Length: 729 Words Reading Time: 3 Minutes
Progressivism is regressive in the extreme. It cannot be otherwise because progressive policies and programs only create a demand for more government. Progressive policies also adversely affect our rights and privacy and reduce transparency and accountability. Control, coercion, and dependency are Progressivism’s mainstays. That world view is not going to change.
Progressivism and its proponents and supporters believe that the State (the Government) knows what’s best for all of us. Why progressives hold this belief is beyond my understanding because no evidence that is objective and measurable supports it. This belief runs counter to common sense and reality.
Progressive politicians never provide justification for their actions or the policies they push on Americans. Logic and rational thinking have no standing in their world; only magical thinking does. Magical thinking equates to emotional thinking and feel-good decision-making.
Progressivism began in America at the turn of the century (the 19th into the 20th). We can see the results of progressive policies over the last 120 years. Three facts loom large to demonstrate how progressivism has damaged America.
First, the educational system of our country is in shambles. Our children can’t read, reason, or speak correctly. Homeschooling by parents and the charter school initiatives have been the only solution to this intractable problem that shows any success whatsoever.
Second, in January 1964, President Johnson declared war on poverty in America. In the 50 years that followed that declaration, America has spent $22 trillion without any evident effect; the last five years have likely increased that total significantly. However, poverty is still with us and, as a result of the war on poverty, we have created “an intergenerational dependence on welfare payments,” as reported by the Heritage Foundation.
Third and finally, the National Debt stands at over $22 trillion and continues to grow day by day. Progressive programs created much of this debt because politicians enacted legislation that could not be challenged as to its desired end. However, they gave no thought to the consequences for America’s fiscal well-being. The only saving grace that offers a modicum of protection is that the US dollar is the reserve currency for the world. That could end quickly enough. And, in spite of these outcomes, we continue to elect these characters to the House and the Senate.
The size of government has grown by leaps and bounds, as it continues to stick its nose into areas of national life that it has no business in, such as healthcare. For example, progressives determined in 2008 that 44 million citizens were uninsured. So, instead of focusing on these non-insured individuals, the progressives (led by Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid) decided that legislation was required to revamp America’s entire healthcare system. And, so, the Affordable Care Act was created and shoved down the throats of Americans. If my Internet data search is correct, there are still 27 million individuals who remain uninsured. How is that possible after five years of implementation and over a billion dollars spent to achieve the stated goal?
Progressive policies also continue to diminish our personal freedoms and our rights as citizens. After the terrible tragedy of 9/11, America began its journey to becoming an actual police state. Congress passed the Patriot Act, and the NSA started spying on Americans. The NSA was empowered to collect, store, and analyze all forms of personal communication, such as emails, telephone, and Internet browsing, ostensibly to protect us. These egregious actions continue to this day.
Friedrich Hayek wrote “The Road to Serfdom” in the early 1940s to set forth his ideas regarding the evils of centralized economic planning by the government, which is the essence of socialism. Progressivism parallels Hayek’s ideas, in my opinion, because progressive policies lead eventually to total control of all economic, political, and social activities. We ultimately will become slaves or serfs of a centralized bureaucracy, very similar to the great empires of the Middle East and the dynasties in China and other parts of Asia.
I believe President Reagan was correct and I paraphrase: America is the last best hope for freedom on this planet. The deck always appears to be stacked in favor of those who seek unlimited power. It is up to We the People to stand up for America and push back against Progressivism. The political elites won’t do it, but we can.