We Should Never Despair

“We should never despair, our Situation before has been unpromising and has changed for the better, so I trust, it will again. If new difficulties arise, we must only put forth New Exertions and proportion our Efforts to the exigency of the times.” –GEORGE WASHINGTON

I know there are a lot of you that are disappointed, even angry, that we were unable to secure the nomination for Dr. Paul. I, myself, have been deeply disturbed by the RNC’s actions against us and have been kicked in the gut time and time again. There are moments I feel hopelessness overtake me and I start to believe that we will never restore freedom to this great nation of ours. This hopelessness reminds me of what Washington and his troops must have felt on the Delaware. His men were tired and badly wounded. Many of them had to suitor their own wounds with threads from their tattered uniforms. They had been through fight after fight with the Hessians and the British Red Coats and were freezing to death in the December winter.  As they looked over the river, they could see that it was coated with a 2-inch sheet of ice. They would have to chisel their way through. One can only imagine the hopelessness that our forefathers were feeling at that moment. But Washington and his men knew what was at stake, and knew the potential of having a free society. And through courage they pounded the ice, inched there way across the river, fought valiantly and won their freedom…

Nobody told you this movement would be easy. We have seen what we are up against. There was no dissenting voice at the RNC. We have seen how both the GOP and the Democrats refuse to play by the rules in which were defined for them to govern under. They set the rules, rig the games, cheat the voters and grow in power. The cycle between the Democrats and Republicans seems unbreakable and it looks like we’ve just given ourselves two more poor choices for President and another four years of tyranny. It is easy for many of you to feel discouraged and decide to abandon politics all together. I urge you to stay. It is now, more than ever, we need you. The establishment likes to claim that the cost of Freedom is blood. This is what we’ve been told to justify our wars. The true cost of Freedom is courage (blood is sometimes a by-product).

In Liberty,
Jake

Why I Support Gay Rights.... as a Christian

I am a Christian (not always the best) but a devout Christian.... I believe that Gay's should have the right to get married because I don't believe that we, as Christians, want the Federal Government in control of marriage. Imagine if a religion considered interracial couples to be a sin and advocated to the Government to make it illegal for interracial couples to get married. Would that seem right to you? God gave us free will to better glorify him. Somewhere along the lines I think this Gay marriage battle became more about politics than it did about God. I don't recall a time where Jesus told legislators to make it illegal to sin. In fact Jesus often times criticized the Pharisees for judging without the right. We are a better example of our Christian values by living them, not legislating them. God loves sinners… otherwise he wouldn't love you.

A true leader does not get behind people and push them in the direction he/she wants them to go. A leader walks with integrity and inspires by the way he/she lives. Jesus didn’t go to the legislators of his time and demand that religious doctrine be pressed upon the people. He inspired people by treating everyone humanely and reached out a hand of love. If this attitude was reflected in Christians of today, I don’t think there would be such a negative attitude coming from “non-believers”.

Speaking of that negative attitude towards Christianity. Have we stopped to think of the reasons why there is hostility towards Christianity? How would we like it if Muslims were the majority in this country and implemented Sharia law? Would we be welcoming towards their doctrine? Or would we "defend" our rights and beliefs. Would we be angry at the Muslims for forcing their beliefs onto us?  It all ties into a single point. If you believe that this is a “Christian Nation” then you don’t believe in freedom of religion. It is as simple as that. Making the claim that this is a Christian nation and then using Christian doctrine to support legislation is the road to a theocracy and theocracy has represented some of the most evil times of our faith. (Or do we turn a blind eye to the crusades because it’s convenient to do so).

When you give the power of Government to define marriage, Government may define marriage in a way you find distasteful. What do you do then?

In Liberty,

Jake Severance

It’s a tax, it’s not a tax…..whatever.

It all amounts to the same thing. It is a mandate to trade with private organizations that currently make up an Oligopoly. This particular Oligopoly was created BECAUSE of government regulations in the first place. So first, they deny us the right to buy health insurance across state lines; and now they are forcing trade with those same health insurance companies…. I smell a rat. But beyond healthcare, we need to take a close look at what just happened at the Supreme Court. Here are a couple of thoughts I had regarding their precedent.

The first thought I had is that we no longer have the right to choose who we do business with. If the government deems the industry important in the scope of the American economy, Congress will use their new found power. When Congress is granted power, they use it. I am forced to think back to the auto bailouts, TARP and other extensive overreaches by the government designed to “stimulate” a failing industry in the name of “a sound American economy”.  What should happen if these industries start failing again? What happens if demand for American cars dries up? Under the new Supreme Court precedence it is theoretically possible that Congress can demand that the American people buy American cars or else pay a “tax/fine/whatever”. I can hear the spin now, “We need to support these American companies to help the American economy. If you are buying foreign automobiles, you are killing the American auto industry and should be fined/taxed/whatever….” This is simply not American and is certainly not free market capitalism. The only question is, “Do the people in power realize it?” My guess is yes.

The second thought is in regards to the reactions from my fellow “Liberty Minded” individuals. Many of them brought up the possibility of nullification. While I would support such an attempt, it is almost certain to fail. Every time nullification has been on the table it has been stricken down with the
Supremacy Clause of the Constitution. We would have to convince the Supreme Court that the 10^th amendment trumps the Supremacy Clause in regards to participation in a federally mandated program. This isn’t likely. The only way any the legislative branch of government can “overturn” or “nullify” a Supreme Court decision is through a Constitutional Amendment and given the current nature of politics, I don’t see that happening either. The Supreme Court has been known to give contradictory opinions on cases, but that can only happen if the case reaches the Supreme Court. The politicization of the Supreme Court is just another step on the road to Totalitarianism.

My third and final thought on the Supreme Court precedent is this. In NO, way, shape or form is this decision “good” for the Republican party. $4 mil to the Romney campaign doesn’t change this drastic change to our market. Even IF Romney repeals ObamaCare the precedent has already been set. Similar legislation will be up again, and we will not be able to rely on the Judiciary Branch of government to protect us from Constitutional violations from the Congress. One of the scariest points that Chief Justice Roberts made in his opinion is that he believes it’s not the job of the Supreme Court to protect the American people from Congress. He needs to understand that in the system of Checks and Balances it IS his duty to keep congress in line with the Constitution regardless of how many votes the representatives that created the bill received from the America electorate. If congress wants to change fundamental principles in the Constitution, they must do so with a Constitutional Amendment. The idea of Constitutional Amendments being so difficult to pass is to ensure that the American people are not divided on an amendment to the root law of this country. It is not right for Congress to use the powers of the judicial branch to change the principles in the constitution because it’s expedient to do so. Many pundits have missed this point.

“A republic, as long as you can keep it.” - Franklin

In Liberty,

Jake Severance