Ding, Ding, Ding ... Diane ...Round three | Eastern North Carolina Now

    Publisher's Note: This submission is the third in a series that was initiated by Mr. Hayes' treatise, "Physician Heal Thyself," regarding the subtle positives inherit within the political / governing machinations that is today's brave new world. Resident Conservative editorialist Diane Rufino offered her obvious retort and there you have it: Round 3, with Mr. Hayes finding his voice to espouse his fresh counter point.

     Diane Rufino's most recent article gives a very cogent and convincing argument as to why government shouldn't be trusted. To that end, I couldn't agree with her more. Government on any level is in the business of self-promotion and control. The only hard part about accepting that reality is this: the free market system is in the same business.

    I say that with the following economic understanding as my guide: profit is not a dirty word, greed most definitely is. Profit absolutely benefits us all in the short and long term. Greed maximizes gains in the short term at the expense of long term stability. An enlightened capitalist focuses on the economic strength of our country as a benefit to his corporation. The environment on Wall Street is one of quarterly profits no matter what the long term price and zero loyalty to our country. Is that really the American Dream at work? Is that really “decent or productive values”? Greed is not a Christian value that I will ever embrace on any level at any time, yet it is most definitely the order of the day when it comes to modern economics; it is the fuel to the engine of our economy. It may well be “freedom and justice” to some, but it does not bode well for the idea of “freedom and justice FOR ALL” .

     So, I guess my question is this: if people don't trust the government because of its penchant for “entrenching entitlement programs”, why are they so eager to be dependent on the private sector? Aren't we all really dependent on the private sector just as much as the government?

    I found it very interesting that Diane bemoans the “decaying public school systems”, but advocates a lesser role of government. To me, that seems really inconsistent. Please don't misunderstand me on this issue. The decay of the public school system is well documented and there is plenty of blame to go around as to why that is the case. However, public school systems, on every level, are being forced to make terrible choices about the quality of education we provide for our children. I would agree wholeheartedly that the educational establishment has dropped the ball when it comes to what is being taught in school. However, the way to a resolution is not budget cuts where music, sports, and teachers become the victims of an electorate that does not want to pony up more taxes to fund education. This trend will ultimately bite us in the tail as time marches on.

     The hard part about the American experience today is that we are becoming more and more divided on economic, social, and cultural levels. Diane is quite right about earlier immigrant generations wanting to become “Americans”. These people worked tirelessly to fit into our culture and they brought with them a toughness and determination for a better life sorely lacking today. However, the reality is that we have sent mixed messages about immigration for years. Corporations and, ultimately, consumers benefit from cheap labor. The cheapest laborers these days are here illegally and off the books. The ugly reality is that the cost to consumers is less because of them and they work at jobs that many Americans refuse to even consider. If we close the borders completely, we will need to accept the notion of paying higher prices of consumer goods. Americans do not sit well with the notion of reversing the standard of living for ourselves. Yet, if we don't limit the sheer numbers of immigrants gaining access to our country illegally and their access to health care which they will not pay for, we will all suffer the price in the long run.

     I suppose my biggest problem with the Tea Party movement is that it wishes for a time that will never return. The idea of small government in a nation of 320 million people is an impractical myth. The idea that America's problems are squarely due to the overreaches of the federal government does not reflect the complexity of who we are becoming as a nation. I think the comparisons to countries like India, South Korea, and China are interesting but irrelevant. No other country in the world is as multicultural as the United States. All 3 countries mentioned are cultural monoliths. All 3 countries mentioned also provide their citizens with free education and health care. To somehow think we can compete globally in a long term manner with countries that accept education and health care for its citizens, while we toil and bitch and moan about government entrenching entitlements ignores the reality of what is making these countries develop as economic giants.

     Let's further be honest about what the founders of this country intended. In an agrarian economy which had the ultimate source of cheap labor in slavery and the non-existent economic contribution of women, I think it becomes quite easy to see where the founders extolled the virtues of freedom and the pessimism of regulation from government; they only intended freedom for themselves. Again, 18th century America was not, by any standard, multicultural. The founders true genius was in providing a framework and a system that could change with the times. While principled, they never could have foreseen the complexities of modern America and its role in the world anymore than we can foresee what our role will be in the world over the next 200 years.

     In closing, I want to reiterate my respect for Diane's perspective. Ultimately, the great strength of our country is in our ability to adapt, move forward, and our willingness to publicly display our individual perspectives on the issues of the day. We are currently in an environment where the demonizing of opinions we don't agree with is all too often prevalent. When that becomes the norm from people we elect, we must reel it back in through forums such as this.