@ncscswitch:
Just get the Imperialist Federal Government out of my bedroom, out of my church, out of my wallet, and off my land.
That is all I ask… essentially the same request that John Hancock had when he signed that little document for King George back around early July 1776…
Amen brother.
And the greatest President in American history was probably Thomas Jefferson - Author of the Declaration of Independence; legislator in the Continental Congress and later in the first governing body and later President of the United States.
In 1800, Jefferson ran for president, along with fellow Republican Aaron Burr. The Republicans believed that the rights of the states and individuals should be protected. They wanted to curtail the powers of the federal government. The Federalists, the opposing political party, were in favor of a strong central government. Jefferson referred to them as “monarchists in principle.”
He went on to double the size of the United States at a very good price without the need for bloodshed and repaid France for their kindness in our Revolution. (Louisiana Purchase).
When our ships were ruthlessly attacked by the British Navy, Thomas Jefferson did not go to war, he did not issue an ultimatum, he did not enter the European conflict - he just placed an embargo on all European nations. Later presidents, faced with the exact same situation, would declare war on England which resulted in Washington DC being burned to the ground, and hence the Presidential Mansion needing to be white washed to cover the scorch marks and being renamed The White House.
Thomas Jefferson disbanded much of the Federal Army and Navy instead relying on the states to have their own militias that could be called upon in a time of war.
And, he paid off what little debt we had at the time and did so without raising any taxes at all.
Honestly, I’d love to elect him to office today. Yes, he was a bit of an isolationist, but honestly, can that be really bad? Why do we, as Americans, have to stick our nose in everywhere? If the nation of Ik wants to kill off citizens who are over the age of 50 so as to reduce strain on their socialized health services, why is it OUR duty to go save them!? What if Ik has nothing for us, they don’t buy our goods, they don’t provide any services we need, their existence or non-existence has no bearing on our lives whatsoever.
Why do we NEED a huge standing army!?! We need Fort Benning, Pearl Harbor, Norfolk, and a few other training bases with just enough of a standing army, navy and air force (marines I’m lumping in with navy, same with Coast Guard) to train the individual militias of the states to an equivalent level of training and tactics.
Why do we NEED to be stationed all over the world??? TJ would never keep forces in Korea, Japan, Vietnam, Philippines, Saudi Arabia, Germany, Italy, England, etc, etc, etc. He might keep them in Saudi Arabia, because of the value of the commodities found in the region. But I highly doubt he’d want to be elsewhere. Especially with Russia being a non-threat now. Not exactly an ally, but a non-threat.
Why do we NEED the government involved in everything!?! Let the states decide marriage. Let the states decide taxes. Let the states decide abortions. Let the states decide just about everything. Better yet, let the states have the individual counties and cities decide most of this. The only thing the government should be involved in are those aspects in life that need to be legislated that encompass all the states: Interstate Commerce, Interstate Shipping/Travel, Radio/Television, etc. (it would be bad if Illinois said that your station got Frequency 1 and Indiana said another company got Frequency 1. You’d have conflicts along the border.) Etc.
If a local mall wants to put up a nativity scene, they should be allowed to do so, without repercussions by being sued just because one family is atheist or of a competing religion. Likewise, if a group of Wiccans want to go into their own backyard, put up a bonfire and have a wild orgy, they should be allowed to do so.
Honestly, if I were President of the United States, and had 48 Hours to pass any laws I wanted without approval of Congress or the Supreme Court, I’d have our government reduced in size by 98%. I’d have the national debt paid off in two years (followed by a massive cut in taxes afterwards.) After that, I’d have savings accounts for the Government set up so that the government could run off the interest instead of off the backs of the people.
Not to get into a political discussion (defined as Republican vs Democrat) it’s just how I think the founders would have wanted things and my lament that we have turned from the idealistic principles that made this nation great and turned towards the principles we have today.
