Monday, August 9, 2010

What is Dangerous for Some is Deadly for Others in Contemporary America


(Speech from the We The People North Carolina (WTPNC) Event at Covenant Classical School in Concord, North Carolina)
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Good evening, everyone. I hope that you are having a great week so far.


There is a high level of discord currently building throughout the nation, spurred on by everything from accusations of racism and elitism to actual facts and figures showing us that this economy is not rebounding as we need and economic resources for the people are not being as fruitful as we require. It is this discord – this dysfunction in government and this disharmony in our society – that led to the Tea Party Movement that started as a result of our disgust from the 2008 bailouts and the 2009 stimul-LESS bill…two initiatives that spent more American taxpayer money but gave American taxpayers less than we were explained. The disjointed political mindset that has overtaken America has led to our movement. It has led to protests throughout the nation for the past 2 years as frustrated Americans have come to realize that the nation that we have grown to know and love was built as the result of the values of our forefathers, the work of our ancestors, and the daily dedication to an existence of freedom known throughout the world as the American Way of Life. That way of life is currently under attack.


This has led us to this location tonight, just as it led others to assemble at Independence Hall in Robert’s native Philadelphia earlier today. We come together in the spirit of togetherness to decree to our soon-to-be vacationing leaders in Congress and in Raleigh that enough is enough: too much government has equated to too many limitations on the freedoms of everyday Americans. Their actions today and their plans for tomorrow have reached a point where they are taking opportunities, resources, and hope from Americans from all backgrounds. Therefore, we have come to say – as citizens from all backgrounds – that it is time to Take Back America.


When people hear that phrase “Take Back America” – particularly at a Tea Party – the temptation is there to immediately follow the line of thinking that the Rev. Al Sharpton or the NAACP promote: that this 3-word phrase is code to disillusioned White Americans to protest, disrespect, and perhaps even threaten the first Black president of these United States. They believe that the primary energy fueling the Tea Party movement and the increased volume from the protests from We the People comes from racism. They remain skeptical of our actions even as we continue to struggle as a nation. They remain divisive with their viewpoints even as we continue the straight-forward talk that we must have as a community of believers – believers in God and in our nation – as we work to straighten out this mess.

Sadly, their skepticism is natural and, in many regards, very well-deserved.

For decades now, we as conservatives have been too passive in our love for all Americans and too tolerant of the everyday injustices that we see all around us. We have not communicated effectively about why our beliefs in smaller government save all of us from the depression and disillusionment that many people – including today’s youth – battle against. We have said passionately that a high tide raises all boats, but we have not passionately fought to save the sinking ships in our inner city communities. We have not done enough as neighbors and friends to charter the dangerous political waters together so that those that can captain their ships can avoid pitfalls and those that enter the waterways of life without the proper resources can learn how to accumulate them in order to command their lives as fully-fledged citizens.


Therefore, skepticism of our activism and the motivating intent of our movement will be challenged vigorously until we as patriots reach out to our skeptics with a heart full of equality, a mind full of empathy, and a vocabulary full of common sense viewpoints and solutions. Rallies such as ours tonight may spark a nation of millions to act due to taxation and spending, but until we speak to the shootings and devastation in our cities and the lives of millions of African-Americans and others that are impacted, we will continue to be a nation divided. The blood spilled to preserve our nation in the past will be shed in vain due to the blood spilling in our streets today if we don’t speak out of love for a better tomorrow for us all.


What Mr. Jealous of the NAACP, Rev. Sharpton and others miss is that solutions for a better United States are full of liberty and devoid of color. The call to history today is not a call against a historic president; it is a call to be historic in a time where ordinary people can make a world of difference – and a better world for our children and grandchildren.


Last year, there was a call for a tea party movement based on the acronym TEA – Taxed Enough Already. And although there is a clear need for the messages of fiscal restraint and common sense solutions to rebound our challenged national economy, what we are finding is that there is a greater need to communicate a message through a We the People movement in order to heal our land, leverage our ideas into universal truths, and mold our conservative principles into social, economic, and national solutions that work for the citizenry we call family – from the disadvantaged that need hope to those that exhibit to us all that with hope and hard work, the American Dream is obtainable.


