BETWEEN THE LINES: Good advice from the past
One of the great modern tragedies has been our failure to listen to good advice from the past. There was a time in our history when George Washington’s farewell address was a centerpiece in our history textbooks, but it has since disappeared from sight.
Its demise, no doubt, is because of its message.
Although our first United States president extolled the virtues of the federal government for its objective to create tranquility at home and peace abroad, Washington chose this moment to warn those who would follow of pitfalls down the road.
First, the hero of the American Revolution showed insight by noting the emerging political-party system posed a potential liability because it could kindle animosity and opened the door to foreign influence and corruption. Partisanship could outweigh doing what is in the best interest of the nation.
This is quite evident today.
Second, he warned against the excessive use of public credit and recommended using it sparingly. Politicians today falsely believe government spending creates wealth, when in reality it is a zero-sum game in which the federal government determines the winners and losers by a blatant redistribution of tax revenue.
Perhaps the Virginia native’s greatest observation was seeing the danger of foreign alliances and their influence. In no greater area has our government failed to adhere to the general’s wisdom.
The past several decades have seen a plethora of military engagements, none of which were in defense of our nation.
Both the Republicans and Democrats have abused the Constitution and the authority of Congress.
Few people can list all the conflicts resulting in the deaths of thousands of American soldiers, and the expense of billions of dollars with virtually little or no reward other than lining the pockets of the military-industrial complex.
We can no longer afford these so-called humanitarian ventures.
Libertarians have voiced their opposition for years against such fruitless unconstitutional efforts. The irony is we cannot even protect our borders from the hordes of illegal immigrants streaming into the country. No other nation allows such unlawful activity to continue. The end result is the alteration of the demographics of this nation and the breakdown of the American culture under the banner of multiculturalism.
Washington’s last piece of advice stressed the importance of religion and morality to the success of this noble experiment in governance.
Not all of the Founding Fathers were Christians, but the majority were. Those considered Deists, such as Thomas Jefferson and Benjamin Franklin, clearly had a reverence for religion and saw how vital it was to the success of the democracy they had just created.
They were convinced the Republic could only exist with the moral standards to which Christians adhered.
The course our court system has taken has been to remove God from the public square, thereby eliminating the oversight necessary for our nation to flourish.
If Washington’s words continue to go unheeded, we are doomed as a nation. Those who fail to learn from history are doomed to repeat the tragic mistakes that have brought down many a great civilization.
Laughlin is a Christian Libertarian. He is an economist, teacher, father, husband and most recently a grandfather. He has written a weekly column for The Tribune for 12 years. He and his wife Gina reside in Meadowlakes. To contact him, e-mail ablaughlin@nctv.com. He is an independent columnist, not a staff member, and his views do not necessarily reflect those of The Tribune or its parent company.