By Manon McKinnon on 11.20.09 @ 6:06AM
Government has been moving into people's lives for a very long
time -- but never quite like this.
Remember this? At the White House in September Michelle
Obama stood before a booster club of liberal-minded women and
coined the official slogan "Health Care is a Women's Issue,"
declaring that government-run medical care was essential to
women's "equality." The feminists cheered and, with
determination, went out to help the First Lady and the President
further the cause of socialized medicine.
And help they did as Speaker Nancy Pelosi and the House of
Representatives prepared to pass their 2000 pages of health care
"reform" until…until…uh-oh. A Congressman named Stupak threw his
wooden shoe (sabot) into the works -- with an amendment opposing
abortion funding -- and sabotaged what the liberal ladies had
been longing for. The cheers faded; the love wilted. Now the
gender feminists sound more like the Furies of yore. To
wit:
"A stunning assault on women's health and rights,"
proclaimed Nancy Northup of the Center for Reproductive
Rights.
"Women won't stand for [this] legislation," warned Cecile
Richards of Planned Parenthood.
"Simply outrageous!" protested Congresswoman Barbara
Lee.
"Stop Stupak!" cried The National Organization for
Women.
"The fight isn't over," declared Nancy Keenan of
NARAL–Pro-Choice America.
"The stakes could not be higher," stated Congresswoman
Diana DeGette.
Congresswoman DeGette, you can say that again. The stakes
absolutely could not be higher, but not for lack of abortions. At
stake here is the whole American Experiment; the Founders' vision
of a society governed by ordinary citizens that gives full
expression to the ideals of liberty, justice, and opportunity for
all. The Founders got it right; the result was America -- a
strong nation based on responsible citizens, free markets, and
limited government. Democrats, who seem to envision a nation of
supplicants in the name of compassion, have got it all
wrong.
A debate is raging; but it is one long on process and
particulars -- costs, deficits, patient care, polls, votes,
amendments, congressional intrigue -- and short on first
principles. The big question of what are we doing to our country
seems missing as we discuss how we are going to do it. Just
recently, and fortunately, more voices are making the essential
point of big government vs. individual liberty. Indiana Governor
Mitch Daniels says that it is time for a discussion about the
real role of government: "Are we a nation of free
individuals who take responsibility for our own actions, or
should we just forfeit freedom and turn everything over to the
federal government?" Financial pundit Jonathan Hoenig has been
warning of collectivism vs. individualism and championing
independence. Columnist Mark Steyn calls health care a "liberty
issue." Karl Rove has spoken of "changing what our country is"
through centralized power. Congressman Paul Ryan calls the
Democrats' bill "completely antithetical to the American idea."
Even former President George W. Bush, speaking of economics, said
"History shows that the greater threat to prosperity is not too
little government but too much."
Government has been moving into people's lives for a very
long time -- but never quite like this. Happily, current
polls suggest that Americans are starting to get it; federal
takeover of American medical care is losing ground. Does that
mean that ordinary citizens in Iowa or Florida or Montana are
thinking about the high stakes in reversing our fundamental
nature as a nation? Let's hope so. And let's hope that more and
more of us conclude that it is far better to conquer our problems
as a strong nation of capable citizens than as a welfare state of
passive dependents. As the song says, "That Ain't My
America."
topics:
Constitution, Founding Fathers, Government Intrusion, Federalism