Despite the false press releases denoting the decline of America…and despite the notions from current leaders in Washington that detest the belief in American exceptionalism…I stand here tonight to tell you that our nation is still a nation full of visionaries. We remain a nation of dreamers and a nation of inventors. And because we continue to hold dear the truth that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness…we know that we must confront the obstacles before us today and push our activism past the point of being a tea party – TEA…Taxed Enough Already…and make a difference in our nation’s development through a BEA Movement – B – E – A….Big Government….Eradication…Throughout America.



It is up to us starting this evening and throughout 2010 to BEA involved. It is up to us starting today to be patriotic with passion that loves, not with emotionalism that fights our brother and sister with malice. And it is up to us to BEA the ambassadors of the conservative message – and dare I say the classic American political and social message – to those that are skeptical of us today. This is because we as conservatives understand – but others that are not do not understand – that with big government today, What is Dangerous for Some is Deadly for Others in Contemporary America.



That is what I have titled these remarks tonight: What is Dangerous for Some is Deadly for Others in Contemporary America.


It rings so very true with the communities we are struggling to connect with conservatives – and it approaches why we are struggling as a nation with race, with unity, and perhaps even with economic vitality in these tough times.



When people ask me as a proud young conservative and as a Black Republican what I think we must do in order to incorporate more young people and more minorities into the conservative political fold, I explain that it takes two things: preaching the “smaller government, bigger people” mantra that I discuss in my book. It takes more neighbors being more visible leaders in the communities of our nation instead of leaving basic decision-making up to bureaucrats that deal with numbers and self-justifying action plans, not people and life-empowering solutions. I tell them that because of the crisis we face in our cities today, we must powerfully and lovingly explain to our friends and fellow citizens that when it comes to big government, What is Dangerous for Some is Deadly for Others in Contemporary America.



That is the message that our young people must embrace for a better nation where America is an economic, cultural, and military leader throughout the world in the 21st century. That is the message that we as ambassadors must take to Black America in order to bridge them back into feeling as though they are full-blooded Americans, living as though they are full-blooded, and embracing their identity as full-blooded Americans.



And I know that many of you may criticize my use of the term “Black America.” I know that many of you will tell me – correctly – that in terms of our nation, there is only one country involved: the United States of America. I agree with you on principle, for people of all creeds and citizens of both genders have shed blood and incur sacrifices for the sovereignty of this great land. However, as ambassadors, we must deal with truth just as we must enact our plans for liberty as visionaries. And, while speaking in truth and with love, we must – as ambassadors – acknowledge the destruction that big government has imposed on African-American communities for decades now.


We cannot unite America with a BEA movement if we will not admit that big government continues to divide America where very different realties, huge contrasts in life expectations, and rampant every day disparities exist in such a way that many live in a different world in this nation even as we live under the same flag as a country.



This is nothing new. Time and time again, expansive big government has been embraced by politicians to separate our nation from within and separate our citizens collectively from their freedom. From the expansion of slavery within an expanding new nation that just declared that “all men are created equal” to the expansion of Jim Crow in response to Constitutional amendments guaranteeing citizenship…and now to the addiction of urban residents and young Americans to the expectations of big government intrusion in our lives…America has allowed big government to write the rules of fairness, the definitions of equality, and the terms of engagement in these United States. But just as we are learning that the continuation of big government sets America on a dangerous course for the future, we as ambassadors must faithfully inform others that continuing the loyalty of urban voters to big government and its toxic results sets Black America on a deadly course of destruction – right here and right now.


It is time for BEA: Big Government Eradication Throughout America.


