President Obama’s inaugural address included a couple snippets which a few of my friends know were directed at me. So I shall respond!
What the cynics fail to understand is that the ground has shifted beneath them -- that the stale political arguments that have consumed us for so long no longer apply. The question we ask today is not whether our government is too big or too small, but whether it works.
Yes, Barrack, a government that works is ideal, but your observations are so wrapped up in the concept of change that you do not seem to realize something important: The fundamental truths of human liberty and government power have not changed in all of human history, today included.
Specifically, the size of a civilian government is directly proportional to its power. The more aspects of citizens’ lives a government is responsible for, the more agencies and initiatives, employees and laws it requires. Not only that, the more actions a government takes, the larger percentage of the economy that the government channels.
And the more power the government exercises, the more dependent and less free the nation’s citizens become. It is the very size of the government and scope of its power to pass intrusive laws that allows the wealthy and powerful to lobby for laws favorable to them.
The statement is ultimately rhetorical. A large government is directly opposes your stated goals of freedom and prosperity. If these are the dream and goal of America, then only a small government which hasn’t the power to deny the rights of its citizens will work.
Our founding fathers which you idealize so strongly knew these truths, and they would cry to know you think those truths no longer apply.
Then:
Nor is the question before us whether the market is a force for good or ill. Its power to generate wealth and expand freedom is unmatched, but this crisis has reminded us that without a watchful eye, the market can spin out of control -- and that a nation cannot prosper long when it favors only the prosperous.
Again you are right that our economy favors the wealthy and this is a bad thing, but you are wrong that this is a result of the free market. As a matter of fact, the governmental protections enjoyed by the wealthy are antithetical to the idea of a free market in the first place. The Great Depression and this current recession are both the results of the government backing investors and loaning money to the wealthy through the treasury and Central Bank, and as in the Great Depression, policies which you now espouse have been shown to prolong hardship and further corrupt the market.
Impressing the large financial overhead of oversight and working out government laws with loopholes is not the answer. The answer lies in the investigation and punishment of crimes. As with personal freedom, if the government is entitled to intervene in and control the market preemptively, the government will forever be wielded as a tool by entities within the market to protect themselves and their wealth.
You cannot lie to the American people and tell them that the world has changed. There is no difference between the 20th century and the 21st. As matters of fact, the 21st century began with a war of aggression perpetrated by our government, descended into a recession caused by government policy, and is now facing a politician promising change. This story could be read from any history book from any age.
And you claim that your solutions are new, but they are not. Giving the government more trust, more power, and more of our freedoms by enlisting us into national service at the direction of our leaders—these represent a return to the old ways, when people served their governments, not the other way around.
I beg you sir, do not return us to that. Do not, while espousing the Constitution and the virtues of American freedom, extinguish the light that we have managed to keep safe from our government's indiscretions.
Finally, you are right that Americans have work to do. But that work is not for you, our nation, or our government, it is for ourselves as free human beings. We are tasked with protecting our freedom in the face of your seductive, nationalist tripe, and reclaiming whatever we can. Contrary to a statement made during your inaugural ceremony, "freely choosing our leaders" is NOT the root of human liberty. Leading ourselves is.