Is America really slouching towards another CIVIL WAR?
Big spending by big government is a recipe for disaster.
Civil war in America, really? Yes, it could happen. The United States, once the most prosperous and advanced civilization in the world, is slouching towards civil war and yes, it could happen.
Corporations consume the most welfare as well as wield the greatest influence in government. However, government dependency is growing in all classes, setting up the nation for future conflict.
PrintLOS ANGELES, CA (Catholic Online) - Think about the little things you can no longer do without. Imagine your cell phone and how awkward you feel when you leave it behind. You make it through the day, of course, because you know you can retrieve it when you get home. Now imagine that you can no longer have a cell phone, because you cannot afford it.
It gets worse. Imagine you cannot get medical care for yourself or your child because it is too expensive, or your Obamacare plan, bloated with years of government bureaucracy and inefficiency cannot help you.
Imagine that the welfare benefits you have come to depend on because the "job creators" created millions of part-time, low wage "Mc Jobs," get cut back further or stop altogether? What happens when the government-subsidized bread and circuses go away?
This is a thought that bears entertaining because if there's one thing we can all agree on, it's that the pace of government growth and spending is unsustainable. Eventually, we will hit a fiscal cliff, a real one, and what happens on that day? What happens when the government credit card gets cut into pieces because we're past due on the bill?
Suddenly, the desperation you once felt by simply losing your cell phone for a few hours becomes desperation you feel all day because you cannot pay your rent, buy food or medicine, or scratch out a living at your dead-end job.
At that point, it's moot whose fault this society is. We can blame laziness, fed by an age of easy government benefits and mandatory payments. We can blame irresponsibility, fed by a world so safe and sue-happy that people are free to act as they will without consequence because they can sue for millions if they break a bone or their feelings get hurt.
Americans are used to the safety net, and relatively speaking, it has become comfortable.
This is not to suggest that welfare recipients and others in the net lack motivation, or that their lives are filled with leisure and largesse. However, we have created an entire social strata that depends on these benefits for daily survival. Self-sufficiency is rapidly being phased out as government gets bigger.
Do not think the uber-wealthy can look down their noses at the bottom strata either. Many of the wealthiest "one-percenters," our great "job creators," happen to be among the biggest welfare recipients of all time. Government contracts, tax-breaks, corporate bailouts, and handouts have fueled the rise of a new bourgeoisie, from whence bursts newly-minted millionaires. These supposedly self-made fortunes are often connected to government money in some way, and these people are equally reliant on the out-of-control government spending in Washington.
As a finishing touch, note the increasing disenfranchisement of all American citizens, as corporations spend millions to buy influence and votes in Washington as though they were purchasing a raw material on the market. In the face of millions of dollars of corporate campaign spending, the voice of the individual is utterly marginalized. Unless you agree with the corporation, you have no more representation.
From ancient Rome to modern societies, history tells us that when governments reach the end of their credit, both the poor and the wealthy pay. The rich lose their fortunes, and the poor often their lives. The French Revolution of 1789, long regarded by historians as the quintessential revolution, shows what happens when the government runs out of money and the people starve, unable to feed themselves.
In the French revolution, a conservative Catholic monarch, friendly to the First and Second Estates (nobility and clergy) was overthrown by the massive Third Estate (poor and middle-class) and replaced by increasingly radical and liberal governments eventually giving way to an authoritarian state.
In the meanwhile, millions of poor were killed, hundreds of the wealthy were beheaded, the Church was stripped of her lands, and wars were started.
France became a liberal, secular state, which today is beginning to reap the costs associated with such runaway policies that include a punishing tax rate for the wealthy, among other things.
Yet, this is our future if we do not address the dysfunction in our own government.
Consider that:
-Our government spends beyond its means
-Does not represent the interests of the shrinking middle-class
-Gives massive welfare to both the poor and the rich, fostering dependency for both
-Continues to strip away by turns the fundamental rights of the citizenry enshrined in the Bill of Rights
-We have lost competitiveness in education, healthcare, life expectancy, many economic sectors, and more (no America isn't number one anymore)
-We are becoming a welfare-dependent service society addicted to imports, producing nothing
What happens when enough is enough? When the rest of the world no longer requires our services and we have forgotten how to sustain ourselves?
