Hawks and Doves

I'm not a hawk. I'm a dove--a heavily-armed dove.--Jack Kemp

The Hollow Leader

Too many politicians think that the road to success lies in being "open." Too often that is simply another word for "hollow." I believe leaders must have principles, and must stand up for them. Jesse Helms

The Socialization of America

"1. Karl Marx died on March 14, 1883, and was buried in the Highgate Cemetery in London, England. The assumption that Communism died with him was logical since only six people attended his funeral. But the truth is that it had not yet begun its murderous journey through the 20th century.
2. John Maynard Keynes was born on June 5, 1883, in Cambridge, England. His political, economic, and moral influence continues to affect every American.
3. The Fabian Socialist Society was an offshoot of The Fellowship of the New Life, which was born in October 1883 in London, England.
Socialist George Bernard Shaw added: 'You would be forcibly fed, clothed, lodged, taught, and employed whether you like it or not. If it were discovered that you had not character and industry enough to be worth all this trouble, you might possible be executed in a kindly manner.'
That's probably why Margaret Thatcher added that the 'problem with socialism is that you eventually run out of other people's money.' "(emphasis mine)

Noebel, David A. The Socialization of America May 2009 (The Schwarz Report).

Human Nature

At the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia, someone had proposed that the government limit the army to 5,000 men. George Washington, the President of the Convention, is said to have remarked that he was OK with this enactment so long as we also stipulate to the enemy invaders that they can't send in any more than 3,000 troops.

The Siren Song of Socialism

The appeal of socialism is to human weakness--the desire to avoid responsibility and the craving for material gain. It offers security as a substitute for opportunity, and the price is freedom.--Anonymous (possibly Charles B. Shuman)

Honesty

He's honest, but you have to watch him... -- Chico Marx

Priority

I answer first to my Creator, then to my conscience. If that brought conflict or created some pressure, that was the price of doing business the way I thought was right. -- Jesse Helms, Here's Where I Stand

The Politician v. The Statesman

"We need to revive, if only for the purposes of evaluation, the traditional distinction between the politician and the statesman. The statesman differs from the ordinary politician, in that he is able to envisage and inspire support for policies that are in the ultimate, best interest of the most people, and, however rare he may be, we think of him rightly as the politician par excellence. To the extent that the ordinary politician's vision is limited to that which is immediately expedient, to the extent that he is motivated by narrow, sectional, group, or personal interests, we think of him as a failure; and the more narrow his vision and selfish his aim, the greater the failure. The statesman is concerned with inspiring right action, and the test of his statesmanship is his ability to lead public opinion rather than slavishly to follow it. To lead public opinion does not mean to coerce or to beguile the individuals who make up the public but to persuade them by means of argument." John Hallowell, The Moral Foundations of Democracy