In the last few months this democracy has faced changes never seen before. We have serious concerns about Russian interference in our elections; we see a sitting president impeached twice; we watch as admitted and convicted felons are freed by our president; we watch civil unrest grow; we suffer an unyielding epidemic; we see immigrants swelling at the border; we watch in horror as the US Capitol is attacked and people die. The “talking heads” on various TV stations question whether our democratic form of government is at risk.
The Founding Fathers wanted to devise as foolproof a system of government as possible so that “life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness” could be a forever reality. And so “government of the people, by the people and for the people” with checks and balances and a heavy sprinkling of compromise was the original recipe in 1776.
Fast forward to 2021. “Democracy”, once called “the great experiment” now spends 60% of its budget on welfare (“entitlement”) programs. In other countries that alone would earn us the title of “socialistic”. We see a national Congress that is split down the middle with virtually no compromise leaning on ANY issue. We watch as a president tells 8 individuals to ignore Congressional subpoenas and gets away with it. (Try ignoring a subpoena from your local court and see what happens. And keep in mind that Trump was the accused in the trial where he ordered witnesses not to testify.) The system of checks and balances is dangerously tilting toward the abyss.
Whatever we are today–it is a far cry from the democracy our Founding Fathers envisioned. The government evolutionary ladder is being positioned to accommodate a new breed of American. The only question remaining is: ARE WE GOING UP THE LADDER OR DOWN THE LADDER?
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