The most recent antics in government over the "fiscal cliff" and debt ceiling are only single lines in the drama that is our future. Yet, they scream of the inevitability of conflict. Someday, we will lose our credit, default on our debts, and the gravy train will stop. What happens when the Obamaphones and Obamacare shuts down, and the EBT cards don't replenish?
On the other side of the tracks, what happens when the days of the $1,000 toilet seat end, the big lucrative contracts disappear, and politicians run away from Washington, not towards it.
The video above shows what happens in Spain when the government tries to reverse course late in the scenario. We'd be foolish to think it cannot happen here.
If you think the notion of civil war is ridiculous, you need to look again at the path we're on. It's the status quo that's ridiculous, not the inevitable result.
© 2013, Distributed by NEWS CONSORTIUM.
It gets worse. Imagine you cannot get medical care for yourself or your child because it is too expensive, or your Obamacare plan, bloated with years of government bureaucracy and inefficiency cannot help you.
Imagine that the welfare benefits you have come to depend on because the "job creators" created millions of part-time, low wage "Mc Jobs," get cut back further or stop altogether? What happens when the government-subsidized bread and circuses go away?
This is a thought that bears entertaining because if there's one thing we can all agree on, it's that the pace of government growth and spending is unsustainable. Eventually, we will hit a fiscal cliff, a real one, and what happens on that day? What happens when the government credit card gets cut into pieces because we're past due on the bill?
Suddenly, the desperation you once felt by simply losing your cell phone for a few hours becomes desperation you feel all day because you cannot pay your rent, buy food or medicine, or scratch out a living at your dead-end job.
At that point, it's moot whose fault this society is. We can blame laziness, fed by an age of easy government benefits and mandatory payments. We can blame irresponsibility, fed by a world so safe and sue-happy that people are free to act as they will without consequence because they can sue for millions if they break a bone or their feelings get hurt.
Americans are used to the safety net, and relatively speaking, it has become comfortable.
This is not to suggest that welfare recipients and others in the net lack motivation, or that their lives are filled with leisure and largesse. However, we have created an entire social strata that depends on these benefits for daily survival. Self-sufficiency is rapidly being phased out as government gets bigger.
Do not think the uber-wealthy can look down their noses at the bottom strata either. Many of the wealthiest "one-percenters," our great "job creators," happen to be among the biggest welfare recipients of all time. Government contracts, tax-breaks, corporate bailouts, and handouts have fueled the rise of a new bourgeoisie, from whence bursts newly-minted millionaires. These supposedly self-made fortunes are often connected to government money in some way, and these people are equally reliant on the out-of-control government spending in Washington.
As a finishing touch, note the increasing disenfranchisement of all American citizens, as corporations spend millions to buy influence and votes in Washington as though they were purchasing a raw material on the market. In the face of millions of dollars of corporate campaign spending, the voice of the individual is utterly marginalized. Unless you agree with the corporation, you have no more representation.
From ancient Rome to modern societies, history tells us that when governments reach the end of their credit, both the poor and the wealthy pay. The rich lose their fortunes, and the poor often their lives. The French Revolution of 1789, long regarded by historians as the quintessential revolution, shows what happens when the government runs out of money and the people starve, unable to feed themselves.
In the French revolution, a conservative Catholic monarch, friendly to the First and Second Estates (nobility and clergy) was overthrown by the massive Third Estate (poor and middle-class) and replaced by increasingly radical and liberal governments eventually giving way to an authoritarian state.
In the meanwhile, millions of poor were killed, hundreds of the wealthy were beheaded, the Church was stripped of her lands, and wars were started.
France became a liberal, secular state, which today is beginning to reap the costs associated with such runaway policies that include a punishing tax rate for the wealthy, among other things.
Yet, this is our future if we do not address the dysfunction in our own government.
Consider that:
-Our government spends beyond its means
-Does not represent the interests of the shrinking middle-class
-Gives massive welfare to both the poor and the rich, fostering dependency for both
-Continues to strip away by turns the fundamental rights of the citizenry enshrined in the Bill of Rights
-We have lost competitiveness in education, healthcare, life expectancy, many economic sectors, and more (no America isn't number one anymore)
-We are becoming a welfare-dependent service society addicted to imports, producing nothing
What happens when enough is enough? When the rest of the world no longer requires our services and we have forgotten how to sustain ourselves?
