Rules, We Don’t Need No Stinking Rules
What? The heck, you say!
This title is a play on Blazing Saddles’ scene when the bandits say, “badges, we don’t need no stinking badges” while being recruited for a posse.
The U.S. Constitution is the oldest governing document in operation in the entire world. It had functioned well, limiting excessive political reach since written in 1787 and ratified in 1788.
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Our form of government has never been under more direct attack than it is today. The brilliance of separation of powers, checks and balances, respect of debate to include minority opinions, and limited government authority to specific enumerated powers was borne from men, though imperfect, who distrusted human nature from experience and study.
John Adams rightly said, “if men were angels, no government would be necessary.” His attitude was the gold standard amongst the founders.
George Washington was so popular he could have been king or president for as long as he wished. He knew the temptation of unbridled power. His precedent of serving only two terms stood until 1940. Franklin Roosevelt disregarded the example and added a fourth term in 1944.
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Today, politicians at all levels of government have forgotten Washington and his example. They swell with power, hold office for entire careers, and often only leave feet first.
Are any of them, or us, indispensable to any organization? Absolutely not!
We have to be careful how much government we desire because we will get it and more!
As government grows at unabated warp speed, our individual liberties vanish as quickly.
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Early in our history, voters held elected officials closely accountable with shorter terms of office. Joshua Chamberlain, for example, was elected governor of Maine four times and served a total of four years! The duration of office was one year!
Since then, elected officials have fooled the electorate, saying the cost of running for office and time campaigning are so onerous, they deserved longer terms. Voters bought the pitch, which also contributes to officeholders remaining so long their perspectives migrate from being public servants to the masses’ rulers.
That difference in attitude has and is ever-increasingly manifesting itself into insensitive politicians whose actions reveal influence by special interest groups represented by well-funded lobbyists and career staff personnel.
The fourth estate of the media has transformed from the watchdog of American liberty to active partisan participants in public policy, which conceals the ruling class ever gaining power.
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See if you recognize the symptoms of my argument.
During the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic, politicians grabbed power swiftly and aggressively because the health issue was an “emergency.” The problem is human nature drives elected officials to grab power more quickly than to relinquish it.
Within days of his inauguration, President Biden by-passed Congress and signed 56 executive orders. Our system does not authorize anyone person to exercise that amount of power. Unfortunately, few in Congress, states, or courts have shown the strength to stop the lawless power grab. The precedent is dangerous for our future!
The 2021 relief bill for the pandemic only contained 9% of the breathtaking, almost $2 trillion to COVID-related issues. The remainder of the money went overseas or to political allies. Leadership stifled the debate. They also discarded bi-partisanship approval was for power. Never let a crisis go to waste is a political maxim that should scare all of us.
When the Senate parliamentarian ruled modifying the minimum wage was not allowed by the rules with the process planned to approve the bill, the Speaker of the House and many representatives in Congress blasted to not listen to the ruling or get rid of the parliamentarian. In other words, damn the rules and full speed ahead. We want what we want, and we want it now! It sounds like a preschooler, doesn’t it?
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When I was a kid, my older cousin and I played Monopoly. Our younger brothers begged to play with us. Once we allowed them in the game, we changed the rules on every roll of the dice. We won all-of-the-time!
Eventually, they realized the abuse and demanded their rights. When we played by set rules, the game was more fun for our brothers than for us.
Laws are guard rails against extreme swings in either direction and protect minority interests. They reduce the risk of wild swings in either direction like bumpers in bowling.
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Why would elected officials so openly flout rules in their quest to access more taxpayer money to distribute to their friends?
The only reason is they believe they are bulletproof and disrespect voters. Until they are concerned, dare I say fear voters, they will proceed with impunity.
As the character Alan Moore said in V for Vendetta, “People shouldn’t be afraid of their government. Governments should be afraid of their people.”
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Are you not convinced yet? Do you still believe officials spend a lifetime in “public service”? How many of them become multi-millionaires on “public servant” salaries? How in the name of mathematics does that happen?
While they say they are taking care of us, they almost always are really taking care of themselves and their families. C. S. Lewis said, “Of all the tyrannies, a tyranny sincerely exercised for the good of its victims may be the most oppressive.”
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Now, I sense your attention! What can we do?
No one of us can do everything, but we all can do one thing. John F. Kennedy said, “One person can make a difference, and everyone should try.”
We can and should find our passion and do that one more thing. Each of us who invests our citizenship efforts will honor our ancestors and gift our descendants with the precious gift of political and economic freedom we have received.
Thomas Jefferson gave us the best prescription for life, saying, “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.”
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What efforts can we promote and participate in to “make a difference?”
1. Lobby your state elected officials to call The Convention of States as prescribed in Article 5 of The U. S. Constitution.
a. It will enable non-elected officials to advocate congressional term limits.
b. It will help states re-establish their authority.
2. Advocate Term Limits at every level of elected politics.
a. Rotating elected officials brings new ideas and reduces entrenched
officeholders.
3. Advocate Ethics reform Prevent elected officials from becoming lobbyists.
- Prevent elected officials from officially interacting with relatives in the media, lobbyists, and agencies.
4. Advocate the Re-establishment of election integrity with these and other rules.
a. Without specific rules to prevent fraud, elections don’t matter.
b. Voter ID
c. Limit mail-in and absentee balloting.
d. Paper ballots for audit trails.
e. Machine ballots with paper back-up, not connected to the internet.
5. Re-establish the balance in the separation of powers between branches of the federal government.
6. Re-establish Federalism between the U.S. government and the states.
We, the people, get the government we demand. As citizens, our rights will only remain as long as we exercise our responsibilities.
© 2021 — Richard V. Battle
Richard V. Battle is a speaker, multi award-winning author of seven books, and business consultant. His latest is Navigating Life’s Journey: Common Sense in Uncommon Times published in November, 2020. Visit him online at www.richardbattle.com
