March 13, 2024
Thomas Jefferson: 'A True Patriot Will Defend His Country From Its Government'
by Mark Lewis
Townhall.com
In this world, the “ideal” exists, at least in theory—the way things ought to be. But more often, there is “reality”—how things actually are. In the ideal world, a country’s government would be on the side of its people, helping them, guiding them towards virtue, honesty, righteousness, philanthropy, and a godly life. Government would instruct its citizens, by its example and leadership, to be self-controlled, responsible, frugal, and moral; to accept and learn from the consequences of their actions and not to blame others for their evil. Basic truthful realities and societal foundations, such as the nuclear family, that men are men, women are women, and children need fathers and mothers, would be encouraged, instead of letting its people destroy themselves and so many others through lies and perversions.
Such a system would mean that government would be needed for only a few limited duties. That’s the way things should be. That’s the ideal.
But that isn’t the “reality” of government. It never has been, and it never will be.
“Government” is not just a “thing,” a concept, an idea. It is, first and foremost, composed of people who have their own ideas, agendas, and goals. In other words, “government” has its own self-interest, too, and more often than not, that “self-interest” (mostly summed up in the desire for power) is antagonistic to the self-interest of its people (a self-interest we call “freedom,” and “leave us alone”). Government wants power; the people want freedom. Those two concepts don’t have to be, but too often are, mutually exclusive.
There is only so much “power” to be had in any society or political entity. People “power”—the right from God to a virtuous life, liberty, and pursuit of happiness—is called “freedom.” Government power—to pass laws, control people, and pursue its own self-aggrandizement—is called “tyranny.” Government power can be useful if it is controlled and directed to certain limited, necessary ends. That is what our Founding Fathers tried to do with our written Constitution.
Unfortunately, the current American government has gone far, far beyond the powers defined for it in our Constitution. Read the Constitution sometime. You won’t find in that document 99.9 percent of what Congress and the president do if you read it till your eyeballs fell out. (One might also add most Supreme Court decisions. Never forget that the Supreme Court is a branch of the federal government.)
Our government in Washington, D.C., pays absolutely no attention to the Constitution. It does whatever it can get away with. We could, and should, call it a “tyranny” because that is exactly what it has become. Today, we, the people, have whatever “rights” the government allows us to have, and to fight against government for our God-given rights can be a very onerous and expensive proposition. Just ask Donald Trump. How many of us have the resources to fight government? Few can afford it, so we just give up and submit. Which is exactly what government wants us to do. Ask the Chinese.
Thus, again, Thomas Jefferson is absolutely correct. To protect the people’s freedom, government power must be limited. That rarely happens any more in America, or in world history. Those patriots who love freedom and their country will have to protect both from government.
“The course of history shows that as government grows, liberty decreases” (Jefferson). Spot on. Let’s review this crucial concept. There is only so much “power” in any political system, and the only place government can get power is by taking away liberties from the people. We insist, as our Founding Fathers did, that some government is necessary because of the evil tendencies of various human beings. “If all men were angels,” James Madison said, “no government would be necessary.” But since all men aren’t angels (which would be the ideal), government (the reality) is required. Governments pass laws to (attempt to) restrict the evil that men do. But every law is a restriction of somebody’s freedom; that’s what laws do, and are supposed to do—restrict certain “freedoms.” We don’t want murderers (unless they are Joe Biden’s illegal aliens) having the “freedom” to commit murder. But this is exactly why a godly, virtuous, self-controlled citizenry is a must for a free society. The more people control themselves, the less government that will be needed to do it. That is certainly in the interest of freedom-loving people.
But it’s NOT in government’s interest. Government wants to grow, government wants power, government wants control. A self-controlled virtuous citizenship that obeys God’s Ten Commandments is the LAST thing government wants. So, government makes sure those Ten Commandments are removed from government’s educational system. And replaced with a godless, debauched, decadent atheistic moral code. Debauchery is good for government. The fewer “angels” a society has, the more government is vital to control the demons. The demonic Democratic Party knows exactly what it is doing, folks. Religion is the greatest enemy of these people. So, teach godless materialism and naturalism in schools.
Along this line, two more quotes from Jefferson: “The cornerstone of democracy rests on the foundation of an educated electorate.” “A well-informed citizenry is the best defense against tyranny.” It is in government’s interest to have an ignorant, uneducated populous. Give government control of the education system and...well, we see the current intellectual and moral condition of masses of the American people. It is no surprise our government is tyrannical now. We have turned our educational system over to it, and it is in government’s interest to make sure her people are as ignorant and decadent as possible. Decadence usually follows ignorance. Destruction doesn’t linger far behind. “My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge” (Hosea 4:6).
That’s just reality. It always has been and it always will be. Godly, patriotic Americans must recapture the educational institutions. It is of the utmost urgency.
http://townhall.com/columnists/marklewis/2024/03/13/a-true-patriot-will-defend-his-country-from-its-government-n2636397
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