And to take back America with our BEA Movement, we must disallow the phrase “take back America” from being equated only with national debt, increased taxation, and federalized healthcare programs. As ambassadors for a better future, another 3-word phrase - “Too much government” – must not be code for our disapproval of President Obama’s domestic direction for the nation or the liberal agenda being directed by Speaker Pelosi. As ambassadors, our TEA Party Movement – T – E – A – must mean that we will be tenacious for conservative change, energized by our patriotism, and accountable to God, our forefathers, and our communities with our political activism. As ambassadors, our BEA Movement – B-E-A – must mean that we will break new ground with our conservations about the political direction of the nation, evangelize limited government with examples that show advancement for us all, and actualize a connection between the lost and the willing among us in order to regain the lost potential of our youth within our cities today.

For us, “too much government” means too much regulation that hinders the business growth needed to bring jobs back into our economy. To that, we say as Americans to our government: get your hands out of our pockets so that we can create more employment for the people of this nation.



However, “too much government” must also mean that too many bureaucrats are limiting those within the welfare system while ignoring avenues of independence…that too many liberals are playing God within the court systems and ignoring fairness and justice for families…and that too many government incentives are wreaking havoc within social systems and ignoring people’s God-given rights despite their economic status. To that, we say as ambassadors to big government: get your hands from around the necks of a disproportioned amount of African-Americans and urban young people, for you hinder their ability to live freely. Big government, you choke off any hope for a life of prosperity and freedom with your growing presence in their lives. That is a message we must take to Black America to reunite all of America under our republican form of government.



For us, “too much government” means the runaway control of career politicians that feed us sound bites and call it leadership – all while they devour chunks of campaign funding and bake up schemes of pork for “preferred constituents” – all while giving the rest of us morsels for our families to survive on. To that, we say as Americans to those that mirror this remark: you have ridden on the backs of the American people for your last term. You will serve us with humility in office or you will leave from office in humiliation in November.
However, “too much government” must also mean that too many career politicians represent Americans living in Gerry-mandered districts that prompt no accountability due to high-level brokering over political numbers, not people’s lives. “Too much government” – as ambassadors in this sense – must mean that we go humbly to African-Americans and young voters and discuss the arrogance that career politicians such as Representative Charlie Rangel and Representative Maxine Waters have while in office for decades. As ambassadors, we must show that while Rangel and Waters make money they should not have and hide revenue they are ashamed off, they face ethics violations in Congress while the ethical, moral, and societal fabric of the communities they represent erodes away. We say as ambassadors to those that mirror this remark: you mock the poor and distraught that you represent in office with your elitism and arrogance. You dishonor your ancestors and ours with the lifestyle, view and status you take for granted at the cost of those whose eyes are weary, whose status is meager, whose safety is compromised, yet whose backs you use to carry votes in your re-election bids and personal gains into your coffers. You advocate big government, knowing that it is the life-blood of your legacy, even as you know that it spills innocent blood in the streets in the process – a fact that makes my blood boil with contempt for you and pumps the heart of activism for a change for something better for those citizens that deserve better. That is a message we must take to Black America to reunite all of America under our representative form of government.



For us, “too much government” refers to the self-serving structures of government waste that are in place to increase government funding – even at the risk of increased government spending and taxation…and perhaps even decreased government efficiency. It means to create government jobs even at the risk of ruining small business opportunities. It means to put into place government agencies with no end-goal in sight at the risk of eliminating faith-based and people-centric solutions that foster more results and healthy citizens at a higher clip. To that, we say as Americans: big government, what you are doing is reallocating resources for the select few. What we believe in as a sovereign nation is creating wealth for the masses. You believe in job creation for you the few. We believe in the ability to be successful as We the People.


However, as ambassadors, we must make sure that the phrase “too much government” also informs our skeptics as to why government is our resource, not our ally…that government is to serve us, not to shape us…that big government is our burden, not our benefactor. We must take both history and contemporary times to uphold our points of views as self-evident truths about the big government direction we rally against. We must remind our fellow Americans that limited government defended our God-given rights in the Declaration of Independence. Larger government gave us dangerous fugitive slave laws that endangered freemen throughout the early United States. Limited government provided amendments to secure citizenship and suffrage. Big government created Jim Crow. Limited government gave us freedom of religion. Larger government has removed God from our public places and schools throughout America today. And academically, smaller government wants to ensure that poor children have the freedom of choice for education, allowing tax dollars to be used at schools that will work to ensure that our youth today are prepared for the job markets of tomorrow. Big government wants to expand the scope and cost of failing schools in urban communities – all while ignoring the drop-out rates from our schools and the violence within our schools.


