Tuesday, November 13, 2012

Issues With Entitlement - My Thoughts after the 2012 Presidential Election

Last week, it snowed all day Friday and Saturday.

Last week, we had two birthdays, one election day, and I was sick the whole time. Not just sick physically, not just under the weather, but sick at heart as well.

I learned something about our country that I just hadn't let myself see before now. America has changed. It became very clear to me, as I sat and watched our hope of a conservative victory dwindle, that things are very, very different than they used to be. This is no longer the America that I know, that I remember.

I was brought up largely on the East Coast, spent most all of my formative years in Virginia, within view of Monticello, the home of Thomas Jefferson. A reverence for this brilliant man was instilled in me early on. We were taught, in school, about American history, we learned to appreciate the vision of our founding fathers, we gained an understanding of the workings of the Republic in which we lived. It was this Republic that soldiers gave their lives for, that was set forth under the direction of Almighty God and the men He inspired. The founders of this country had a vision, and it burned within them. They had a desire for freedom above all else. Sadly, over the past few decades, these values, that our country was based upon, have eroded away, and now seem to have disappeared entirely in some circles. Just over half of our country, the United States of America, is now okay with the introduction of a Socialist State. Why do people now value freedom hardly more than . . . I don't know what?

I could hardly believe it, but sitting there, watching the election coverage, watching it all unfold, state after state . . making their statement. . . It became very clear. Where did the vision go? It would seem that more than half of our beloved country now believes in one thing. And that one thing is . . me. It became very clear to me that the people who voted for President Obama are concerned mainly about themselves. They didn't vote for their children or their grandchildren. They didn't vote for the State of the Union. They didn't vote for the future of America. They want to play, to party, they want to be taken care of, they want Socialism.

Entitlement had won out.

Wow.

They think they want to be taken care of. . Maybe they just haven't taken the time to think about it, maybe it sounded good in the ads, maybe . . they just don't care. . about freedom . . anymore.

Here's a Facebook post from Election night:
  • "Can we all just team up and abdicate and make Romney our prez? The other side would really struggle then with so few taxpayers."
    6 November at 23:23 via mobile · Like · 2
  • "True!"
  • "People have thrown away freedom in exchange for what they perceive to be security, not knowing the most basic truth: They will end up with neither."
  • "Sounds like a relatively peaceful way to split the country right down the middle. It's pretty much 50/50, if votes mean anything. I say we move all the conservatives out west, and all the crazies can go hang out back east! Whadaya say!"
  • "We'll be the United States of America, and they'll be the Entitled States of . . . Something Else."

We watched a victory that had been expected, to some extent, even projected by experts and analysts, fade steadily away. It became glaringly obvious to me that something about our country is fundamentally different. The Land of the Free, the Home of the Brave. . is on the line.

Many, if not all, of Obama's ideas are in direct opposition to the teachings of Thomas Jefferson, the author of the Declaration of Independence. Think about that for a minute. Does this statement not seem super scary?! The man that 'leads' our country today, is actively trying his best to unravel the inspired brilliance that was/is our founding Declaration of freedom, secured and protected. Now, in stark contrast to the beliefs outlined in this inspired document, we find ourselves mired in Socialist propaganda, to the eternal detriment of generations yet unborn. The ideologies of the two main political parties in this country are so extraordinarily different that I just don't see how we can come to any kind of a middle ground. Many people are dismayed by the direction in which we are headed. This election has defied history. Can we allow this trend to continue?

Food for thought: The following are statements made by Thomas Jefferson. Are they congruent with the ideology of our current President?

"The democracy will cease to exist when you take away from those who are willing to work and give to those who would not."

"It is incumbent on every generation to pay its own debts as it goes. A principle which if acted on would save one-half the wars of the world."

"I predict future happiness for Americans if they can prevent the government from wasting the labors of the people under the pretense of taking care of them." 

"My reading of history convinces me that most bad government results from too much government."

"To compel a man to subsidize with his taxes the propagation of ideas which he disbelieves and abhors is sinful and tyrannical."

"The strongest reason for the people to retain the right to keep and bear arms is, as a last resort, to protect themselves against tyranny in government."

John F. Kennedy held a dinner in the white House for a group of the brightest minds in the nation at that time. He made this statement: "This is perhaps the assembly of the most intelligence ever to gather at one time in the White House with the exception of when Thomas Jefferson dined alone."




Monday, October 15, 2012

Giant Cell Tumor Returns AND Tommy is Packing His Bags

The leaves started changing this past week on our maple tree. . . It’s been an interesting few days.

Here’s an update I posted last week:

“Life changing weekend. Things have sped up: One son will have major surgery tomorrow, and another will most likely be leaving us for an unknown foreign land in 8 or 9 months, instead of a year and a half or more. Wow, life comes atcha fast!”


In two days time, we learned that our son Eric’s bone tumor had come back, hence the pain and the limping.
We also learned that our son, Tommy, just younger than Eric, would be leaving on his mission in June, a full year before we’d planned.

This was an announcement that we were excited about, but did not expect. It’s amazing the curve-balls that life will throw at you.

Eric had been limping horribly for a month or so before we went in, but for some reason, the possibility of the tumor coming back never really occurred to me. Dr. Jones scheduled surgery for this past Tuesday, which went well, but now we’re back to the medication every three hours, and hoping that Eric’s leg won’t get infected. Last time, it did, and he had to go in for a second surgery. Not fun. This time, the stitches are smaller, and he’s on antibiotics, which should help a lot.

I can actually feel the prayers that are being offered for us. I can feel us being lifted up.

It’s been a lot easier this time, in a lot of ways. We’ve known basically what to expect, the nurses have been more attentive, we’re more familiar with the process in general. . Sigh. I just hope that there is no recurrence. Eric will be on crutches for 3 or 4 months, at which point we're hoping he will heal completely, with no further complications.

A couple of weeks ago, we went to Aleia’s piano recital, Jeffy’s pack meeting, and parent-teacher conferences all in just a couple of days. We thought our lives were pretty hectic. Then, suddenly, we were faced with the aforementioned recent developments. It’s funny how these types of changes can stop you on a dime, flip you around, and slow you down. Little things, that caused stress, that seemed so monumental at the time, now seem inconsequential. 'Perspective is indeed virtual.'