Whatever happened to self-reliance? (A post by Daria)

In spite of the frightening national security implications of an Obama presidency, which would inevitably come with a dizzying lurch toward socialism, an even greater expansion of the welfare state (pardon the redundancy) and the loss of countless freedoms (i.e. freedom of speech in the form of the Fairness Doctrine, which would basically muzzle talk radio), many Americans simply refuse to acknowledge the truth.

I wish I had a dime for every conversation I’ve had with either fellow McCain-Palin supporters seeking information (ammunition) to employ in debate with supposedly intelligent, educated voters (many of whom remain willfully clueless about Obama), or the honestly uninformed, who may still be on the fence in spite of watching movies like Obsession and The Third Jihad. Many of these Americans have succumbed to the misguided notion that, in spite of his Hamas-endorsement, “The Messiah” will keep us just as safe from radical Islamic terror as George W. Bush has for the last eight years!

Huh?

Here’s a bold prediction folks: should Obama win this election, we’ll be watching video of Palestinians celebrating in the streets, much as they did after the 9/11 attacks. Ol’ Vladimir Putin will begin plotting his next egregious move, which will no doubt involve “finishing the job” in Georgia before invading other former slave states like Ukraine and Poland. Knowing that Mr. Obama has zero interest in domestic drilling and a Carter-esque outlook of moral equivalence (remember when his first reaction to the Russian invasion of Georgia was that both sides needed to show restraint?), what’s to stop Putin from seizing the pipeline that pumps fuel into Europe, thereby crippling their economy?

The critical issues I’ve just enumerated are but the tip of the iceberg, yet I fear that my efforts to educate have fallen mostly on deaf ears, thus begging the question, why?

Here’s where I derived the title of my post.

One of the younger voters with whom I engaged in polite, detailed conversation last week offered a simple query via one of his 20-something friends: “What is John McCain going to do for lower and middle income people?” And therein lies the problem. As my teachers used to tell me in elementary school, if you ask a silly question, you get a silly answer. Luckily, he posed this question to me! J

Newsflash: It’s not the government’s job to “do something” for you, people!

I patiently gave my young friend a brief tutorial on the Constitution of the United States of America, the foundation for the greatest country the world has ever known. I explained to him that the Constitution recognizes every American’s God-given right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. As I painstakingly pointed out, that last one is up to each and every individual, with “pursuit” being the operative word. Our government’s role is actually very simple, though gravely serious: provide for the common defense in the form of a strong military and protect us from foreign and domestic enemies. And yes, create and maintain a criminal justice system, while offering limited oversight into the affairs of business (key word, limited).

Since this young man also happens to be a minority, I shared the story of my own father with him, to highlight a larger point about self-reliance and determination.

My dad has had a distinguished career as a general and vascular surgeon. He’s well-known in the area, well-liked and highly regarded for his skills and expertise. But it wasn’t always an easy road for him. As the son of Italian immigrants, my father was raised in a loving, yet modest home. Though his parents supported him emotionally, they lacked the financial means to help him out with the expensive school tuition.

Did my father give up on his dreams? Did he whine to the government about how “unfair” it was that other kids his age didn’t share the same challenges?

Nope. He worked three jobs to put himself through college and medical school, focused on his goals, knowing that he had to make short-term sacrifices for long-term gains. And from what others have told me, he did it with a smile on his face, never once begrudging the fact that while his peers were out partying, he was home studying.

Later, when my father was applying for residencies, he came across another problem: prejudice. Seems many of the area hospitals didn’t want an “eye-talian” on staff.

Did my father pick up his marbles and go home? Did he petition the government? Did he set up his own ethnic-baiting, grievance-mongering organization?

Nope. He simply applied to other hospitals that did recognize his talents, and then went on to enjoy an illustrious career.

Am I suggesting that bigotry and prejudice are good things? Of course not. But as I told my friend on the phone, in a country filled with millions of flawed human beings, you are bound to run into a creep every now and then. And as my dad repeatedly told me growing up, one of the many great things about America is that you can always find another door, no matter how many may slam in your face. He should know. He’s living proof.

However, I fear that the spirit of self-reliance and determination exhibited by the immigrants and citizens of yesterday has transformed into a willful dependency, buoyed by the class-warfare politics so gleefully practiced by the party that pretends to be the champion of the everyday American. The result is an embrace of surrender -- whether it be to the basest human instincts such as laziness, living off of the sweat and hard work of fellow citizens -- or to the self-imposed delusion that a President Obama will keep America safe, simply because he’s promising lots of entitlements to those who done nothing to earn them, and not because of his stellar foreign policy credentials. Apparently, in their eagerness to have the government do everything for them, these folks are willing to throw America’s safety and security under the bus along with Reverend Wright, Bill Ayers, Bernandine Dohrn, Father Pfleger, Malcolm X and the rest of Obama’s merry band of Marxists.

Our Founding Fathers must be weeping right about now.