The Proper Role of Government

What IS the proper role government should play in the lives of the citizens of the United States of America?

As written, our Constitution gives the government limited power over the lives of the citizens; as practiced, the government gives limited power to the people, and takes the bulk of it for themselves.
In every aspect of our lives, the government has intruded to the point of lunacy.
From the light bulbs you are able to buy, to the type of gas mileage you are going to have to live by, the government has inserted it's will, circumventing your will.

So where do the powers come from? Our Declaration of Independence says: "We hold these truths to be self evident that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness."
So according to our Founding Fathers, we get our rights from God. Unalienable means "not to be taken away, not to be given away, not to be separated." They knew that our rights came from God, and could not be taken away.

Ezra Taft Benson in "The Proper Role of Government" says that since God created man, and man created government, that man is superior to government, and should remain the master, not the government mastering the people.
If we have the right to protect ourselves, as a large group, we hire someone to protect us, that person we hire only has the rights that we already have ourselves; we have only delegated the sheriff or police or whoever the rights that we already possess. The only source of his power is that which we have authorized. Benson goes on to ask "What powers properly belong to each and every person in the absence of and prior to the establishment of any organized governmental form?"
We all know the answer is protection of life liberty and property.
Bastiat calls this the "Principle of Collective Right," we have the rights, we delegate to others for the protection of our life, liberty and happiness (the Founders originally wanted property in place of happiness, life might be easier today if they had left it), nothing more.

Not to regulate our gas consumption, to regulate our environment (as if we could!), our banks, or our private industry; not to chase boys and their mothers across the nation because of respective health issues judged a governmental issue, not to impede us in our personal pursuit of happiness as long as we don't infringe on others.
All of this is egregious overstepping by our government. In each case the government says it knows best. Maybe occasionally it would have a better plan, but that's not it's place. Personal responsibility has been pushed aside for the nanny state.

I believe this has happened because God has been left out of the equation. People no longer believe in God making things right in the end. They believe government MUST step in and do it for us, because we are too stupid to do it ourselves, and there is no God. We see this every day.

Hold on to your rights, and while I don't believe many in Washington are listening, speak up and fight back. I think things are going to get uglier.

Keep a prayer in your hearts, He IS listening.

What is a Conservative?

First go and read this article:

The Loft > GOP Chairman’s Race Enters Home Stretch

It occurred to me after I read this, that if we want the GOP to get back to actually BEING the "Grand Old Party" that we need to have a true conservative running the party. Someone who can rein in the left wing of the conservative party; someone who really, IS a conservative.

So what IS a Conservative? Here is my list, and it is not comprehensive.

A Conservative is someone who:

*Values life.
*Values morality.
*Champions small government.
*Promotes free trade.
*Believes in lower taxes.
*Believes in upholding the Constitution; that, in fact, the Constitution is infallible.
*Believes you and I are the ones to decide what's best for us.
*Knows that you and I should keep our money and spend it as we see fit.
*Knows that a handout is not the way to solve problems.
*Knows keeping the military strong keeps us safe.
*Freedom of speech is critical to a free republic.
*Gun ownership is expressly provided for, and also critical for a free republic.
*Believes that most government programs do more harm than good.

Now there are more I could add, but the point is we haven't had one around in awhile. They are an endangered species.

I firmly believe that there are two reasons we lost the election.
First and foremost, John McCain was NOT a true Conservative: McCain-Feingold is a glaring example. He also said that Obama and Clinton were nice, and we would be OK if one of them won the election. Bless his heart, but I think he lost all his "fight" fighting his gaolers. He couldn't articulate how he was better than Obama and it cost us.
Second, if the differences are minor, then why not vote for the guy who could make history. I know some of you don't believe me, but I heard with my own ears people who wanted to vote for Obama because he "looks like me", because he was black. I heard them say it. Now I would like to believe that this was a small segment of the population, but I doubt it very much. And, honestly, I don't fault them for that too much. If the conservative had been black, I would have been so excited to throw my vote in his corner.

Now the point of all this was to exhort you all to pray for a true conservative to be elected to lead the GOP in the coming socialist storm, and it IS coming. Pray for the best candidate to win, it is critical that the roots of conservatism be nourished, and that the flower bloom again.