Objectively, a Better Path

I try to stay informed about public opinion. One way is through Facebook. Dawn posted over 600 songs on there for activity directors to share in the nursing homes that locked her out during Covid. That's what got me started. I think what I do is called “lurking.” I don't post anything unless it is a classified ad.

One fellow who I know well enough to call university “educated,” shared a story about the US government (us) buying $400 million worth of armored Teslas. With Elon Musk's involvement in that government efficiency outfit, the conflict of interest was obvious. Later that day I was in the tractor giving the cows a bale when the news on NPR (National Public Radio) stated that that program was a holdover from the Biden regime and Trump's White House had no intention of following through with it.

I texted my friend who had posted the inaccurate information and told him that I thought he should update his post to reflect the facts. He never did. But I knew he had the time because he soon shared a post by a ranger from Effigy Mounds National Monument. There was a nice picture of him by the Effigy Mounds entrance sign with a long story of what we (as taxpayers) will miss since the federal government let him go and the impact on this ideal family man. He is “absolutely heartbroken and completely devastated to have lost my dream job of an Education Park Ranger.”

I have experienced the value of people like the ranger, Brian Gibbs, educating us about particular features and history at parks. The human element is more educational than a few bronze plaques, so I do see the loss.

I have to wonder if these adversarial relationships that are encouraged on Facebook benefit anyone. Are they like kicking the dog because we had a bad day at work? Do humans have a tantrum quota? Wouldn't it be better if we all just recognized our common goals and got along? Drug addled Rodney King, posed the question in a race riot in LA years ago and I remember my dad coming home from work as if he had barely escaped with his life. One truck driver was pulled from his truck and nearly beaten to death that day.

The person who posted the Tesla cronyism story apparently has no intention of getting along and solving problems. He's not alone. A lot of these problems only present an opportunity to lash out.

Bernie Sanders made a video imploring his followers to fight back against Trump's “unconstitutional” downsizing of the federal government. Well, he's an old man and so am I, so I get it. We make mistakes. The Constitution he swore to uphold and defend specifically prohibits all the spending that Trump and Musk are terminating. Facts like that are easily forgotten when one has such a fanatical drive to do good. That fanaticism leads to simplistic solutions like war and throwing money around in order to appear compassionate.

If Sanders and the guy who posted that lie about the Tesla deal would step back and look at how they can actually help, they would see that all this help that has been commandeered by the federal government would be more effectively accomplished by “the states, or by the people.” The deep-seated belief that money grows on trees is insane but prevalent. Just because the cash comes from a large pool of taxpayers doesn't mean it has no effect on the overall well-being of Americans.

One uniting truth in all this is that we are paying $658 billion per year in interest so we can pad the wallets of the Taliban, Al-Qaeda, Chinese solar panel companies, and aspiring politicians who have no intention of doing anything in return. But this is just interest. A billion dollars in USAID funds sent to Afghanistan after the Taliban defeated the greatest, strongest military in the world, is unaccounted for. According to a USAID statement, the $1.1 billion in aid was provided to Afghanistan for “food and cash support, nutrition, healthcare, the protection of women, and children, and agricultural inputs.” Who really thinks that money will go to protection of women?

We spent one trillion dollars in Afghanistan. Now we pay to fertilize their poppy fields. What private charity would do that? The big government supporters and the limited government supporters both want peace and prosperity for all. The handwriting is on the wall.

The Ten Commandments and the Constitution both prohibit theft. With the exposure of all those coerced public funds being squandered, especially on war, isn't it becoming clear that capital in the private sector will bring peace and prosperity more assuredly than if it is confiscated to aid bureaucrats and dictators? Let's start with two of the most brutal dictators, Volodymyr Zelensky and Benjamin Netanyahu. 

Please reply to my column with a letter to the editor or directly to me at 4selfgovernment@gmail.com. Your input is always appreciated.