A LIBERAL VIEW OF THINGS: The people are the power

We the people are the government

The first few words of the Preamble to the Constitution say it’s so. It is us who enable those we select to represent us in the government we are supposed to create. This defines the democratic republic our founding fathers devised so painfully and carefully.

In 222 years, only 27 amendments have been made to this document. It used to be that Americans revered the Constitution, understood the peoples’ role in governing and went about selecting real people to represent them.

Somewhere along the way, government became the villain. In a perverse twist, President Ronald Reagan said government was the problem. Really? Did he mean the very document he pledged on the Bible to defend was mistaken about government of, by and for the people? Was he right, or did he mean it was what government became that was the problem? This mantra about big government being the bad guy has become the mainstream rant for conservatives, Republicans and tea partiers.

Paul Begala, an historical scholar says, “The U.S. federal government is the greatest force for good in human history.”

I agree. Those who rail against government with the caveat about its size and how it spends money fail to say how large it should be and how much it should spend.  Anybody who can identify and support those two premises should be immediately published in all media.

The most spectacular successes of any country in human history belong to us: We the people of the United States of America.

We can take credit for those successes because we resisted the charlatans who tried to make our labor force into serfs for their lordships, among other things. We overcame ingrained prejudice to bring women and people of color into our sphere of governing and participating in that government. Nobody has done it better than we have — we the people.

Right-wing extremism has hijacked the Republican party to the extent our government is not responding to the desires of the people it is supposed to represent. In fact, the influence of corporate money on both major political parties has diminished the voice of the people to a mere whisper. These extremists — the tea party — are the new charlatans. They rave on about fiscal responsibility and the Constitution’s controls on spending, yet fail to understand what the phrase “promote the general welfare” means. To these people, the only welfare that concerns them is their own. This was recently evidenced on a tea party-sponsored “debate” in which destitute people needing medical care were jeered. These are the same people who insist this nation was founded on Christian principles.

Here are some examples of what the people are not getting from their government even though they petition it to do so:

• More than 60 percent want a public option (Medicare) for their health care.

• More than 70 percent want a balanced approach to reduce the deficit.

• More than 60 percent want stricter gun-control laws.

• More than 60 percent don’t want public education cuts.

More people (78 percent) now believe their representatives no longer represent their interests. Sixty-three percent think small business owners are more capable of solving our problems than the professional politicians elected to office. The people are calling for a stop to the wars draining our treasury. They are calling for improved schools and an elimination of extensive testing. They are asking for new revenue to be raised by taxing gambling, marijuana, tobacco, luxury autos and even prostitution. According to the Sept. 19 edition of Newsweek, 91 percent of us say our elected representatives fail to address the nation’s problems.

We the people must step up and retake our government from “we the corporation."  The professional politicians must be replaced by citizens only beholden to their constituents and not lobbyists or big-money interests.

We are the people and it is our government, not the government of the professionals who only represent the rich and powerful. It is up to us to overthrow the yoke of oppression from those in the ivory towers.

Ask yourself, “If not now, when? If I don’t become active, then who will?” It’s up to us. We haven’t a day to lose.

Turner is a retired teacher and industrial engineer who lives near Marble Falls. He is an independent columnist, not a staff member, and his views do not necessarily reflect those of The Tribune or its parent company. "The Voter’s Guide to National Salvation" is a newly published e-book from Turner. You can find it at www.barnesandnoble.com/ebooks. He can be reached by email at vtgolf@zeecon.com.