Friday, August 13, 2010

Government, Power and Abuse

"Government is not reason;
it is not eloquence;
it is force.
Like fire,
it is a dangerous servant
and a fearful master
."
-- George Washington (1732-1799)
Founding Father,
1st US President, 'Father of the Country'
http://quotes.liberty-tree.ca/quote_blog/George.Washington.Quote.5786

Alan Keyes is the first from whom I heard this quote. If it was quoted to me in Civics or US Government, I don't recall. Yet it should be taught in every classroom and home, and hung in front of every polling place.

George Washington was not the most learned or intelligent man of his day (not that he was lacking in these attributes). Yet he not only stood above most of his peers, he seemed more self-controlled. His motives were seldom/questioned. He did not seek the Presidency. And he refused to serve more than two terms, setting a precedence which would be unchallenged until FDR. When leaving the Presidency, he warned against the evil of the spirit of party (of which we are all too familiar today).

With this in mind, we should heed his warning about the nature of government:

  • Government is FORCE.
  • Government is a DANGEROUS SERVANT.
  • Government is a FEARFUL MASTER.

Consider the warnings of some of his contemporaries:

"The greater the power
the more dangerous the abuse."

-- Edmund Burke (1729-1797)
Irish-born British statesman,
parliamentary orator, and political thinker
http://quotes.liberty-tree.ca/quote_blog/Edmund.Burke.Quote.7322

"There is no crueler tyranny
than that which is perpetrated
under the shield of law and in the name of justice."
-- Charles-Louis de Secondat (1689-1755)
Baron de Montesquieu
Source: The Spirit of the Laws, 1748
http://quotes.liberty-tree.ca/quote_blog/Charles-Louis.de.Secondat.Quote.4760

Also consider C.S. Lewis' thoughts on the matter. He writes nearly a century later, and was a first hand witness of the results of such application of government (he was a civilian in Brittan during the air raids by the Third Reich).

" 'Useful,' and 'necessity'
was always 'the tyrant's plea'."

-- C. S. Lewis (1898-1963),
British novelist
http://quotes.liberty-tree.ca/quote_blog/C..S..Lewis.Quote.7377

Government is not a solution to all of our problems (God responsibility). The role of government is to provide for the common defense and provide justice

Be subject for the Lord's sake to every human institution, whether it be to the emperor as supreme, or to governors as sent by him [God] to punish those who do evil and to praise those who do good.
(1Pe 2:13-14 ESV)

For rulers are not a terror to good conduct, but to bad. Would you have no fear of the one who is in authority? Then do what is good, and you will receive his approval, for he is God's servant for your good. But if you do wrong, be afraid, for he does not bear the sword in vain. For he is the servant of God, an avenger who carries out God's wrath on the wrongdoer.
(Rom 13:3-4 ESV)

While these verses do not address this particular issue directly, they do indicate the purpose of government.

Government has its place. 
Yet its place is to be well defined.

This article has interesting news, and possibly implications.
Obama closes curtain on transparency

BE

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