vouchers and privatization of social security).
3) Most conservatives believed the polls (big mistake), and were convinced that Bush was the only candidate who could defeat Gore. Rather than voting "for" someone, they were voting "against" someone, and in so doing they selected the guy with the highest poll numbers.
No, we should not.
With the exception of Ron Paul there are no Republicans I would support for office. They're not only doing nothing to reverse the headlong rush toward bigger government, but are actively contributing to its growth. And while you may like to herald a $300 tax cut as some major victory, or point out that Republicans only want to expand government at 4% annually as opposed to the Democrats' 7%, both halves of the Incumbent Party are really working toward the same end -- bigger government.
That's just the burden some of carry for poor souls like you, coping in the day to day, while the libertarian pines and sucks his thumb about a "better time"
You carry no burden other than that which you have strapped on yourself. You'll continue doing what you've always done, and in twenty years when the federal budget is $5 trillion you'll tell me I should be thankful that Republicans kept it from growing to $6 trillion.
That is the only thing I can do, outside of talking to others and persuading them to my side of the political arena. I will NOT become involved with any NEA school, as I do not believe in public schools, not even slightly. I do what I can, with what I have. That's all any of us could hope for.
Well, I am a tit-for-tat kind of person...:-)
But as for my views on the Constitution and how our leaders throughout our history have used or misused it; let me just say (because I have to sign off shortly) that I do not believe that most (not all, but most) of them lacked in intelligence, wit, or sincere desire to uphold and defend the Constitution. They simply disagreed on its purpose and implementation. Even the Founding Fathers had disagreements over it--Jefferson, Madison, Adams, etc. There are lots of ideas that, if implemented (some of them already have been) could ruin this country, but those same ruinous ideas could (and have) also withstand Constitutional scrutiny. Just because something is a bad idea does not mean it's unconstitutional.
Sums up my feelings as well.
Dang you're right I did forget .. thanks
???
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.