I was hashing out the recent national election in my little ground hog mind and considering permanent hibernation when I had a thought. I'm almost sure the thought was not original with me and I'm sure that many know this and do not care. Let me just say it. The truth about elections is that the act of voting is an act of aggression against your neighbor. It may very well be every citizen's right and duty to vote, but it is also a very aggressive action. When you complete your ballot and run it through the reader or drop it in the box or seal it in the envelope you are telling everyone in your nation that you know exactly how they should live and if they disagree, well then they are wrong, hateful, backward, elitist, communist, fascist or whatever.
Do not try and tell me this is not true. You know in your heart it is true. Think back to the times you have voted and how you felt afterward. Did a smugness come over you? Did you think to yourself, "well I guess I showed them" or maybe it's just your way of "sticking it to the man"? Whatever the case, the real nasty truth of it is that in voting we decide how to steal from our neighbor, how to make them do things we think they should do and how to make them tolerate things that others may well think are immoral, distasteful or unpleasant and also we vote to stop them from doing things; whatever those things may be.
This is certainly a peaceful way of settling disagreements over public policy, but I am not sure it is good in it's present configuration. I mean, what if you have an electorate that has more takers than givers for instance? Should the takers be able to demand more from the givers year after year thus enslaving them? This is just one example of the problem. There are many more. So maybe it's time to define or redefine who should be included in the "electorate". Most would say that involves discrimination. You can't do that. Everyone has the right to vote. To this I have to say categorically that every one SHOULD NOT have the right to vote.
If you live your life on the public dole for any reason, you should not be allowed to vote. If you do not pay income or property taxes, you should not be allowed to vote. If you are mentally handicapped and you are unable to vote on your own without assistance, you should not be allowed to vote. If you are a government employee at any level that makes their living from other people's taxes, you should not be allowed to vote. Finally, if you are an elected official you should not be allowed to vote.
Think about it. Should I be able to force my neighbor to give me a raise in pay? Should I be able to tell my neighbor that they have to pay for my child's education even though they do not have children? Should I be forced to pay for someone else's bad habits? Why should I have to pay for a smoker's health care? Why should I have to pay for some one's birth control or their abortion simply because they have no self control? Why should I be forced to pay for some one's drug rehab? Why should I have to pay for insolvent banks and corporations?; let them go bankrupt and start anew.
You say to me, what about the notion of compassion and helping others? What about your obligation as a Christ follower? To this I answer that I can and do help those in need regardless of the reasons for that need. I do so privately and as a personal choice. I do not do it because I am forced by law to do it or because someone demands I do it. Compassion should be voluntary. It should be one on one. A faceless, nameless government cannot be truly compassionate. The government has no money of it's own. It only has what it takes from us. If government is to be compassionate to one class of voter, it must be It must penalize the other voters by taking the money for that "compassion".
The bottom line is that the nature of the electorate has changed in the United States. There are more takers in the electorate than there are givers. The givers cannot afford the takers anymore. I think we will have to join you and help ourselves at the public trough too, but then who will write the checks?
Let me close by saying that the election results this year would have made no difference in anything I just said. Our nation will have a $16 trillion deficit at the end of the year. Sometime next year it will hit $22 trillion. You could tax every citizen of the US 100% for ten years and still not pay it. Something has to give here and I'm sick of it being me. The answer to the problem is not pleasant either, but it may be the quickest way to end the problem. I may offer that answer soon. I need to think some more. In the meantime, if your panties are all up in a bunch about what I said regarding redefinition of the electorate, my advice is to enjoy the snuggy. It's one of those things I like to provide from time to time.
