Sometimes one word can make a world of difference. And though admittedly it's probably an oversimplification, much of my angst and frustration with the current direction of our leadership in Washington, D.C. comes down to one simple word.
There is absolutely no doubt in listening to the likes of Nancy Pelosi, Harry Reid, and Barack Obama that they firmly believe in an unalienable right of happiness for every individual. In other words, if government is not ensuring that every individual American gets what they want (or even what they feel they need), then that government is failing its true purpose as outlined in our glorious charter, the Declaration of Independence.
That's why they battle for a "living wage" - a government forced wage that all businesses must pay their employees so they can live "comfortably." It's why they felt obligated to cram through stage-one in the march to government run healthcare despite the overwhelming opposition of the American people. And it's why they are now pursuing a federal government mandate forbidding all airline companies from charging us for carry-on bags. They believe they are meant to ensure our happiness...and surely paying extra for a carry-on, making less than $15 an hour, or having to provide for our own health insurance doesn't make us happy, they reason.
The problem with this is that our Founders never said we were to be guaranteed happiness by our government. Rather, the Declaration states explicitly that the government was to protect our right to pursue happiness. That one word forges a monumental canyon between the goals and purposes of our modern statist leadership, and the intent of the architects of our Republic.
Our Founders wisely understood that even if they wanted to, there was simply no way that any government could guarantee happiness to all its citizens. Why? Because people are too different and unique. What makes me happy might not be - and probably isn't - what would make you happy. How then could any government possibly create a one-size fits all model that would not only pacify the masses, but bring them to the point of total pleasure and contentment? It couldn't.
And so instead, they did something ingenious. They decided to use government as an instrument to protect every man's right to pursue whatever happiness might mean to him individually. Want a nice house? Build it. Want a cushy retirement? Work hard now and save like crazy. Want ten weeks paid vacation? Start your own business, grow it into a magnificent success, and call your own shots.
In other words, they unleashed the individual brilliance of man to a greater degree than had ever been seen before. And the rest is history: the most blessed, prosperous, talented, advanced, and envied civilization in world history. And why? Because government got out of the way and let man pursue his dreams.
Yet despite this obvious reality, liberals and socialists go on touting the theoretical utopia of a government-planned society where no one wants for anything. They are so drunk on the nectar of this fool's paradise that they end up admiring backwards countries. Liberal scholar Tom Friedman is completely infatuated with China, evidently missing their oppression of political dissent and human rights violations. Michael Moore hypes the miraculous government run healthcare system of Cuba, evidently missing the truckloads of refugees that risk their lives to escape to the United States. And yes, I mean truckloads - they are so desperate to leave, they put floaties on a ?57 Chevy and try to sail it to Florida. Ezra Klein, columnist for The American Prospect (which touts itself as "liberal intelligence"), jealously laments that France's government guarantees its workers 30 days of vacation time, unlimited sick days, and full child care. Quick challenge to Mr. Klein: name the last medical marvel, technological gadget, or world-changing innovation to come out of France. Exactly.
I understand why the left worries about giving people the right to pursue happiness. It involves risk. Anytime you give people the freedom to succeed, the freedom to fail is there too. And that's what the left feels obligated to spare us from. But by using government to prevent our businesses from collapsing, our investments from failing, our mortgages from foreclosing, and our lives from suffering setbacks, they necessarily prevent our success. They strip us of our individuality, our autonomy, and our independence, and we become nothing more than chattel slaves...pawns in the hands of those running our lives for us.
That's a recipe for misery, not happiness.
