Un-Liberaled Woman

Over on Sis B’s blog she puts out question for us conservatives to pony up some answers. (via TryingToGrok)

So, Republicans, what do you think? No sour grapes, no snark, no name-calling, no pointing fingers, no predicting America’s doom at the hand of the Democrats, no slogans, no quoting each other. Honest to god, if the country was in your hands, what would you want to do with it?

I guess it’s time to ante up, so what is my bet then? I’ll try to get through this with as little snarky commentary as possible. I’ll be like Nancy Pelosi at church – silent but deadly. DAMMITT! Too late….

Anylamejoke, to me, here’s the fundamental purpose of the federal government – to uphold the laws of the Constitution and be a central support system (not main regulating body) for the governing individual states.

The state governments should have more power than the federal, but unfortunately this has not been the path for federal politicians greeding it up, like dogs in heat, for more power and fame the last 100+ years.

The more we centralize government into one entity at the federal level, the more we merge into that dictatorship/utilitarianism ruling our ancestors fought so hard to get us away from many years ago.

And to make it worse, our society is being directed toward this governing methodology based on the premise of “free” and greed itself. Politicians are banking their elections on the message/brand of making everyone’s happiness come true instead of teaching citizens our Constitution was about the right to the PURSUIT of happiness, not the guarantee of having a smile on your face 24/7. People need to understand that government’s duty is not the equiavlent to what Nicole Kidman feels like everytime another shot of Botox airplanes it up to her Granny McFreeze forehead.

Also, the government shouldn’t be trying to emulate itself as a private enterprise and then spinning half truths to the JQ public in order to help keep it in business. If America was just a neighborhood and we found out that a local business lied to the community and as a result put the community in financial danger you would sure bet there would be pitchforks a coming. But for some reason when we put it on the national scale, people’s attitude then becomes “it’s not okay, but not enough to get me to do anything about it.” Awesome, America is now the land of Slaters from Dazed and Confused.

Check ya’ laaaater!!

Check ya’ later!

(Awesome tangent alert: I guess then we should start to believe that “Washington was in a cult and the cult was into aliens, man!”)

Here’s an idea – go back to acknowledging government as a civic platform again. If business needs to be done for the collective – outsource it to the private industry, not create yet another bureaucratic-no-results-office to oversee said progragm. Treat government work as a client-vendor relationship; paid for by citizens, but contracted to private business. You’ll increase capitalism, job growth and minimize the need to depend on increased tax revenue among citizens.

If government is going to expand its business credentials into running programs, then 1). make those programs accountable in both a quantitative and qualitative metrics, 2). Make those metrics transparent, 3). transfer federal programs to be at the state level so there is more citizen control over the structure (what’s good for Alaska isn’t always good for Florida), and 4). set pragmatic budget controls instead of always diverting to the same liberal answer of taxing more. Know the limitations of tax revenue and work within your operational/revenue constraints to get the job done. Private industry does it everyday whether they like it or not! But government programs follow none of these regulations, yet insist they need more money. Do we now need a fourth party to police the third party OR do we just need to exercise a bit of spending control and better management skills?

I don’t think government’s role should be to dominate and police our individual lives a la big brother. And when I say that I’m not talking about wire taps on suspected terrorists or those cavorting with terrorists. I’m talking about allowing enough leash for our government to keep us safe while also not coddling us via a nanny state where in 50+ years we don’t even know how to wipe our own nose without help from the government. “Blow for mommie now!”

As to the Constitution, I’ll hear many people chime that it’s a living document and should be treated as such. While I acknowledge that societies change and laws ruling said society should have versatility to adapt under necessary circumstances, I don’t then believe that every opportunity for change is for the better. Basically, I don’t think change should be implemented for the sake of change – Barack “America I love you, now change!” Obama, I’m talking to you.

If we go about making new legislation, those laws should be respected within the boundaries of the Constitution. Let’s respect our elders, and realize that government doesn’t need to butt its nose into every aspect of our lives (marriage contracts, volunteer requirements, military drafts, gun control laws, etc.). And if government insists on butting into our private lives then have some consistency – don’t acknowledge atheism under the right to religion in one arena around the holidays, but then disregard creationists’ right to acknowledge intelligent design when it comes to science/the classroom. Don’t fear women into putting up with abortion rights, but then turn around and persecute a woman for drinking/smoking during their pregnancy. Above all else, as the Declaration of Independence says, I believe our laws should respect our right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness – AND in that order. For without life and respecting everyone’s right to it, we’ll then never get to uphold the others.

As to ideas of changing government itself, here are some additional thoughts:

1. Set term limits on Congress
2. Set salary increase limits on Congress
3. Create online, open bidding processes for government contracts
4. Quit with the quota/minority-owned requirements which then increase costs on government contracts
5. Eliminate withholdings on the income and payroll taxes; make people more aware of how much they actually pay vs. how much they are “refunded”
6. Either privatize or wean citizens off of Social Security; it’s failing – literally – deal with it. If a house’s foundation is broken you don’t just put some spackle on it and cross your fingers for the next generation to deal with it.
7. Get rid of public education – make it private – allow for those who cannot afford school to be granted government funds to attend school of choice. If not, then make public education a two-way street – have tax dollars follow the child but make the child also play a part in applying to schools of choice.
8. Minimize government regulation in certain areas – unions, employee-based insurance, forcing banks to practice sub-prime lending, etc.
9. Do NOT allow federal funding of any organization that publicly advocates for political candidates. ACORN should not be receiving $200 million of federal funds for example.
10. Do NOT force the use of taxpayer money into humanitarian aid or force citizens into voluntary service. This is not government’s role. I think indentured servitude went out of style in the 1800s. Allow greater financial incentives for citizens to be more charitable.
11. To overturn Roe v. Wade, and if that isn’t possible then stop with the expanding of abortion-for-all-like-it’s-going-out-of-style sales in the legislature. We need restrictions on abortion. I’m waiting for when abortion is legal until the baby can actually speak they this Congress keeps going.
12. Minimize the govt.’s ability to approve of what goes on in your private household if consenting adults are only involved. If people want to committ themeselves to one, two, three, blue, brown, black, white, yellow, gay, straight people then who the frick cares – government should stay out. I don’t think government should be redefining religious institutions that our founding fathers adapted from religion into the basis for law in our government. Unfortunately for as forward thinking as our founding fathers were, I’m sure they did not imagine this predicament of redefining marriage. Ultimately, the federal government should be focusing its time on keeping our military men/women safe over sticking its nose in private affairs of adult citizens. Again keep it at the state level and keep it separate from redefining marriage. Call it unions across the board IF you believe different classifications are a violation of equal rights (even though technically its not a violation).  If our founding fathers saw us creating the stink we’ve done over these petty issues while we have citizens risking their lives to protect our freedoms, I think we would all get the good old STINK EYE from them.

Somewhere down the line government veered away from being an entity of civic servants devoting part of their life to uphold the laws of the Constitution. It is now a money-grabbing game of professional politicians, ambition-hungry law students and selling the America’s freedoms to the highest lobbyist on Capitol Hill.  And all while disguising it in the mask of fighting supposedly for “what’s right for the American people.”

Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me.