Religion In Our Democracy - March 2013

I went to an Orthodox Jewish afterschool program until my early teens. During that time I learned the moral values of my religion and heritage, about its history, and about the challenges of being a religious minority. I also was of the age in which I watched live on TV as the homeland of my ancestors was attacked several times by its enemies.

So it is very hard for me to understand how I, and our elected officials, are not supposed to allow religious training and heritage to influence our positions on various issues which face our country every day. After all, we are reminded of the importance of God every time we cite our Pledge of Allegiance, look at our money, or watch a new President be sworn in holding a Bible.

Our founding fathers expected that religion would play an important part in our lives which is why the First Amendment to our Constitution clearly states Congress shall make no law prohibiting the free exercise of religion.

As Thomas Jefferson is often quoted, however, there is also a need to “build a wall of separation between Church and State” which is why that First Amendment also states “no religious test shall ever be required as a qualification to any Office or Public Trust under the United States.”

The American voter sometimes thinks otherwise. Just ask the Catholics who never had one of their own become President until John F Kennedy. Prior to JFK, our Presidents were mostly Episcopalian or Presbyterian. And tell former Presidential candidate Mitt Romney that his Mormon faith did not affect some voters. And will a person of Jewish faith ever be President?

During the Kennedy campaign it was often asked and rumored about what role the Pope would have in the governance of our country since the function of the Pope often includes being the final judge on morality to members of his faith.  Of course, it turned out that Kennedy had many moral failings for which the Pope obviously had no control but Kennedy often said his religious beliefs guided him in his tough decision making regarding the Cuban Missile Crisis.

The day to day laws of our democracy have always been based in part of religious teachings such as the Ten Commandments. In 2011 a judge in Dixie County, FL, even had them conveniently displayed on a granite monument at the entrance to this courthouse before a Federal Court required it to be removed. I believe that case is still on appeal and headed for the US Supreme Court which has often allowed the display of the Ten Commandments on government grounds – including its own building – if they are displayed with other types of inspirational messages guiding human behavior.

The declining influence of religion in our democracy has also become an underlying motivator for the increased involvement of the so-called religious right in elections and politics. Here in South Florida, Anita Bryant infamously formed the Save Our Children campaign in 1977 to protest a Dade County ordinance barring discrimination based on sexual preferences.  In 1989, the late Pat Robertson formed the Christian Coalition to promote candidates and legislation to its liking. To this day, that coalition and others like it have a strong influence on candidates on the state and national level.

While I may not share all of the beliefs of the religious right, I strongly applaud them for being concerned enough about the wrong direction that I believe our great country is heading that they are keeping up the pressure on elected officials to remember our country’s guiding principles. The liberal media and anti-religious groups continue to advocate positions which I believe go against the lessons and morality I learned many years ago in my aforementioned religious school sessions.

Silent religious prayers should be allowed – if not required - before the beginning of each school day so that our kids can be reminded of the importance of religion in their lives. I believe the ending of prayers in public schools in the early 1960’s is one reason why the moral fiber of our society has collapsed in so many ways.

The United States was founded to provide its citizens with the opportunity to pursue life, liberty, and happiness. I believe being able to do so involves an understanding and application of the many guiding principles of Christianity, Judaism, and other religions like Buddhism, Hinduism, and Islam into our daily lives and as an influence on our laws while respecting the limitation placed on religion in our Constitution and its Amendments.

Debt Limit Disaster - February 2013

"The fact that we are here today to debate raising America’s debt limit is a sign of leadership failure. It is a sign that the US Government cannot pay its own bills. It is a sign that we now depend on ongoing financial assistance from foreign countries to finance our Government’s reckless fiscal policies. ...Increasing America’s debt weakens us domestically and internationally. Leadership means that 'the buck stops here'. Instead, Washington is shifting the burden of bad choices today onto the backs of our children and Grandchildren. America has a debt problem and a failure of leadership. Americans deserve better."

Who said that? Former Republican Congressman Ron Paul? Congressman, and former Romney running mate, Paul Ryan? Radio personality Rush Limbaugh? Or perhaps former President John F. Kennedy?

If you guessed Barack Obama you would be correct. Our current President made those remarks in 2006 on the floor of the United States Senate just as he was kicking off his first Presidential campaign into gear.  And now 7 years later, he wants to raise that same debt limit without any hesitation or desire to compromise with Congress. Just as he bluffed his way into higher taxes when dealing with the so-called Fiscal Cliff in early January. A deal that raised tax rates for the first time in 20 years and even increased government spending rather than dealing with the more important issue of cutting government spending.

Obama has said that being President puts him in a different position for understanding the importance of the United States being able to pay its bills and creditors.  As if the nearly 6 TRILLION dollars in new debit already amassed by Obama in the past 4 years has taught him anything about fiscal responsibility!

Some on the left actually believe that the amount of the debt limit is irrelevant as long as we stay current with interest payments. Imagine telling your teenage child you will give him or her a VISA card with an unlimited credit line as long as he or she can pay the minimum monthly payment.  Then again, I would not be surprised if some reading this column have actually done so.

Frankly the problem with our national debt ceiling today is not Obama. It is not Congress. And it is not the media. It is the economically illiterate American people. There is an old saying attributed to Alexander Hamilton, one of our country’s founders, that the “masses are assess”.  Unless and until Americans who vote for our government representatives understand basic economics, they will continue to elect politicians who simply borrow and spend to maintain power.

