None are more hopelessly enslaved than those who falsely
believe they are free.
-----Johann Wolfgang von Geothe
To
every Republican member of Congress, save 5, I say this: you have
betrayed us. You have sold your freedom to the super rich who rule
this country and their Great Orange Puppet. In the bargain, you sold
mine as well. To anyone and everyone still thinking that Donald
Trump and the plutocrats he serves care about anything but
themselves, their wealth and their power over the rest of us, by the
time you realize the depth of this great betrayal, it will be too
late. It may already be.
To
the rest of you, I wonder if you remember the words:
“As
it is apparent to all that a prince is constituted by God to be ruler
of a people, to defend them from oppression and violence as the
shepherd to his sheep; and whereas God did not create the people
slaves to their prince...but rather the prince for the sake of the
subjects (without which he could be no prince), to govern them
according to equity...even at the hazard of life to defend and
preserve them.
“And
when he does not behave thus, but, on the contrary, oppresses them,
seeking opportunities to infringe their ancient customs and
privileges, exacting from them slavish compliance, then he is no
longer a prince, but a tyrant, and the subjects are to consider him
in no other view.
“And
particularly when this is done deliberately, unauthorized by the
states, they may not only disallow his authority, but legally proceed
to the choice of another prince for their defense.”
Okay,
I cheated. These words come from the Dutch Act of Abjuration that
declared their independence from Spain in 1581. “Abjure” means
formally renounce. The Dutch renounced the right of Phillip II to
rule them. When no other prince stepped in to take his place, the
Dutch became the only country in Europe to not have a king, a
federation of states that remained King-less for 200 years and
produced a golden age of progress and prosperity, though forged in
blood.
The
more familiar words, from our Declaration of Independence, are:
“...when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing
invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under
absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off
such government, and to provide new guards for their future
Security.”
The
Colonists went on to create a federation of states that has remained
King-less to this day. It is a constant battle to preserve and
continue the progress envisioned and set in motion on July 4, 1776.
Both
documents go on to list their grievances against the respective Kings
Phillip II and George III. Both documents outline the pursuit of
safety and happiness, which includes religious freedom. Both
documents are designed to speak for all the people, even though in
reality the definition of “the people” expanded only over time.
The first is a precurser to the Age of Enlightenment. The second is
perhaps the best expression of that Age.
It
is important to remember our origins. It is important to remember
the first three words of the Preamble to the Constitution: We
The People. Our
President has forgotten them, or at least their meaning. He openly
states that he hates anyone who opposes or even disagrees with him.
He does not rule for all America. He should tread lightly because
there are only two outcomes for such an attitude in one in power.
Either he will become a tyrant, or he will be overthrown. We have a
system in place for the latter: the vote.