The most recent antics in government over the "fiscal cliff" and debt ceiling are only single lines in the drama that is our future. Yet, they scream of the inevitability of conflict. Someday, we will lose our credit, default on our debts, and the gravy train will stop. What happens when the Obamaphones and Obamacare shuts down, and the EBT cards don't replenish?
On the other side of the tracks, what happens when the days of the $1,000 toilet seat end, the big lucrative contracts disappear, and politicians run away from Washington, not towards it.
The video above shows what happens in Spain when the government tries to reverse course late in the scenario. We'd be foolish to think it cannot happen here.
If you think the notion of civil war is ridiculous, you need to look again at the path we're on. It's the status quo that's ridiculous, not the inevitable result.
© 2013, Distributed by NEWS CONSORTIUM.
- - -
Pope Benedict XVI's Prayer Intentions for January 2013
General Intention: The Faith of Christians. That in this Year of Faith Christians may deepen their knowledge of the mystery of Christ and witness joyfully to the gift of faith in him.
Missionary Intention: Middle Eastern Christians. That the Christian communities of the Middle East, often discriminated against, may receive from the Holy Spirit the strength of fidelity and perseverance.
Keywords: Civil War, government, spending, deficit, credit, conflict, welfare, job creators, McJobs
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Does it take a prophet to know that a 2nd civil war is imminent?
1. DHS hollow-point bullets testify that civil war is coming!
2. DHS tanks, guns, and declare that Civil War is coming!
3. FEMA coffins, enough to bury every American, agree!
4. Diplomatic immunity for the European military confirms!
5. Executive orders to nationalize all private property in the event of martial law declare that civil war is coming!
The list goes on and on, but those who lack the Spirit of Truth will never be convinced, and those who have the Holy Spirit already know that Civil War is COMING!
Marshall Connolly: Astute article. How long will it take for the masses to awaken? Voting in Obama, I think a lot of them must be in La la land! Some of the people are so dependent on a Nanny State that they cannot see through the clear transparent tape which binds them! And apparently do not want too! Secularism indeed has ensnared its tentacles into every nook and cranny of this country. Which is why, some people do not want to wake up and smell the Hobo coffee that they will soon be drinking! Hobo of course, another word for Homeless; for Hunger and Want. In giving up their Faith, some people have also given up hearing the beloved Christmas Carol by Dickens, who so much wanted the people and the government to see and hear what was around them and what living conditions were Really like.
Our Fiscal Cliff or Fall is well described by David W. Cooney. I really enjoyed his first paragraph, as well as his suitable ending! DLL and Paul-Emile Leray gave us many valid viewpoints to ponder and contemplate.I liked DLL's " no budget, no control of spending". I liked Paul E. Leray's viewpoints on "asking questions,the 3 F's, (what foresight he had), and history. All of the other posts are good too, and praising your article.
My question is: How do we stop what has been put in motion and seems just fine with the majority of the people that voted Obama in? And gave all the politicians raises to boot!
What about the people!? What about keeping Our Bill of Rights!? Constitution!?
Are we too Secular and too far gone? My Grandfather who fought in WWI and WWII would turn over! Blessings to all...
A former president of the U.of Chicago allegedly said the 3 F's were destroying the American college experience, a few decades ago: fun, football, fraternities. Did he have a crystal ball? Games, more games, and stupid social clubs. Now? Endless television, reality shows, talk shows, NOISE all over the place, with a society so lost and low on critical thinking that sections of bookstores are filled with 'how to' be 'successful' and 'happy' books. Most people pursue 'success' based on 'cult'-ural definitions of success. Most people pursue pleasures, while thinking they are aligned with happiness. It is NOT possible to chase happiness, since happiness is a by-product and gift. It is grace. Yes, a civil war is very possible. Why were games promoted, often, during the Roman Empire? While people are busy on things of lower importance, the political elites are scheming how to further fleece their own citizens! Ignorance is human. However, ignorance to the point of being so naive as to stand there like an idiot sheep in awe while listening to political speeches; this is truly beyond belief! In this day and age? Education and instruction are not the same. Today? We have instruction: a 'how to' society. Studying some classical literature, a minimum amount of course work in Catholic theology and philosophy, ought to be mandatory before people receive degrees and diplomas. Otherwise? We end up with technicians who view progress as being nothing more than worldly progress, with progress defined as being money and technological advancement. Then? One big long path from the sling-shot to the missiles and rockets for the same stupid repetitive patterns taking place on the his-story-cal timelines of his-story. People ought to be more critical. They should be taught and trained to question authority instead of bowing down to it or gazing at it as if those leading were pre-ordained wizards from another planet. All human life is EQUAL. When disciples become aware the gurus are just as lost as the disciples, the gurus are left without a herd of fenced in sheep. The 1 stubborn cow running AWAY from the herd is the one who does not end up where the other 99 are going after the farmer put them on a path towards the slaughter house. Question everything. If the leaders were so wise, we would have had world peace long ago. It has been 2000 years of stupidity! How many countries on this planet? How many of them are free? Most of them are still ruled by tyrants and oppressive forms of government! 2000 years and this is where humanity is at? Humans ought to be more humble. If this is the level of consciousness after 2000 years, then we are collectively speaking NOT that wise. To those who would place their trust in humans, seeing no need for God, you are simply insane and incredibly naive and ignorant of history. As a matter of fact, ignorance on those levels ought to be jailed! The terrorists are those in government making and passing stupid laws, often! It has been this way for thousands of years. The true criminals are being paid with YOUR taxes!!! When will people wake up?
