The American Renovation

We are at a turning point.

We are being faced with the realty of our circumstance. We have found ourselves standing at The Edge of the Abyss… and staring down.  The United States has wandered far afield from our Foundation of Individual Liberty and Freedom. We, as a people, have abdicated our power to an ever-growing bureaucracy made up of fallible human beings who view themselves as better and wiser than those they are tasked with representing. Our understanding of government has been intentionally perverted by those who wish us to see them as Philosopher Kings and demand we look to them for care without question or debate.

If this Inauguration of a New President represents a change, we must hope it is a return to the Enlightenment Philosophy so long ago abandoned. While many correctly identify the long slow path that has brought us here, too few can point in the direction we must steer this country returning it to The Greatest Experiment in Self Rule the World has ever known. However, for those who are strong enough to look, the direction is plain to see.  We don’t need New Answers, we only need recognize the Correct Answers we already possess.

We should remember that it is not a man who the Founders wished us to follow… as Freedom and Liberty are not possessions any Man can Give.  They are possessions every Man must Take and Defend.  Our Country is an Idea, it is an Ideology. It is built upon the Self Reliance, Freedom and Liberty of the Individual. It is the home of Equality of Individual Opportunity, not Individual Outcome. It is Transitory Power and the Checks and Balances designed to Limit our Government’s ability to Oppress. It is Government from the People not Upon the People. It is enumerated defense of every Citizen intentionally Limiting those lent power.  All, when practiced together, creates a Shining City on A Hill the rest of the World’s souls can long for, emulate and demand.

As we watch the Fascist Faces of “Tolerance” Burn Flags and Break Windows we must wonder when will they fire the first shot? When will their innate Socialist/Statist drive to violently oppress, control and destroy Freedom and Liberty defeat all semblance of Reason?

If the words of one Donald Trump rise above rhetoric and result in action… if those words represent an awakening in the American mind resulting in movement… History will record…
We will have found ourselves at the beginning of
The American Renovation.

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Flag Burning

This is from Mike Rowe’s Facebook Page…
My comments follow at the end.

Mike Rowe
December 2 at 7:12pm ·

Off The Wall

Susanne McDaniel‎ writes…

“How did you become so blindly patriotic? First of all, the college you were referencing in your rant about the American flag is a private college and doesn’t receive federal funding. However…the very essence of freedom in this country is our right to speak out against the flag, which is a mere symbol. If you take away that right, then we have lost all freedom. You really need to take a civics course, Mike Rowe. I used to like you; but, you have really become very annoying to me in recent years. I thought you were more intelligent. But, I guess appearances aren’t everything.”

Hi Susanne

I’ve never thought of myself as “blindly patriotic,” but I am a fan of the United States, the founding fathers, and the men and women who have served on my behalf. I also confess to feeling lucky to live here. Having said that, I think you’re correct about the flag; it’s only a symbol. So too is the Crucifix. And the middle finger. And the Swastika. And the compressed chunks of carbon that millions wear on their ring fingers as expressions of timeless love and eternal devotion.

It’s easy to make anything feel small and silly by reducing it to its chemical composition or its various component parts. But if you really believe our flag is nothing but a “mere symbol,” equally suitable for flying or burning, ask yourself if you’d be comfortable if the people you work with suddenly started coming to the office in pointy white hats fashioned from bedsheets? Would that be a problem for you? Or how about The Rainbow Flag, favored by the LGBTQ community? Would it be OK if people started burning that? If not, why not? I mean, it’s only a symbol, right?

Years ago, an artist named Andres Serrano presented a charming piece called “Immersion.” It consisted of a Crucifix, immersed in a glass of the artist’s urine. Amazingly, some people were offended. Christians, in particular. They just couldn’t see that Andres was using a symbol to express himself. Silly Christians. Interesting though, that Andres didn’t submerge Mohammed in the same glass. I wonder why that is?

The thing about “mere symbols” Susanne, is that they represent “mere ideas,” and “mere ideas” are the backbone of “mere humanity.” In the case of the flag, we’re talking about ideas that are wrapped into the Constitution – a document that separates us from every other country on the planet.

Mere ideas are the reason people fight and die. Mere ideas are the reason we’re allowed to speak freely, protest publicly, bear arms, and burn the very symbol that represents those very freedoms. I didn’t suggest that you or anyone else be denied your right to fly or burn whatever flag you wish. What I failed to do, is quietly accept behavior I don’t care for. Which, if I’m not mistaken, is the same compulsion that motivates others to publicly express themselves in whatever ways they choose.

As for Hampshire College, I’m afraid you’re mistaken. If you check the link I provided in my original post, you’ll see that several forms of federal funding are readily available to their students. Also, according to their site, you’ll notice that the flag is once again flying at full staff. I’ll take no credit for this, if you offer no blame. Deal?

Finally, regarding my overall annoyance, you’re correct, and you’re not alone. I’ve been annoying people for years now. Just ask my mother. And yes, I too, once thought I was more intelligent than I actually am. I still remember the disappointment when the test results come back.

Anyway, thanks for your comments, Susanne. I do hope you’ll stick around.

Mike

While I agree with everything Mike says here, I’m going to stand up for Susanne.

My response is framed as a simple question to Mike;  Does the Flag still represent ‘…ideas that are wrapped into the Constitution – a document that separates us from every other country on the planet.’?

I would offer to Mr. Rowe that We have allowed the United States of America to wander so very far away from the Philosophically Enlightened Country born of an Age of Reason our Founders intended, and subsequently recorded in our Founding Documents, that Ms. McDaniel’s ignorance can be understood… if not accepted.  I would continue to offer that this has been an intentional effort championed by those who, while they profess the opposite, have no interest in Individual Rights and see the very Constitution cited above as an impediment… as… a limiting Document… when it comes to their ultimate aims.

Those of us who have taken the time to understand the Constitution know the intent is exactly as a limiting Document.  Our Founders applied a Governing Theory designed to elevate and protect the Individual above Government.

Mr. Rowe, does it?

And if not, what exactly is the symbolic value of the flag today?  Let me rephrase it, what is the symbolic value of the flag to the intentionally ignorant, usefully uniformed, such a Ms. McDaniel?

If Ms. McDaniel is assigning the flag symbolic value based on what she has been taught in our schools, and sees in daily demonstration, you are both speaking very different languages.

Ultimately, You are correct… and to some degree, and not in a way she would understand, so is she.