As we watch the TN House remember....

[johnharris]

"When the government fears the people there is liberty; when the people fear the government, there is tyranny." Thomas Jefferson.

[SomeGuy]

We have been living in a tyrrany for a long time then.

[marshall]

We live in a different time. Certainly the governments do not fear the people. On the other hand, the people do not fear the government, either. The people LOVE more government, and more handouts. Most of "the people" don't know what the Bill of Rights is, and they don't care, either. That's the sad situation.

[johnharris]

True, we have too many people exercising the privilege of voting who, unfortunately, see it as an opportunity to vote for the individual(s) who promise to "give" them more than they "give" to the government. This category of voter see voting as more of a lottery that they hope to win than a civic duty to select the best stewards and statesmen.

There is good reason, in retrospect, why the founding fathers did not see fit to extend the privilege of voting to all citizens. We now suffer because we did not listen to their debates on that issue.

[marshall]

[TacticaLogic]

If we have tyrants, perhaps we should water the Tree of Liberty... I've had just about enough...

For those that would label me an extremist for my statement above, maybe it is time that you take another look at what was endured by our founders and what drove them to the actions they took. Our representation is not what it is supposed to be according to the ballot box... Our election was usurped by gerrymandering in an almost overt fashion. When people so blatantly test the waters of tolerance, you can believe that they are checking to see just how far the citizen will be pushed. The more we tolerate, the more they will try. It is time to rein them back in and let them know that we will not tolerate this sort of action.

[johnharris]

Well said Mike but let me add that just as distance flattens the perceived topology of the moon, distance both from Nashville and from Washington undeniably flattens the perception of the abuses of power of those in governments. Thus, to the extent our blood pressures rise and we sense "taxation without representation" - the actual abuses of government are much greater than we can perceive.

[TacticaLogic]