Doug Mataconis [1] wrote about this post yesterday [2] and I re-tweeted it [3] this morning saying, “Amen. Now let’s get to work.”
The post, at United Liberty, states unequivocally that now is not the time for revolution and lays out four key points:
1) All political and legal options have not been exhausted. There are Congressional elections in November 2010 and Presidential elections in November 2012. Use this anger and energy to donate money and support candidates who support liberty and who will fix/repeal Obamacare. In addition, many states have filed lawsuits challenging Obamacare and those lawsuits need time to work their way through the courts.
2) The right to free speech and to petition grievances is still in effect. Obamacare opponents can still express their opposition views to the public. Such views are common place on talk radio, the Internet, the newspapers, and as a matter all over the place. Obamacare opponents are not being thrown in jail or being silenced by the state.
3) Obama and the Democrats did win the past two elections and have a mandate. Obama’s election victory in 2008 and the Democratic control of Congress by definition gives them the mandate to pass whatever legislation they want, as long as it is upheld as legal. That mandate can only be revoked by their electoral defeat in 2010 and 2012.
4) The Founders did not intend for revolution over trivial matters. Before the Founders declared independence, there were numerous attempts at resolving the crisis with the British peacefully. Make no mistake, Obamacare is a trivial matter in the scheme of things and does not rise to the matter of “taxation without representation”. The major reason why some Americans threaten revolution over trivial matters is the fact that after the last Civil War, the Union was far too kind to the former Confederates. By all rights, the Union should have executed the remnants of the Confederate government and the Confederate general staff for treason. Maybe this would have deterred the trivialization of revolution that we see in this country.
I agree with these points and find all acts of political violence in today’s current political environment unacceptable.
I was asked by several people today to clarify what I meant at the 3:30 mark of our most recent podcast [4], where I said that now is not the time for violence, since healthcare still has to go through the judicial process, and we have free speech, the vote, and opportunities for redress of grievances.
Some are perpetuating a fallacy regarding my words by saying that if I believe “A” (the judiciary striking down Obamacare) doesn’t happen, then “B” (violence) is acceptable.
That doesn’t make any logical sense. And, quite frankly, it’s quite a leap.
In the end, my remarks have been twisted and corrupted by those who only wish to inflame things for the sake of a few more pathetic hits and to score political points. It’s exactly what’s wrong with our Virginia blogosphere and an insult to everyone’s intelligence.
So – do I advocate violence if health care is upheld as the law of the land by the judiciary?
No. No. Hell, no.
My point is that violence is never appropriate in our current Republic to make political points.
Just as President Obama’s political mentor Bill Ayers and his Weather Underground learned, America is not ready for a revolution. Not the least a violent plan that advocated for the extermination of 25 million people [5] and “re-education” of the populace.
So, Ayers, and his protégés, left the violence aside and have been planning for the long term; they have been fighting the political battles necessary to take over the country and enact their far left agenda using the democratic process.
Those on the right need to pay attention.
The public has no appetite for violence. It is unacceptable and worthy of condemnation. It shouldn’t even be considered as a course of action given our political climate.
Conservatives need to not worry about the 55 acts of violence by the left on the military alone from 2003-2008 [6], they need to not worry about threats to kill Rep. Eric Cantor and his family [7], they need to ignore the “hate-filled rants” that are being directed at members of Congress – both Republican and Democrat [8], they need not to worry about the leftist rantings of the IRS plane bomber [9], and, most importantly, conservatives need to not perpetuate any hostile acts [10]against anyone.
Von Clausewitz said that “war is a continuation of politics by other means”, and, so, violence is, in the end, the last, desperate measure to preserve ones country from tyranny.
We’re not there. No one is desperate.
Conservatives need to harness their anger and get to work. Write letters to the editor. Write and call your legislators. Read up on issues. Talk to your neighbors, Put a bumper sticker on your car. Give some money to a candidate who has your values. Volunteer and participate in the political process. And, most importantly, VOTE!
If it weren’t for Jim Webb and Mark Warner, we wouldn’t even be having this conversation [11].