Paul-Emile Leray
Very good article! Written 100% truth.
I hope Marshall Connolly writes more of the political articles; as sometimes the other ones seem slightly liberal to me...
God Bless
JMJ
Very good article. The recognition of the failed Republics of France was most pleasing.
Many, myself included, seek to separate ourselves from the burgeoning and immoral Federal government.
www.dixienet.org
Today we live in a country without a budget. No budget and there can be no control of spending. Uncontrollable spending means uncontrollable taxation. The bigger the government spending,the poorer the general population because they have to do more and more with less,as cost of living expenses increase and wages remain stagnant. The government trys to blame the rich,when in fact it is the government that is the problem. Raises in income is for the federal employees and for the senate and congress and the private sector pays increased taxes for these increases,with nothing for themselves. This is what the President calls accountability? That is,that the government spends without restraint and to balance the deficit for this increased spending,the general public is taxed more and more to try to balance the inequity of all this unchecked spending. The public is in a state of unsustainable debt do to heavily taxed income and taxation without representation. Capital gains taxes are unfair inheritance taxes because it is a tax after something has already been taxed and it is property of the individual,the state should have no claim on it anymore,as to tax what has already been taxed is unfair. What are sales taxes for? That is the balanced approach that President Obama keeps talking about? If it is than even short of any civil war at all,the country is going to come to a grinding halt. One thing is certain,death and taxes? Couldn't it be possible to literally be taxed to death? The truth? Our government is un accountable and unreasonable. Taxation is becoming unreasonable. Power that is about greed that is abusive,that is the reason for revolt and civil war. Slavery was about the greed of cheap labor and using human beings as if they were cattle,inhuman,expendable,or with little or no value,easiliy aborted,murdered if necessary or euthanised,it happened once in America and it can happen again. Abortion and euthanisia are the reality of our time. The culture of death is politically correct thinking and action,so the times are right for civil unrest.The American worker is becoming a slave of the state,cattle,having to do more with less,because the costs of government have become.unsustainable,unaccountable,driven by those hungry for power,a power unaccountable.
This is a great article. It speaks the truth. This is where we are in America today, we have more takers, then makers and we are broke. And Obama and his democratic evil forces, will finish off America in the next four years. We will end up just like Rome, Godless, no morals and will be burning.
The reality is that we have already gone over the "Fiscal Cliff" and are currently plummeting toward the rocks below. The politicians did the same thing they have done for several years, they have distracted us by getting us to look at the scenery on the way down while they continue to spend us into oblivion claiming they are fixing the problem.
The $1,000 toilet seats were not the issue. The costs of supplies for the space program generally had to do with safety testing to see the effects zero gravity or a vacuum/low pressure environment had on items planned to go into space - such as the release of gasses into the closed atmosphere of a space craft. They were not the "wasteful" spending people have been led to believe. They were also limitted purchases. It is the virutally unlimited, continuing expenditures that have brought us to this plight.
See you at the bottom.
"[...]Now imagine...[...]" - I don't need to imagine that. I have seen it with own my eyes in my country and in USSR. To the whole description only one thing is needed to be added. Fear of stating disapproval of the government, and schools teaching children that they live in the best country in the whole world, and anyone questioning it should be put into psychiatric ward. I mean it.