Sadly the continuing spiral of borrowing and spending can only lead to a financial disaster in the foreseeable future. But why should the typical illiterate voter care?  Because at some point federal funds will go mainly to paying interest on those borrowed funds rather than being available to sustain government aid programs such as Medicaid, Medicare, Social Security, and Obamacare.  Because at some point, our creditors will stop lending to us and we may have no federal funds to pay for anything. 

To me, it seems that most voters and politicians have no rational understand of how much money $16,000,000,000,000 in debt really represents. It is just a bunch of zeroes to them. But those zeroes currently add up to more than $ 53,000 that each citizen of the United States owes to pay for our federal government’s irresponsible fiscal management to date.

If you ask the typical American voter about the current economic condition of Greece or Spain and ask them how those conditions developed, most voters will have no idea that those governments borrowed to excess to pay for entitlement programs and a fat bureaucracy of government employees. And it is doubtful that those voters will know that Greece and Spain are implementing cost saving programs which have resulted in either riots in the streets or in public employee strikes on a frequent basis.

Will our United States eventually succumb to similar civil disobedience if Congress and Obama do not get our fiscal matters into shape? We have already witnessed similar protests around the country as state governments have attempted to rein in their spending and public worker expenses.  I have no doubt that the slim majority of voters who elected Obama for another 4 years will be the first to show their disdain when his government giveaways have to be slashed in the years ahead.

As I wind down my days as the On The Right Columnist for DRW Magazine, I can only look back over the past 8 years with regret that I was not able to convince enough voters to elect fiscally responsible local, state, and federal representatives. So now it is time for me to focus on my own personal and family financial goals and prepare for the rough years of economic turbulence ahead. I urge you to do the same.

2013 Predictions - January 2013

The coming year will be a very telling time period for the future of our country. The 2012 election left Washington with the Republicans in control of the House of Representatives and the Democrats in control of the White House and the Senate. Both claim voter support for their positions.

As I mentioned in last month’s column, a slim majority of our country voted last November for a President intent on having a small percentage of our citizens pay even more for government aid and entitlements for the growing percentage of our country relying, in part, on Uncle Sam.

The question for our country, and my second prediction for 2013, is whether that slim majority’s vote is the new norm or was it just a vote against a Republican candidate who did not properly present his vision for our future. I choose the latter and predict the Republican brand will come back as voters experience the ramifications of President Obama’s economic and foreign policy decisions.

My first prediction for 2013 is that it is time for another voice From The Right to speak out on behalf of conservatives in DRW Magazine. I think my thoughts and positions are pretty well known and predictable after opining in this magazine throughout President Bush’s second term and President Obama’s first term. I look forward to providing my final words of wisdom next month.

As for the rest of 2013, I predict the following:

Economy

With tax rates increasing on high income individuals, on small businesses, on estates, and on savings and investments, the economy will sputter along in 2013 despite tremendous pent up demand for goods and services because the money will still not be there for individuals to afford those items. Continued easy money from the Federal Reserve will somewhat help the housing and auto industries as income starved consumers will still have low interest loans and leases available to them.  But the defense industry with its thousands of suppliers and the medical equipment industry will both retract this year causing a notable decrease in our nation’s GDP.

Unemployment will continue to drop slightly month over month as government jobs increases now that property tax revenues are again on the rise in most states. Business employment will remain mixed although I predict the ongoing shift to a part-time workforce will continue now that Obamacare has given economic incentives to do so.

Sadly, President Obama who has less of an understanding of economics than my kids, will continue to borrow 40 cents of every 1 dollar spent by the federal government. He will get political support from the media for agreeing to some “cuts” over 10 years that will be nothing more than an accounting trick. But most of those cuts will simply go to the burgeoning cost of Obamacare as insurance exchanges start ramping up later this year.

Domestic Policy

2013 will be another banner year for liberals as more states enact laws to legalize same sex marriages, Obama will push Congress to support the new dope laws in Colorado and Washington states, the faux battle over “women’s rights” will continue as the Supreme court hears another challenge to forcing employers to cover contraceptives, and an initially non-partisan effort on gun control will turn mean spirited as the country comes to terms with the tragic and tearful murder of innocent children in Newton, CT

Perhaps the biggest issue which our country will face in the coming year is how to finally deal with securing our country’s borders and figuring out a way for illegal immigrants to continue to contribute to our country without being sent home. I believe that children under 18 will be the first to be given a path to citizenship in 2013 while their parents and extended family members will have to wait until after the 2014 election for a solution to their status as the Republicans will never give immediate voting rights to 20 million illegal aliens and Democrats will keep pushing the issue for political gain until they again control the House, the Senate, and the White House.

Foreign Policy

I will give Hillary Clinton credit for putting her personal health and life at risk on behalf of our country as she has traveled to more foreign countries more times than any recent Secretary of State I can remember. But I believe her positions – and those of her expected successor Senator John Kerry – will continue to be bad for our country in 2013. When the Egyptian citizens recently protested their new Muslim Brotherhood President Morsi’s efforts to dictate policies and laws at his own discretion, Hillary said nothing. Just as she and President Obama said nothing when Iranian citizens protested the re-election of Ahmadinejad four years ago.

Our foreign policy under Obama and Clinton/Kerry will continue to put our country at risk of being marginalized on the world stage when it comes to stopping Iran from getting a bomb, from letting the wrong side take over Syria, and from stopping the UN’s push to Palestinian statehood with Jerusalem as its capital.

Happy New Years to you and yours! May your 2013 be as fruitful and enjoyable as possible!