On Limited Government....

For many years, one of my major, overriding political philosophies was the concept of limited government.

I professed that I loved my country, but I feared my government.

Though a bit paranoid on the surface, this statement isn't really so over the top. Governmental power is easily abused in terms of restricting individual liberty, excessive taxation, and over regulation that is inhibitory to economic prosperity among other potential abuses.

I heard on MSNBC's Morning Joe program this morning (25 Oct 2017) that one senator was giving Trump accolades because for every new regulation that he's imposed, he has eliminated 16 others. Trump: the great deregulator, the champion of limited government.

Do you feel better? I do not. In fact, I fear my government today more than ever.

There are several reasons for this. First of all, Trump seems to have had little understanding or respect for the U.S. Constitution, which is the document that stands between the citizens and governmental authoritarianism.

Trump?

Another major reason Trump and his administration worry me is that he's taken the concept of limited government and turned it into near anarchy. As a former Libertarian, I stand on fairly solid ground when I say that anarchy or Libertarianism is not the only path to limited government.

In fact, the U.S. Constitution is a document that, when properly implemented, ensures limited government.

However, that doesn't and shouldn't prevent the government from taking actions to do things that must be done. This includes conscription into military service in times of threats to our nation. It includes raising taxes to do things that are necessary.

I don't like to pay unnecessary taxes any more than the next person. However, if there is good value offered in return, this can be a reasonable investment. Often the persons who disagree with this fall into the camp of limited vision, where all they care about is their desires alone and give little value to impacts on the entire social body in the present time or in the future -- including the welfare of their descendants.

The fact that Trump is daily sacrificing our future environment on the alter of short-term economic benefit (in his view, not necessarily in fact) is an abandonment of one of the major responsibilities of government. He is derelict in his duties.

Trump is failing in his responsibilities as leader and head administrator of our nation's welfare.

He appears to have little long-term vision except for what may be good for him personally (and his billionaire peers).

Republican regulators

In the 18th century, the founding fathers of our country couldn't foresee individuals so wealthy, corporations so vast, industrialization so toxic and a world-wide population so large that they could collectively endanger the long-term welfare of the entire world. Today there are still those, who through greed, ignorance, stupidity, or some combination do not recognize that the government has to limit individual and organizational activity to the extent that they are not an imminent or eventual risk to the world remaining a supportive home to its inhabitants.

But we are at that point. Government should be and is limited. This does not mean it should not regulate. A function of government is to protect the greater good -- even if that imposes some limitation on our activities including those to maximize profits at the expense of the world itself.

It's time for those who are asleep to wake up. It's time to recognize the need for extensive governmental regulation -- especially in the area of environmental conservation and protection.

What good is unlimited freedom if, collectively, we are poisoned to death as a consequence?

Wise and far-sighted governmental regulations can not only be a good thing, they are essential in the modern age. Once again Trump and his administration is on the wrong side of the issue. They are promoting coal and other fossil fuels, when most persons know this is a dead-end road. The future is in renewables. We, the U.S.A. could be a world leader in the development and manufacture of this technology that is certain to be the way forward. Yet the Trump administration seems blind to this fact, and determined to encourage anachronism.

The 1950s and 1960s are over. We cannot return to those times and their short-sighted, profligate practices.

Dump Trump and his entire administration before it is too late. Elect wise and far-sighted persons to lead us into a safe, healthy, prosperous future. Vote wisely. Engage peaceably. Be a true patriot, not a reactionary anachronist. Do not let the country be highjacked by self-serving billionaires and political wing nuts.

Dump Trump (and all of his ilk) as soon as possible.