My, Too Cumbersome!

My, How Cumbersome!

Terry Dashner……………….Faith Fellowship Church PO Box 1586 Broken Arrow, OK 74013

His name is John Stossel. You might know him as co-anchor of ABC’s 20/20. He has written a really good book entitled, Give Me A Break How I Exposed Hucksters, Cheats, and Scam Artists and Became the Scourge of the Liberal Media… (Perennial Currents 2004).

The reason I’m commenting on his book is because it strikes a nerve with me—a raw nerve at that. I love my nation. I think Government is, by and large, composed of good men and women who really do work for the common good. I believe most leaders are honest and pretty sharp; however, the system they serve is broken. The Government has become so large and cumbersome that it impedes progress. Stossel’s book supports my reasoning. Let me share some of his insights.

“Last year, the Agriculture Department paid subsidies of almost $200 million to make sure some sheep and goat ranchers made a profit. Why? Because in 1954, nine years after World War II, congressmen argued it was crucial to ‘national security’ that America have enough wool to make soldiers’ uniforms. Today most military uniforms aren’t even made of wool, but no matter, the Agriculture Department still gives the farmers handouts.”

I think the United States would have surplus monies if it would trim back its leviathan Government and stop wasting money. For example, “At the Pentagon, the accounting discrepancies total $2 trillion. ‘They may have it. They just don’t know where it is,’ David Walker, head of the General Accounting Office, told me. How can they not find that much money? Walker says the Pentagon has bought things with it, but doesn’t know what. ‘They don’t know that they have it,’ he says. ‘They may buy it again.’

“No private company could get away keeping its books that way. The investors would be all over it. It would go bankrupt. The managers might go to jail. When I said that to Walker, he answered, ‘We’re not a private company.’”

Stossel says, “There you have it. Government doesn’t have to follow the same rules. When they lose money, they just demand we give them more. And we do.” Why do we do that? Why haven’t we demanded fiscal responsibility of our Government? The Republicans blame the Democrats for spending. The Democrats blame the Republicans, and nothing significant ever gets done. We still see fraud and waste in spending. Will it ever change?

I believe that Government is essential to any society. I believe that laws should be enacted and enforced for the common good; however, I believe Government can get too big and too powerful. When our Government was first formed, it gave us basic services and taxed us a fraction of what we are taxed today. After the Stock Market crash of 1929, our Government started expanding to help the common man get back to work. Good idea, but we are still paying the bill. The Government kept growing until it became unmanageable.

Thanks to the great Reformers named Martin Luther and John Calvin, America was built on Capitalism. The free market is the foundation on which America has prospered for over 200 years. The free market continues to fuel America today, but it is ever in danger of being doused by big Government and its controls. Government services can be good, but Government can’t change and flex in short notice like Capitalism can. Competition among American merchants is good for everyone involved. But Government services can’t flex and move like free markets can. Government services are too fat, and too slow to adapt to changing markets; therefore, Government should govern and let business do what it does best—do business. What say you?

Give Stossel’s book a read, and then write your Representative, telling her she needs to be advised. Americans are demanding a shaping up and trimming down of their Government. Pastor T. dash.

About the Author

Pastors a small church in Broken Arrow, OK. Retired police officer. United States Navy veteran. Father of three grown children.