A Time for Choosing: Look No Further Than The Holy Bible & Principled Icons; From Locke to Limbaugh, Bonhoeffer to Beck
Ronald Wilson Reagan 40th President of the United States
Pixabay
"Less government; get off my back, get out of my pocket."
— Ronald Reagan
"Well, the trouble with our liberal friends is not that they're ignorant; it's just that they know so much that isn't so."
— Ronald Reagan
A Time For Choosing Speech
My Kind of "Influencers"
I knew at a young age that I was for Goldwater, but it would be several more years before I would be granted the honor and privilege of voting.
My very first vote (and I could not wait) went to Ronald Wilson Reagan
I wasn't meant to vote for Goldwater, it wasn't my time yet and, apparently --- it wasn't his either... even with that amazing speech by Ronald Reagan!
My time came with Reagan, and to this day, he remains, my favorite President.
These men were influenced by our Founding Fathers, who were influenced by the great Scholars & Philosophers, who had come before, and helped to shape our great Republic!
The Physician, Philosopher & Educator John Locke, and the great Philosopher and Author, Montesquieu, among them.
These men were very influential in the vision and in the formation of the United States of America.
Thomas Jefferson read the writings of John Locke and they were instrumental in Jefferson's wording of The Declaration of Independence.
Locke favored freedom of thought and religion on moral and practical grounds.
He also believed that Government's role is to protect the lives, liberty, and property of the people, and that they work at the discretion of the people. If they cannot do their job as outlined, they are replaced, by the people, who have the final say!
Montesquieu believed that tyranny comes when one man holds all the power. Political freedom could be achieved and maintained... if that power were to be broken up and divided between executive, legislative and judicial. Each division or branch, checking and balancing the next, resulting in:
Freedom!
Obviously, our Founders were influenced by Montesquieu as well, the United States Constitution, reflective of his beliefs, which incidentally, are Bible-based.
Peace Through Strength
Rush Limbaugh and Glenn Beck took it from there. Rush, via his daytime a.m. radio program, until his passing, and Beck via radio and television, have aided in the continuance of my education in American history and in my tighter embrace of conservatism.
Both men equally passionate and unafraid to speak up and speak out for our amazing Republic. Based not on their feelings nor preferences, but based on their knowledge of how this Country came together, and how it is... and is not, designed to work!
This is the position I am coming from -- whether it's a political subject that I am writing about, in a forum discussion/on social media, or in day-to-day conversations and discussions.
When I am sharing my thoughts and concerns with others on a particular candidate or topic, and most certainly, when I go to vote!
Yes, elections matter, but informed votes matter more!
Ronald Reagan's words ring so true, especially today!
We need for Government to be out of the way... of the individual, of the free-market.
Government's plate is already full (or should be!)
Protecting the Constitution and our Homeland, our liberty, are their number one priorities, and should always be treated as such!
They do this via a build up of our military and military personnel, utilizing the best - the latest cutting-edge technology, the best and the brightest warriors. Whether it's investing in equipment or in our fighting men, the focus should always be in protecting our Homeland & our best interest!
Putting some mighty in our military produces what Barry Goldwater and Ronald Reagan referred to as, "Peace through strength."
The Conservative's idea of a mighty military doesn't mean we wish to conquer or to go to war with anyone, quite the opposite. We believe that when we are secure, when we are strong, and more than capable of defending ourselves, our odds of living in peace increase a hundredfold. No foreign enemy will wish to conquer us or go to war with us, they'll have no desire to mess with us! If they have a lapse in judgment and dare -- they will be met by, and with, a mighty force.
Donald Trump and J.D. Vance have both touched on this peace through strength philosophy, but I do not believe it gets said, explained, or heard by enough Americans.
I don't believe that any of the history I've covered thus far gets heard by enough Americans!
Rush Limbaugh & Glenn Beck
Pixabay
"The first to entertain distinctly the noble conception of two kinds of government operating at one and the same time upon the same individuals, harmonious with each other, but each supreme to its own sphere."
— John Fiske describing James Madison
During the Constitutional Convention, his voice trembling with emotion....
"If to please the people, we offer what we ourselves disapprove, how can we afterward defend our work? Let us raise a standard to which the wise and the honest can repair, the event is in the hand of God."
— George Washington
Dr. Franklin's words were taken to heart -
the divide narrowed, and in the end, we the people were given a Constitutional Republic!
In the words of Author & Historian Verna Hall, "Each religion has a form of government, and Christianity astonished the world by establishing self-government. With the landing of the Pilgrims in 1620, Christian self-government became the foundation-stone of the United States of America."
"Although the vast country which we have been describing was inhabited by many indigenous tribes, it may justly be said, at the time of its discovery by Europeans, to have formed one great desert. The Indians occupied without possessing it. Those coasts so admirably adapted for commerce and industry; those wide and deep rivers, that inexhaustible valley of the Mississippi: the whole continent in short, seemed prepared to be the abode of a great Nation, yet unborn."
— Alexis de Tocqueville on a visit to America in1830
Dietrich Bonhoeffer
Pixabay
Born For Such a Time.....
While I believe that we were all born for a time such as this, Bonhoeffer was born for a horrendous period in time -- Hitler's reign. Bonhoeffer was called and he answered, and it cost him his life!
There is a movie coming out about his life, it will be in theaters November of 2024. I look forward to seeing it and hope it stays true to the story of his life.
It's important for us to always remember those who have refused to remain silent, especially when in the presence of the most vile and wicked men in history. Even when it may, and more often does, cost them their lives!
Bonhoeffer attended school in America and later made a return visit, he was impressed that, in America, the U.S. Constitution limits the state's power over the church, a protection that Germany did not have --- Hitler mercilessly persecuted the church!
In fact, he [Bonhoeffer] was in America when he wrote these words, "I will have no right to participate in the reconstruction of the Christian life in Germany after the war if I do not share the trials of this time with my people."
He returned home to Germany.
I admire this man so much.
I admire any individual who isn't afraid to speak up for what is right, to heed their calling and to be willing to stand in the way of pure, unadulterated evil!
"Silence in the face of evil is evil itself. God will not hold us guiltless. Not to speak is to speak. Not to act is to act."
— Dietrich Bonhoeffer
Our Time
This is our time to step up, to vote our conscience, to vote our convictions, to choose.
We decide our future!
We the people call the shots.
A lot of good men saw to it, invested in it ---
invested in us
The least we can do is show up, informed, ready to do what is in the best interest of our Homeland, and what is in the best interest of the American people.....
For a time such as this, and for future generations.
God Bless America!
© 2024 Angie B Williams