But, of course, why not do that when we have other government programs to handle those issues? A government handling their lives from cradle to grave will eventually ensure that the cradle will fall into despair and that the grave will be swift-coming in their lives.


We must take to these communities this message: any government big enough to give you a piecemeal to get you through tough times is big enough to break up your families for generations, from slavery to today. Any government big enough to give your child a free lunch in school is big enough to create wasteful jobs within the school system that robs your child of the best shot to get a good job once he graduates from the school system….IF he graduates from the school system. Any government big enough to promise you equality with a program is big enough to keep you in oppression with another program.



As ambassadors, we must say to all of America – but particularly to those hurting the most in America and to those isolated through disparities in communities such as Black America – big government has not been the friend of Americans. It has been the ruse to buy more of your votes. It has been the ruse to take more of your money. It has been the ruse to accumulate more power for itself and it has been the ruse to keep true liberty from more of you.



From the unemployed in America to the rich in America…to White folks in America to Black folks in America…from Southerners in America to native Pennsylvanians in America…big government has no place for the citizen, for big government competes against the Will of the People for the sake of its own existence. It will not forsake the rich or the small business owner in its current conquest, just as it has not forsaken the opportunity to devour the disadvantaged and even much of Black America - in its previous conquests to date, particularly those over the past 50 years.


As we have seen with the destruction of the Black family through the Great Society Movement, the destruction of urban school systems through the imbalanced influence of teachers’ unions, and the discrepancies between Blacks and other Americans when concerning health, prison, marriage, jobs, education, and families – bureaucracy cannot exist without burdens, and big government cannot exist without big crises.


The direction of big government has been dangerous for our national debt, our national sovereignty, and our American Way of Life for all of us…but for the disadvantaged, disillusioned, and discriminated fellow citizens among us, big government – has been – and still is deadly.


To overcome big government today to bring back smaller government…more responsible government…and more responsive and representative government….to bring that back for tomorrow, it will take bigger people – and bigger people means all of us, ambassadors: Black, White, women, men, young, old – all of us, fulfilled with who we are ethnically, fighting to improve where we live passionately, and proud to be Americans daily.


Ambassadors: there are similarities within our diversity that call for more limited government and personal liberty. President Jefferson is attributed as saying in concerns to liberty: "A government big enough to supply you with everything you need, is a government big enough to take away everything that you have...." Black leaders such as Malcolm X echoed the same message when he said, “Nobody can give you freedom. Nobody can give you equality or justice or anything. If you're a man, you take it.”


Malcolm X also said that, “Power in defense of freedom is greater than power on behalf of tyranny and oppression.” Is that not what we face from big government today – as Americans of all creeds? Are we not in a struggle for power over our lives, a struggle against big government that looks to keep small businesses hampered, everyday people overtaxed, government agencies in the lives of young people, and police forces in the lives of millions of Black people as children or adults? Yet, rest assured: our power to defend freedom will overcome the current power from big government.


It is time for us to act.


It is time to BEA – Big Government Eradication throughout America.


It is the only way to bridge all of America together.


It is the only way to save our cities, reclaim the potential of our youth, and rejuvenate our society as an economic engine and a pillar of moral strength for the nation and for all of world.


It is the only way to truly correct this mess created by our years of personal apathy and government expansion. Thankfully, our republican form of government – one of We the People – allows us to redeem our nation through the patriotism of political activists to defend America and the diligence of grassroots ambassadors to reconnect and heal America.

I believe in you. I believe in us. And I believe that the best days of the United States are still ahead of us – because of you.


Thank you for this opportunity to speak with you tonight. God Bless you all and God Bless the United States of America.

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