not with a bang, but with a vote

At the end of the Constitution Convention in 1787, Benjamin Franklin was leaving Independence Hall in Philadelphia when a woman asked him, “Well, Doctor, what have we got – a Republic or a Monarchy?” Doctor Franklin’s words will be forever remembered as:

A Republic, if you can keep it.

Yesterday, with the unsurprising (but narrow) passage of the misnamed “health care reform bill” by the House, we, the American people, demonstrated that not only can we not preserve our republic, we may no longer deserve it at all.

Oh, to be certain, it was our backstabbing, two-faced “representatives” who put their pens to paper and signed their names, but who put them into office? Who allowed them to run unchecked for this long? Who did not challenge their continual grasp for more and more and more power? Who did not shrug off their control as unnecessary, oppressive, and beyond the scope of their intended purpose? Who allowed this monstrous deed to occur?

That is right – we, the American people, did.

Through our complacency and apathy, we have allowed the federal government to appropriate more and more power and control for itself, to the point that it is forcing us to be dependent on it whether we want to be or not. And, as Kevin says, bondage is waiting just around the corner… specifically, in the elections this year – we will have the opportunity to vote out those “representatives” in both houses who did not listen to the wishes of their constituents.

We, the American people, have failed our Founding Fathers and every other patriot who has come before us – the politicians in D.C. are simply continuing to do what we have allowed them to do over the past few decades.

If we vote those scumbags out, we might stand a chance of convincing the rest that we will not tolerate unilateral, totalitarianistic grabs for more power. If we do not vote them out (and I have every reason to think we will not), those voting for them will be voluntarily affixing the shackles of oppression and socialism around their own wrists… and everyone else’s, too.

And, yes, this is socialism – even Al Sharpton has the honesty to admit it these days.

Rather than just continue writing about my general-purpose frustration and disappointment with my fellow citizens, and my outrage and disgust with our supposed “representatives” – an exercise that will only result in this post devolving to an incoherent stream of expletive-laden rantings and ravings – I will instead focus on some things some other folks are saying.

First up is Chuck Norris, hitting the nail squarely on the head:

Mark my words: The terms in this health-care bill eventually will be so far reaching that it will become a major foundation for a fundamentally different America from which will sprout many tentacles that will choke out other freedoms. This is not just a health-care bill, but a metastasizing tool and weapon for all forms of federal intrusion and takeover. Areas that the feds can’t presently cover or control, absence and subtlety in the bill’s language will provide the springboard for their future rule.

Which dovetails nicely into SayUncle’s post-meh thoughts on the matter:

You see, now that we’re nationalizing health insurance, I own you. Well, I don’t actually own you. But I pay taxes and this wonderful new healthcare bill gives me a vested financial interest in your health and well-being. I don’t actually care about you but your choices can cost me money. So, by proxy, I’m going to tell the government that I do not approve of your unhealthy behavior, since it costs me money.

Indeed – if you do, consume, or enjoy anything that might detrimentally affect your health status, every single American citizen now has a vested interest to ensure you stop doing it – after all, their money is now paying for your care, and every last special interest group against alcohol, smoking, fatty foods, high-cholesterol foods, dangerous activities (skydiving, recreational shooting, downhill skiing, etc.) is going to be drumming up those costs like there is no tomorrow. I would toast to our salt-free, fat-free, taste-free, fun-free future, but alcohol is probably already on the chopping block.

Breda brings the high-yield snark:

Now get to work – there is a 500 lb. woman with diabetes somewhere out there in this great country of ours, eating half a birthday cake and smoking her fifth menthol of the day, worrying about her healthcare. You don’t expect her to pay for it, do you?

Right before she joins with PDB in an attempt to bolster our will:

So chin up, you sons of bitches. Walk tall. Be proud, not weary. We are made bigger by big challenges. Rehearse your arguments, prepare your lists of legislators for the fall, get ready to volunteer for the correct candidate and oppose the traitors. Flood the papers and blogs with letters and posts and comments, let nobody forget who inflicted this upon us. Load your magazines and sharpen your knives.

I sincerely wish I could share in their optimistic enthusiasm, but I have seen, far too well, the differences between now and the times of the events PDB mentioned – for example, when it came to putting a man on the moon, people honestly, genuinely, and whole-heartedly cared about being successful. Sure, some of that might have been rubbing off from a particularly inspirational President we had at the start of that venture, but, even so, he did not live to see it come to fruition. LIkewise, things like the heart-surgery-through-your-leg were invented and perfected by individuals who genuinely cared, and the odds are, that will continue, if at a slightly slower pace.

But can you honestly tell me, looking me as close to in the eyes as one can on the internet, that the majority of Americans throughout the country actually care any more? Oh, sure, we care, but how many of us are there? How hard will we be to marginalize? How many people are actively interested in stopping us, much less simply do not care either way? As Robb says:

This isn’t the end. The end was passed a long time ago. This is simply the epilogue.

And that is the crux of the problem… this was not some sudden event. This was not some sneaky, behind-the-back grab. This was not a one-time deal. This is the continuing culmination of decades upon decades of Americans not caring, and the government capitalizing on it. And capitalize on it they have.

So while I agree with Jeff:

Come November,
We’ll Remember.

… and Alan:

I just hope that every one gets what they deserve in November.

… as I said above, I know that not only will the American people let us down, as JayG says:

Those of you hoping that this will lead to some glorious GOP revolution in November, I’ve got one word: STOP. Ain’t gonna happen. 98% of the American public will have forgotten all about healthcare reform by November; hell, by the time the November election rolls around, the people will have forgotten the damn World Series.

… I also know it will not make a damned bit of difference either way, as pointed out by DirtCrashr:

The Evil Party promised the Stupid Party free pie, and like Charlie Brown with Lucy holding the football, the hungry-for-love stupid party took the bite – it’s cow-pie of course.
As usual, the Evil Party fooled the Stupid Party again. It’s just too easy to sucker punch blind worms and feeble-minded mollusks, and thus a Republic has fallen.

In the end, I find myself agreeing more with Larry Correia:

The dems are excited because this means that though in the short term, they’re all going to lose their cushy jobs, in the long term, America just took another giant leap toward socialism. However, since none of them can do math, they’ve set us up for an epic collapse before we even make it that far. I have no idea what is going to happen.

… and Roberta X:

Our Senate is notably corrupt; the Executive rules by decree. Crowds protest and are ignored or slandered. We are living in one of those times of which historians, safe within their carrels, will write with glee. They’re no fun at all to live through.

I do not know what is going to happen either, but given the two extreme possibilities (society bending over and accepting it (possibly even gleefully, at that), and full-on, bloody insurrection), I cannot decide which is worse. I do know which I consider to be more likely.