GIVE ME LIBERTY OR GIVE ME DEATH

Let me tell you a story.

In a time long ago, things were simpler. A boy went to school, got good grades, then got a safe, secure job with benefits. It was then that he was called a man. He was able to support his family, and the MAN for whom he worked PROMISED to take care of him if he put in his time. In this way, he became comfortable. He began not to look toward the future; there was no need, no purpose.

Silently, this man became uneasy, which grew into dismay. He was told he was contributing, that he was successful. Even so, the man's dismay grew. He distracted himself with "recreation" and other diversions. His time was spend chasing pleasure, in the name of pursuing happiness. But he was not happy. He was desperate.

Quietly, he heeded the advice that things would get better; that the next big bonus, the next raise would come. In his despair, he spent that money before it came, or allowed his family to draw upon the savings. He was doing everything right. His pride would not allow him to admit defeat to his family, who DESERVED the life to which they had become accustomed. The man felt the walls pressing in upon him.

Several investments he had made were beginning to sink. He sold them (at a LOSS) to fund an addition to the house... his family was growing, after all. He began to spend more time at work, seeing less of his family. He tells them this is so they can have a vacation, a promise he now knows he will never have the money to keep.

He is given a promotion! With it comes a warm handshake, a corner office with a secretary, a raise, and salary. He is also asked to put in more work. For awhile, things are looking up, but soon the feeling creeps up again. He feels empty, purposeless, and stressed. He is soon spending so much time at work (on salary) that he is making less hourly than he made before the promotion. He receives an award! Can he tell his wife that he's failing them? Pride and separation drive him to blame his family for their spending habits. He uses this to justify evenings out with his secretary.

At home, he has become a distant, shell of a man. During his only free time he sits, lifeless on the recliner, watching television. He can no longer look into the eyes of his family for the memory of the time spent with other women. And the TV tells him it's just what everyone's doing. It will get better, it's not his fault. He's a victim of his circumstance. It's his wife's reckless spending, why do we need another kid? We can't afford this pregnancy. I've given my company my life, I'm ENTITLED to a solution.

Soon, it will be election year.

Upon the pulpit stands a man, eloquent of speech, seemingly godlike in stature. He announces that he will bring the change we need. This man says he will fix the economy. He will take money from the rich and give money to the struggling poor. He will close the gap between the middle class and rich. He makes examples of a few, dishonest heads of corporations, and tells us this is what ALL RICH PEOPLE DO. He says he will freely print money, handing it out evenly, to STIMULATE the economy. Albeit, he suggests we might to good with this money; give to charity, invest, help our neighbors.

Our shell of a man, knows this isn't right. No one will do anything good with the money. They will spend it, waste it. Instead, people should downsize their homes, live within their means, and take a risk or two. They should build, create, and develop new things. But that is HARD and he is not a strong man, and the promise of a financial solution that satisfies his NEED for status is too much to bear. His emotions applaud this man, the savior of a country.

Our broken man is not alone, dear reader! The vast majority of people in this once-great nation have fallen into broken selfishness, blaming anyone who's not suffering, calling them "greedy." You want to talk about the basics of economics: NO ONE will give you anything without something in return.

This is such an overplayed story in history. Things are great, we prosper. Then we get comfortable, and things slow their growth. We get selfish, and begin to manage, rather than lead. We feel the pressure, and, like a drowning victim, try to drown everyone else in our panic. We cut investments when we should cut expenses, and we look to anyone who has a PAINLESS solution. Our actions cause economic collapse, and our actions are the result of our thinking. The economy does not have a life of its own. It's only temperamental because WE ARE. No single man can fix it, even if he GIVES money to those at the bottom. But aren't they the key to the economy? YES! But they have to be compelled to act with purpose. Give a man a fish and he eats today, TEACH a man to fish and he eats every day.

If you give a man a fish, he is forever a slave to the man with the food. In this way tyrants seize power. We need to take responsibility for our OWN independence. If freedom is having choices, independence is MAKING choices. Difficulty is not even a factor, this is what MUST happen if we are to have liberty and justice FOR ALL.

Do what you think is right, but question everything and stand by the TRUTH. As for me, GIVE ME LIBERTY OR GIVE ME DEATH.